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In these notes, you will find a thorough analysis of the anonymous Old English poem, Beowulf. The poem, which tells the epic story of a hero's battles against monsters and dragons, is a...
The poem can be categorized into two sections: A and B. A-sections include the
cultural information, side stories, and historical context whereas B sections are
action sections including Beowulf's fights with monsters.
Structure of the poem:
■ little use of rhyme
■ alliteration
■ narrator: 3rd person omniscience (can see across time and different
prospectives)
Note: Also one of the important functions of the narrator in the poem is that it can
canalize and even manipulate the reader's perception of the core themes such as
honor, power, disgrace, good and evil. He/she mostly uses Christian references and
connotations to criticize one specific action of the characters or to point out
something is evil/wrong.
Examples:
Grendel is considered evil not only because he kills people but because he was
exiled by God.
Also, Pagan Gods were referred to as "evil": "The Almighty Judge of good deeds
and bad, Lord God, Head of the Heavens and High King of the World, was unknown
to them." (page 15-line 181)
The narrator is like the spokesman of God. He decides what is good or bad
according to God.
Grendel the demon:
■ descendent of the biblical Cain, son of Adam and Eve, who killed his own
brother Abel
■ he is envious and angry towards mankind, probably because he is an
"outcast of God" but humans were blessed by God while he can never be
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