Essay: Anglo-Saxon Written Response Exam (Beowulf, The Wanderer, Wulf and Eadwacer, Manhood and Heroism)

Anglo-Saxon Written Response Exam
a.) On the perspective cowardice, Beowulf and “The Wanderer” are opposites because no matter how mighty the foe or how tough the challenge, Beowulf never relents and fights against his demise in most of his battles, whereas The Wanderer’s cowardice is summarized as uniformed suffering. The Wanderer, a solitary figure who has been estranged from his community, “Often the lone-dweller waits for favor, mercy of the Measurer, though he unhappy across the seaways long time must stir with his hands the rime-cold sea.” (1-4). Instead of taking action for things that he wants, he sits, waits, and hopes for them. In Anglo-Saxon culture, which is of Pagan belief, believes that all men must take action and fight for what they want. On the other hand, Beowulf is the epitome of courage: “Inspired again by the thought of glory, the war-king threw his whole strength behind a sword-stroke and connected with the skull. (2677-2680). Beowulf, raised on Pagan practices, can have his courage outshine his pride due to his Christian beliefs but throughout the poem, Beowulf will have episodes where his materialistic views can be seen.
b.) The female speaker in “Wulf and Eadwacer” and Wealtheow in “Beowulf” both set new standards for Anglo-Saxon femininity because they live in societies where they have the near equal social status to the males but are still not allowed to have private influence or intervention in public affairs. In “Wulf and Eadwacer,” the female speaker states, “My clan’s curs pursue him like a crippled game; they’ll rip him apart if he approaches their pack” (I, 1-2). The Shift in the gender roles of their society can be seen as she can speak of a man about to be gruesomely murdered. The importance of this poem is how it portrayed life through the eyes of a woman, a portrayal like this was not common during this time. Another shift in gender roles takes place when Wealtheow speaks in “Beowulf”: “Be acclaimed for strength, for kindly guidance to these two boys, and your bounty will be sure.” (1219-1220). What she said is usually something that is stated by a king because they are the ones who can send out warriors, but Wealtheow speaks for herself, the King, and her people.
d.) Beowulf’s “resurrection” according to the heroic monomyth occurred in both of the trials of Grendel’s Mother and the Dragon, but in each trial his “resurrection” occurred in two completely different ways: In the battle with Grendel’s Mother Beowulf resurrects as a God-like earthly figure, whereas in the battle with the Dragon he resurrects as a God-like spiritual figure. In the trial with Grendel’s Mother, “A light appeared and the place brightened the way the sky does when heaven’s candle is shining clearly.” This sword has implications of God and Beowulf can wield and succeed with it. In the battle with the Dragon, Beowulf resurrects as a spiritual figure because he never makes it out of the battle alive: “His soul fled from his breast to its destined place among the steadfast ones.” (2814-2820). Beowulf dies in confusion; however, his death is marked by a resurrection: Beowulf, who was raised on Pagan practices, always had episodes where he showed glimpses of his love for gold and glory, but at this moment in time, has now returned to Christianity and is ascending to his final destination, Heaven.
e.) The trait of agenorie described in “Manhood and Heroism” is shown as having an abundance of manliness, which is seen as an essential component of a heroic character by the author Michael Clarke, but Beowulf complicates that statement of the classical heroic concept with his Christian beliefs.
Agenorie means to have abundant or excessive manhood. This is seen as a determination to assert dominance and triumph over enemies at any cost. Clarke interprets agenorie as, “the abstract noun corresponding to the adjective Agenor, literally ‘having abundant or excessive manhood’” (80). Agenorie is the root of the “kill or be killed” mindset that can be observed in most Iliadic heroes. It creates the feeling of needing to be known, which leads to heroes performing dangerous acts just to prove their manliness and assert their dominance. The declining world theory contains the same mentality of glory at all costs: “[The] driving force behind manhood is the need for praise and admiration, such as will enable one to face death with equanimity and see that a soldier’s death in war is not necessarily worse than disgrace”(78). Pagan nihilistic heroism will always struggle to emerge from Christian historical and social repression.
Beowulf contrasts this belief with his Christian culture. Beowulf was raised on Pagan beliefs but as the poem progresses his Christian relationship with God strengthens and according to the heroic monomyth, he becomes a spiritual God once he dies. Clarke believes that agenorie is a necessary characteristic in all heroic characters but “Beowulf” disproves that: “The Almighty Judge of good deeds and bad, the Lord God, Head of the Heavens and High King of the World, was unknown to them” (180-184). The narrator admits that he feels sorry for the pagan ancestors of the Anglo-Saxons, who didn’t have the opportunity to turn to a Christian God for help. The poet firmly states that faith is ordained by God in the quote, “It is a great wonder how Almighty God in His magnificence favours our race with rank and scope and the gift of wisdom; His sway is wide. Sometimes he allows the mind of a man of distinguished birth to follow its bent, grants him fulfillment and felicity on earth and forts to command in his own country” (1724-1731). Beowulf is not a warrior of strength or manliness but he is a warrior of God. In the battle with Grendel, he fights him with no weapons because Grendel is immune to them and he wants God to “take the wheel” in his battle and Beowulf uses this tactic ultimately until his demise in the battle against the Dragon.
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