Beowulf: Analyzing Literature

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Pages: 3

Analyzing Literature

1. Grendel lives in a swamp with his mother. The nature of his origins is that he is a scion of Cain from the Old Testament.

2. Beowulf claims to want to fight Grendel to help the people of Herot but also to the gain the glory for himself. He plans on fighting him with his hands.

3. Beowulf ends up killing Grendel with his bare hand and is celebrated.

4. Grendel’s mother attempts to kill Beowulf to avenge her son’s death. Grendel’s mother and Beowulf are both fighting for revenge, but Beowulf ends up winning the battle.

5. The dragon was guarding a treasure for 300 years and goes on a rampage to get it back. Someone stole a cup from his treasure and the dragon was awakened and attacks Geatland in return.

6. It makes me
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Beowulf symbolizes good, Grendel symbolizes jealousy, and the Dragon symbolizes evil and death.

13. They valued strength, bravery, and generosity. We still value these character traits today.\

14. Anglo-Saxons consider helping out or battling an enemy, heroic. People today consider helpful, courageous, and kind people heroic. In the modern world, we don’t have to fight a monster to be deemed a hero. Martin Luther King is an example of a modern day hero. Beowulf and MLK are both courageous, brave, and stand up for their people.

15. Some of the popular monsters are: demons, aliens, and witches. Popular heroes today include: Eleven from the show Stranger Things, Superman, and Batman. These monsters and heroes are popular because people like gore but they also like pretty endings.

Foreshadowing

1. “But fate had decreed that the Geats’ great king/ Would be no better for any weapon”(lines 909-910). THis lines foreshadows Beowulf’s death in the dragon battle.

2. Grendel’s mother's rampage wasn’t foreshadowed in the epic. I would foreshadow it by saying that it was Hrothgar’s last time seeing his closest friend. I’d also include that Grendel’s arm wouldn’t last too long hanging on the rafters before someone stole