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David Markham
December 12, 2013
ENG 112
Jonathan Rinck
The Ordained Outcome
The debate of fate vs. freewill has sparked the minds, tongues, and pens of many
scholars and laymen alike. No matter what century you turn to, the topic of fate or destiny
arises. It is inevitable. Even the writers of old – Dante, Homer and Virgil – wrote about
the topic of whether the human life was guided by personal freewill or divine
foreknowledge. Almost all the classical writers fall on the side of fate triumphing, or
aligning with, freewill. Fate is clearly shown in the lives of the characters of Achilles,
Beowulf, and Aeneas. By examining the lives of each of these characters, one can
discover that fate, according to the classical writers, is truly inescapable, and that every
individual falls prey to a fate that coincides with his or her preordained nature.
First, the life of Achilles shouts the power of fate to the mountaintops. In Homer’s
epic, The Iliad, even Achilles, described as “strong, swift, and godlike,” has a fate to face
(Homer, p. 110). The reason why Achilles is considered a demi-god is because he knows
what his fate will be. Achilles is bound to either one of two destinies. Achilles can either
live a long, and prosperous life – full of possessions and ease; or Achilles can suffer an
early death but have eternal fame for his name. The choice is a difficult one for Achilles,
but regardless of which route he takes, he is bound to one of these two outcomes.
Achilles is not the only character in The Iliad to face fate eye-to-eye. Every
character dies in a way that distributes divine retribution. Each character falls pray to
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something called hubris. Hubris is a deathly pride which a character develops when he
tries to out-do, or escape fate. In the end, although it is not recorded in The Iliad, Achilles
falls prey to his own pride and perishes young. He dies from a wound in his heel,
ultimately succumbing to fate, not freewill.
Not only is fate clearly displayed in the life of Achilles, but also in the life of
another classical character form a different side of the world – Beowulf. Not unlike
Achilles and the other Greeks and Romans of the past, Beowulf also ascribes to a higher
power. When Beowulf first visits the Danish shores to engage the monster, Grendel, he is
fully aware that his fate is not his own. Beowulf’s battle cry is thus: “And may the Divine
Lord in His wisdom grant the glory of victory to whichever side He sees fit,”
(Anonymous p. 1194). Beowulf completely embraces that his fate, and the outcome of
this battle is not a result of his own exertion but that of divine decree.
Furthermore, after Beowulf defeats Grendel and his mother, he is given a warning
by Hrothgar concerning future kingship. Hrothgar tells Beowulf the tale of how terror
stuck his kingdom after fifty years of prosperity, just as it will happen to Beowulf fifty
years into his kingship. Just as it happened to Hrothgar, darkness falls upon Beowulf’s
prospering kingdom after fifty years – but this time it did not take the form of a shunned
Grendel or a indignant mother, but instead, the form a dragon.
The wyrm that Beowulf must face is not just a giant reptile, but also a wyrd. A
wyrd, simply put, is one’s fate. The dragon itself is an embodiment of Beowulf’s demise.
Every other enemy that Beowulf has faced and conquered had motive; but this dragon has
none. Its intent is malicious. This wyrm embodies everything that Beowulf cannot
conquer. Beowulf is a strong, capable warrior, but even he cannot best something of such
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magnitude without paying the ultimate price. The dragon is the fate of Beowulf, not just
an enemy, because there is nothing Beowulf can do to escape it; it had always been there,
dormant, waiting to one day unleash its terror and administer Beowulf’s untimely demise.
Finally, fate is clearly shown in the life of Aeneas as recorded in Virgil’s Aeneid.
The entire journey of Aeneas from the gates of fallen Troy to the land that would later be
called Rome is entirely a tale of fate, and not of choice. The tale of Aeneas really starts
when he flees the besieged city of Troy with his family. Aeneas is prompted to flee, not
by his own human notions, but rather a divine calling. The ghost of Hector, a fallen hero,
visits sleeping Aeneas to warn him that Troy has fallen. “Give up and go, child of the
goddess,” Hector prompts. He goes on to say that it is the fate of Aeneas for him to find
“great walls that one day you’ll dedicate” (Virgil, p. 960-961). This is Aeneas’ call: to
find and found Rome.
Throughout the journey of Aeneas, fate is the deciding factor in all his major
decisions. For a while, Aeneas stays with a queen by the name of Dido, because both
Juno and Venus willed it. After the allotted time was over, Aeneas was prompted to
leave, again not by his own will, but the will of the gods. Aneas tells Dido that he would
stay “If fate permitted me,” (Virgil, p.984). And he goes on even to say, “I sail for Italy
not of my own free will” (Virgil, p. 985).
One of the striking differences between Aeneas and other Greek and Roman
figures is that he completely accepts his fate and denounces his freewill. At the end of his
journey, his fate is accomplished and Rome is founded in the land promised.
Through the lives of these characters, one can clearly see how classical writers
had a proper grip on whether or not our lives are governed by freewill or fate. Christians
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must know and believe that God is sovereign, even if we do not understand it. The writers
of old provide a good perspective for how we view our lives. If mythical gods have grand
plans, then it should be given that the true God of the Bible has an even more splendid,
perfect plan that will come to pass.
Works Cited
Anonymous. "Beowulf." The Norton Anthology of Western Literature. Ed. Sarah Lawall.
New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006. Print.
Homer. "Beowulf." The Norton Anthology of Western Literature. Ed. Sarah Lawall.
New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006. Print.
Virgil. "The Aeneid." The Norton Anthology of Western Literature. Ed. Sarah Lawall.
New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006. Print.