Essay on "Heroic Ideal and Heroic Paradox in Beowulf"

Essay 3 pages (1154 words) Sources: 1

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Beowulf

The titular character of the epic poem Beowulf exemplifies the paradoxical image of the heroic ideal as it pertains to the Anglo-Saxon culture of his time, because the greatness in battle that he achieves during his life is considered incomplete until he concludes it with a glorious, violent death. In line the heroic ideal, Beowulf seeks out challenge and danger in order to test hist mettle, and finds Grendel and his mother, who he almost easily defeats. These actions bring him great renown and even allow him to become king of his homeland, but while these feats of strength and courage demonstrate that he is mostly in line with the heroic ideal, he cannot be considered truly heroic until after his death, and thus the poem skips forward to end of his reign, when he finally is allowed a heroic death at the hands of a dragon that had been terrorizing the land. Examining Beowulf's stated intentions for seeking out Grendel and his reaction to his own impending death reveals how he intentionally embodies the heroic ideal and even recognizes some of the irony in the fact that this ideal will not be met until he faces his impending death, a death that he knows must come.

The first moment when it becomes clear that Beowulf is attempting to embody the Anglo-Saxon heroic ideal comes when he is confronted by one of Hrothgar's men, who questions him as to his intentions. While Beowulf is careful to respectfully honor Hrothgar, who he calls the "nation's shield" despite the fact that he is "stricken and helpless" in the face of Grendel's attacks, it is clear that Beowulf's interests lie primarily in finding some heroic deed that will serve as a suitable challenge (Heaney 11, 19). Beowulf says he is looking for "this threat, whatever it is, / this danger abroad in the dark nights, / this corpse-maker mongering death" in order to "settle the outcome in single combat" and so continue his long line of victories, such as the times he "battled and bound five beats, / raided a troll-nest and in the night-sea / slaughtered sea-brutes" (Heaney 21, 29). Although older diplomatic ties play a minor role in Beowulf's decision to aid Hrothgar, it is clear that he is doing so because he wants to live up to the heroic ideal by besting the most challenging foes until the inevitable point that he finds one he cannot defeat, and thus dies a hero's death, rather than to "follow up an old friendship," as Hrothgar states (Heaney 27). After his fight with Grendel is over, Beowulf states that he has "gone through a glorious endeavor," and only many lines later does he acknowledge the numerous people Grendel has killed; for Beowulf, the fight itself is more important than the context, because it is only in battle that he can prove himself and ultimately die an honorable death (Heaney 65).

Beowulf's demeanor prior to his fight with the dragon could not be more different from his initial giddy desire to battle Grendel, as he is well aware that he is finally facing his end. According to the narrator, "he was sad at heart, / unsettled yet ready; sensing his death," because although he is old and ready to die, only in old age, after the death of some of his friends and loved ones, does he realize that there may be something more to life than fighting and heroic… READ MORE

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