EPIC POETRY
EPIC HERO
EPIC CHARACTERISTICS
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The hero is a figure of great national or even cosmic
importance, usually the ideal man of his culture. He
often has superhuman or divine traits. He has an
imposing physical stature and is greater in all ways
than the common man.
The setting is vast in scope. It covers great
geographical distances, perhaps even visiting the
underworld, other worlds, other times.
The action consists of deeds of valor or superhuman
courage (especially in battle).
The style of writing is elevated, even ceremonial.
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Main characters give extended formal speeches.
EPIC HERO
• The most important element is the hero. The
hero of an epic is a human being with
characteristics a society admires and often
wishes to emulate.
• The hero is male, attractive, and unusually
strong and able.
• He is a trained solider or warrior and believes in
and follows the code of honor for which he is
willing to sacrifice his life.
• He fights for the noble cause: those who cannot
defend themselves, usually women and children;
the preservation of a society; honor; and the
noble way of life.
EPIC HERO
• The hero is considered better in most respects than the
common man.
• However, the hero is also in many ways the same as the
ordinary man.
• He has the same longings and desires as any man might
have: the desire to be beloved and respected by his own
people; the desire for some degree of wealth or material
comfort; the desire for a family with children, especially
sons like himself; the desire to stand out above his fellow
human beings in some way; the desire not to being
shame to himself or his family in any way.
• The hero also hopes that the divine will favor him and his
cause.
EPIC HERO
• The Epic Hero is a larger-than-life hero who
embodies the values of a particular society.
• An epic hero is superhuman. He is braver,
stronger, smarter, and cleverer than an ordinary
person
• The epic hero is on a quest for something of great
value to him or to his people
• The villains who try to keep the hero from his
quest are usually uglier, more evil, and more
cunning than anyone we know in ordinary life
COMITATUS
• Comitatus is the basic idea that everyone
protects the king at all costs even if it
means a warrior giving up his own life.
• If a king is killed, the warriors must avenge
the death of the king or they can no longer
serve as warriors for the next king.
• Notice how there is the motif of eating,
sleeping, dying all the way through the
text, and all of it is done as a "team" even
to the passing of the cup uniting the group
of warriors.
• They stayed in the meadhall while the king
slept in an adjoining "apartment" so they
could constantly protect him.
COMITATUS
• Beowulf is also a good text to demonstrate
how comitatus died with the Anglo-Saxon
period. Notice how at the end of the text
only Wiglaf follows Beowulf into the battle
with the dragon.
• When Beowulf goes into the various
battles, there is a progression of the
comitatus dying with the behavior of the
warriors: the warriors are sleeping, then
stand on the bank waiting, and the third
time only Wiglaf goes with him.
• Names are changed from “thane” to
“earl”
Review
• Christianity is becoming a part of the community.
The poet will integrate pagan and Christian
beliefs. Time frame of the story is pre-Christian;
but, story written during Christian times.
• Scyld (pronounced “shield”)
• Ancestor to Hrothgar
• Foundling – infant abandoned by parents
• Founder of the Danish line of kings
• Good king
• Died – buried at sea - Sutton Hoo
• Common burial tribute; put body in a boat, fill
with treasures, set it out to sea, funeral pyre –
Vikings tradition
More
• Kenning – ring-bestower (21)– king gave rings
as gifts and to the heir to the throne
• Personification – “ship’s embrace” (21) – loving,
caring vs. angry grip – great respect for the king.
This will be his coffin.
• Hrothgar
• King of the Danes
• Built his mead hall – Hall of the Hart – Heorot
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Hart – stag was a symbol of Germanic
kingship.
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Pun – Hart – Heart – king loved his people
• Lines 54-55 – comitatus; king shared all he had
with loyal thanes
More
• Alliteration – “h” lines 54-55 hall rose high and horngabled, holding its place – image of heaven. Mead hall
given heavenly respect, honor
• Grendel
• Evil spirit
• Darkness
• Seed of Cain
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Cain murders his brother Abel and is driven into the
wilderness by God. Legend states that his offspring
included monsters, cannibalistic trolls, elves, goblins.
• Dwells in the outer darkness
• Norse mythology – draugar – animated corpses; roam
about at night wreaking vengeance. Supernaturally
strong and invulnerable; has a mother called a ketta, or
“she-cat” who is more monstrous than the son.
• Poet refers to the paganistic idea of monsters, and the
like with the Christian story of Cain and Abel
Alliteration
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Page 11
Lines 60 – “s”; 62-63 – “h” and “w”
Lines 70 – 73 – “b”, “m”, and “g”
Lines 77 – 84 – “w”, “f”, “g”, “s”, and “d”
Page 12
Lines 87 – 91 – “w”, “h”, “s”
Lines 100 – 129 – “s”, “b” “r” “t” “s” “m”
“h” “d”
More
• Grendel
• Physical ugliness of Grendel = ugliness of
man without God
• Attack paganistic beliefs
• Evil of Grendel = evil of Satan -difference Satan takes our soul with
deceit; Grendel devours our temporal life
• Page 13
• End of line 129
• Hrothgar – despondent; despair, lost –
pagan. Struggle with Christianity
The Coming of Beowulf
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Epic characteristics – lines 133 – 134
Kenning – line 136 – swan-road = ocean
Lines 145 – 161
Beowulf and his men are coming to “save the
Danes”
Simile – line 154
Line 168
Hrothgar’s thane on watch
Line 180
Beowulf is recognized as an epic hero
Line 192
More
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Beowulf speaks
Long-winded speeches – epic hero characteristic
Remembers Hrothgar’s kindness to his father
Personification
Page 14
Line 224
Boar was sacred to the Norse god Frey, a
desperate fighter
• Germanic tribesmen used the boar’s head as a
magical decoration for their helmets
• Line 234
• Guard may be a Christian Dane
More
• Page 16
• Line 279 – “O gracious Hrothgar, refuse not the
favor!”
• Hrothgar’s thane implores him to listen to
Beowulf.
• Line 283 – Hrothgar knows Beowulf, through
his father; Hrothgar had saved Beowulf’s
father years ago, by paying his “wergild”.
• He recognizes Beowulf as an epic hero – “his
hand-grip has thirty men’s strength. God, in His
mercy, has sent him to save us” (Christian
belief from Hrothgar)
More
• Page 17 - 18
• Beowulf Tells Hrothgar of his mighty
feats…He is here to save them – Not
arrogant; factual as to his capabilities.
Lines 320-347.
• Beowulf will kill Grendel with his bare
hands; he has that much confidence in his
own strength.
• Line 345 - 361….Beowulf demonstrates
Christian beliefs in God mixed with pagan
beliefs in the Fates….It may be his “fate”
to die, but it will be God’s will for him to
live or die.
More
• Page 18 – 19
• Unferth – Hrothgar’s “favorite” at the time; very
jealous of the “new kid” Beowulf. Discussion of
swim match that Beowulf lost.
• Lines 410 - 457
• Beowulf admits losing the match, but it was
because of the monsters in the sea that he had
to destroy, thus protecting future sailors from the
creatures of the sea. Attacks Unferth’s loyalty,
in that he committed the most heinous crime of
“fratricide” ; he will surely be condemned to Hell
for killing his brother and breaking the code of
comitatus.
More
• Page 20
• Line 520 -521
• Beowulf’s thanes understand the idea of comitatus.
They understand that they may not return home. They
accept their fate.
• Lines 533-535
• Image of Grendel – hated by God; pure evil
• Page 21
• Line 564 – Kenning – sea-geat = Beowulf
• Line 567 – epithet – phrase that characterizes someone.
– “shepherd of evil” –Grendel
– “shepherd of good” – Christ
– God vs Satan – Satan loses
Line 605 – epithet – “foe of God”; “hell-thane”
Grendel vs Beowulf
• Weapons can not harm Grendel. Beowulf
tears Grendel’s arm off at the shoulder
and hangs it from the rafters. Grendel
escapes, though he is mortally wounded.
Celebration in Herot.
• Grendel’s retreat to the lake is traced,
boiling with Grendel’s blood. Hrothgar
praises Beowulf. Beowulf wishes he had
been able to kill Grendel in the hall and
keep the monster from escaping.
Grendel and Mom
• Page 22 – Lines 656 – 665 – Image of
Grendel’s home = HELL
• Page 23 Lines 718-719
• Unferth’s attitude has changed; more
humble; understands the greatness of
Beowulf
• Lines 744-755
• Hrothgar’s promise – comitatus – rewards
beyond belief to Beowulf for his bravery
and killing of Grendel
Grendel’s mom
• Page 28 - 30
• Grendel’s mother comes to Herot to
avenge Grendel. She kills Aescher,
Hrothgar’s long time friend.
• Lines 820 – 825 – poet’s discussion on
the weakness of women shown through
the fact that Grendel’s mom can only
snatch one thane and run away.
• Page 29; Mom’s home: Pit of Hell – Lines
875-884; animals would rather die than
drink from the lake.
More
• Beowulf again agrees to avenge Aescher’s death. At
the lake, Aescher’s severed head is on the rock.
Unferth gives Beowulf his sword, Hrunting, and Beowulf
dives into the lake after Grendel’s mom.
• Page 31 – kenning – mom = sea-troll; she-wolf (line 905)
• Line 906-1000 – chain mail protects Beowulf
• Grendel’s mom is also impervious to weapons. Hrunting
is useless. Beowulf finds a sword made by giants. He
kills Grendel’s mom with it and severs Grendel’s head.
• Page 32 - Hrothgar believes that Beowulf is dead; goes
home. (Loss of faith) Beowulf’s men stay by the lake,
hoping and waiting.
• Lines 1095-1098 Beowulf rises from “the dead”. Holding
the monster’s head and the precious hilt blazing with
gems; blade dissolved. Super strength of epic hero.
More
• Lines 1130 – 1140
• Hrunting was of no use; Beowulf remains
silent about it. Thanks to God for showing
him the giant’s sword and helping him kill
mom.
• Epic characteristic – gives credit to God
and humility
• Beowulf offers the magic sword’s hilt to
Hrothgar; Hrothgar warns Beowulf against
pride and selfishness. Beowulf and his
men go home.
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Dragon – victim or criminal?
• Page 37 – 42
• Beowulf now king of the Geats – 50 years
later
• Servant steals gold chalice from treasure
being guarded by dragon.
• Dragon looks for the servant, can’t find
him; wants revenge; begins to destroy
Geatland
• The Dragon = Evil?????
• Page 38 – lines1393 – reference to the dragon
being a “worm”. The image of a snake is one of
evil and Satan. A worm is a problem, but not
necessarily evil. The poet calls the dragon a
worm several times to make this point.
• Line 1436 -1438 – Beowulf prepares for battle;
shield must be of metal, because fire will destroy
a wooden shield.
• Page 39 – Lines1470 – 1474 - Beowulf realizes
that he will probably die, because he is so old;
but, still maintains epic hero qualities and the
sense of comitatus.
More
• Page 40 – Wiglaf – only thane who truly follows
the code of comitatus. Stays with Beowulf
through fight and death of dragon. All other
thanes run for the forests – cowards.
• This will come back to haunt them; their refusal
to follow code of comitatus will follow their
descendants. They will never have the love and
protection of kings to follow after Beowulf.
• Page 44 – Beowulf dies; Wiglaf is given
kingship; Beowulf has no heir, gives ring as sign
of rule of the land to Wiglaf.
• Page 45 – Wiflaf admonishes the Geats for their
desertion of Beowulf. In honor of their king, the
Geats build a pyre for Beowulf.