Grendel
And After that it's Elephants All the Way Done

Wagner's Grendel is one of the most finely crafted pieces of postmodern fiction because it performs both of the functions with which postmodern literature is tasked. First, it is a work of literature that shines on its own, that offers a significant reward to the reader regardless of whether or not the reader is familiar with literary traditions. Second, the work addresses, incorporates, and analyses traditions of a particular literary form. Grendel is a delight to read while also allowing the reader to explore some of the most important and enduring narrative traditions in Western literature.

Grendel, which was published in 1971, is a parallel novel in that essential to its structure and meaning is another novel. Because it is beautifully written Grendel can stand on its own as a work of art. But because it is based on the Anglo-Saxon epic poem…...

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References

Currie, M. (Ed.) (1995). Metafiction. New York: Longman Group.

Fludernik, M. (1996). Towards a 'Natural' Narratology. London: Routledge.

"The Empire Writes Back: Jane Eyre." Faculty.pittstate.edu. http://faculty.pittstate.edu/~knichols/colonial3c.html.

'Gone With the Wind' parody draws challenges, supporters." http://www.cnn.com/2001/fyi/news/04/13/wind.done.gone/.

Grendel by John Gardner and Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut.
Grendel by John Gardner

The Development and Validity of Knowledge

In the beginning of the novel, Grendel is a large and frightening monster who enjoys killing and eating people. It is however revealed that he is also intelligent, and that he can theorize about the meaning of life and tell sophisticated jokes. He however hates almost everything.

He hates his mother, for her inability to speak or reason. He also hates animals for their stupidity, and he hates the sky for ignoring him. This hatred is born of painful knowledge.

When Grendel was young, his foot was caught between two trees. While he was trapped and crying for his mother, Hrothgar's men approached him and attacked him for no other reason than that he looked monstrous. This gave Grendel the knowledge that human beings were cruel to those they did not understand and thus…...

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Bibliography

Gardner, J. Grendel. Vintage Books, 1989

Vonnegut, K. Cat's Cradle. London: Penguin Books, 1963

Studying the Iliad shows the reader that war, even in the long past, was not always viewed as glorious. The Greeks viewed it as an evil necessity. That is why when Thresities suggests that the Greeks leave and go home, he is condemned by Odysseus. But the war is never a joyous pursuit, and many of the warriors, such as Odysseus, regret ever being forced to participate in the war at all, no matter how many titles and spoils they might win. The Iliad teaches the reader that hatred of violence is not something new to our modern society, but has existed since the beginning of time.

Paradise Lost teaches a similar lesson, showing the evils of war dramatized in the persona of Satan, who, even after being defeated by God is still determined to inflict his evil upon the world:

What though the field be lost?

All is not lost; the unconquerable…...

Coming across Hrothgar and Unferth, Grendel further realizes that the human society is immoral and that people having nothing against harming other people. Unferth, however, presents Grendel with the concept that life sometimes has a meaning, but that only heroes can discover it.
The final scene, where Beowulf battles Grendel, contributes in having the monster understand the meaning of life, as it is informed by the Geatish hero that life is mainly important because of its continuity.

Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

A great number of epic quests have been written through history, most of them having men as their protagonists. In epics, women generally have the role of assisting male heroes in their quest, without intervening in any way to obstruct them. Epics from Ancient Greece, from India, and from Mesopotamia all have women as secondary characters. This does not necessarily have to be considered an example of discrimination, as…...

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Works cited:

1. Gardner, John. (1971). "Grendel." Alfred A. Knopf.

2. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Dir. Ang Lee. Columbia Pictures, 2000.

Beowulf and Grendel's Mother
Among the most enduring examples of English literature in existence, the anonymously penned epic poem Beowulf has been translated from Old English to hundreds of languages during the course of the last ten centuries. The heroic tale of Beowulf, the great warrior king of the Geats who comes to the aid of his fellow monarch Hrothgar when their kingdoms come under attack from the feared monster Grendel, represents a masterful work of structured storytelling. hile the primary focus of the poem remains of its protagonist Beowulf, many literary critics have become intrigued by its complex depiction of Grendel's mother, the fiercely defensive matriarch of the swamp monsters terrorizing both kingdoms. Having stood unchallenged for 12 years while he menaced Hrothgar's subjects without mercy, depicted in an early scene when Grendel "snatched up thirty men, smashed them/unknowing in their beds and ran out with their bodies" (37-38), the…...

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Works Cited

Raffel, Burton. Beowulf. 1st. New York, NY: Penguin Group, 1999. 30-63. Print.

character similarities and differences between Grendel and eowulf based on the classic poem, eowulf. I would like some specific quotations (at least 5) to support the paragraphs in which the two characters are compared.
eowulf and Grendel are two of the key protagonists of the poem. oth are similar in that they fight for what they believe and are courageous. oth are dissimilar in that whilst eowulf is popular and acclaimed possessing characteristics that make him hero to and applauded by society, Grendel is described as malignant and an outcast.

Who was eowulf?

eowulf, bairn of the Scyldings,

eloved land-prince, for long-lasting season

Was famed mid the folk (1-5)

eowulf exemplifies the traits of the perfect hero. The poem explores demonstrations of his heroism in youth and maturity and analyzes his heroism through his struggles with Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon.

eowulf was famed for his courage and prowess manifested by his fabled swimming match…...

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Beowulf: An Anglo-Saxon Epic Poem, Translated From The Heyne-Socin

Text by Lesslie Hall. The Project Gutenberg EBook of Beowulf

Your answer should be at least five sentences long.
The Legend of Arthur

Lesson 1 Journal Entry # 9 of 16

Journal Exercise 1.7A: Honor and Loyalty

1. Consider how Arthur's actions and personality agree with or challenge your definition of honor. Write a few sentences comparing your definition (from Journal 1.6A) with Arthur's actions and personality.

2. Write a brief paragraph explaining the importance or unimportance of loyalty in being honorable.

Lesson 1 Journal Entry # 10 of 16

Journal Exercise 1.7B: Combining Sentences

Complete the Practice Activity on page 202 of your text. After completing this activity, read over your Essay Assessment or another journal activity you've completed.

* Identify three passages that could be improved by combining two or more sentences with coordinating or subordinating conjunctions. Below the practice activity in your journal, write the original passages and the revised sentences you've created.

* Be sure to indicate which journal or writing assignment they came from.

The…...

However, because of Gilgamesh's thought that he may be invincible, he is actually putting his friend's life at risk by going on his adventure. In his attempt to prove that he is brave and that he would rather die for a cause, he actually indirectly causes the death of Enkidu, who shows that he was the stronger of the two.
5) Defining Honor

Honor is a characteristic that few individuals posses. It is a special type of distinguishing factor, that although many attempt to have, very few actually embrace it to its full meaning. Honor entails pride and personal excellence. It is fully believing in an action or an entity that represents something very important to the self and to those around. To me, honor is being able to stand up for your beliefs despite the opinion of others.

Honor in society can actually be viewed in two ways, depending on your…...

Those with issues to overcome are always more heroic. Hector also becomes a hero when, after at first running from Achilles, he eventually stands up to him and dies a heroic death.
The Iliad is primarily a war epic. In your opinion, is the Iliad condemnation of the it could easily be argued that the Illiad glorifies war, as much of the poem is spent portraying the warriors as brave and courageous, even as they go on killing rampages. Warriors are describes as "masters of the battle cry" and "warlike" in glowing epithets. When Achilles originally refused to fight, he is roundly condemned for it by all of the other Greek characters. Even the weapons of war, such as Achilles impenetrable shield, are glorified. But homer is more complicated than simple -- war also brings death, which he describes in great detail. Hector's death is perhaps the most graphic of…...

Beowulf and Treasure
In the epic poem Beowulf, the hero is one born to wealth and raised to wealth. This position, rather than making him weak, has allowed Beowulf to become respected in his community as a man of generosity and, because of his skills as a warrior, immense courage. To this extent, the reader sees Beowulf engaging in acts of bravery and of generosity towards his fellow men. Contrast this to the more evil characters, both the monsters Grendel and his mother and the monstrous humans that Beowulf encounters. Those who are ungenerous are invariably the wicked characters, both lacking kindness towards fellow men and the heroic bravery of a Beowulf. Money and treasure are shown in the poem as markers of respect and of decency. Those who give it are treated heroically, as is evidenced at Beowulf's funeral. Those who hoard it are shown to be wicked. In this…...

features of residual (or "secondary") orality preserved in Voluspa, according to the criteria Ong (1982) advances?
Ong (1982) talks about how cultures in the past were only able to preserve their heritage through stories that meticulously passed down through the years (41). He says that since type was invented, importance has moved from the wise old man or woman to someone who can "discover new things" (Ong, 1982, 41). However, societies still deem some things as too important to completely lose their oral tradition. He talks about the residual orality of having to memorize certain things through mnemonic devices (Ong, 1982, 41).

However, he also talks of residual or secondary orality in another way also. He says that secondary orality is "an orality not antecedent to writing and print, as primary orality is, but consequent on and dependent upon writing and print" (Ong, 1982, 167). His analysis of the practice here…...

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References

Mountfort, P.S. (2006). Language, literature and desire: Critical reader. Auckland: Lyceum Press.

Ong, W.J. (1982). Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word. London: Methuen.

Once this has been discussed, it is somewhat easier to translate Einstein's concept to the poet's own courageous scientific imagination, as scene in the scene from "eowulf" previously mentioned. Just as the modern scientist, the poet introduces and, subsequently, tries to understand and explain, the idea of chaotic events, events that cannot be explained by the traditional ideas.

Despite his own behavior aimed at avoiding conflict, eowulf cannot control all the forces and objects/individuals in his realm. This is why the conflict is triggered by one of his men ("ut a certain man / stumbled on it,/into the heathen hoard,/and took a cup,/a large, decorated treasure"). As mentioned, the event itself lacks the previous logic according to which the battles were fought because of the unprovoked attack of the enemy (Grendel, Grendel's mother).

Here, the event cannot be explained by the previous laws of physics (the attack is not caused by the…...

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Bibliography

1. Einstein, Albert; Infeld, L. . The Evolution of Physics. New York: Simon & Schuster. 1938

2. Beowulf. On the Internet at   Last retrieved on September 28, 2009http://www.poetseers.org/the_great_poets/the_classics/beowulf/beowulf_becomes_king__the_dragon_attacks/ .

Revenge, too, is prominent in all of these works: Beowulf must destroy the monster our of revenge for the havoc on the Kingdom; the Greeks must avenge the kidnapping of Helen and the slights against their lands; the Knight, the Miller and the ife of Bath all must seek revenge for perceived wrongs. Poems like Canterbury Tales, Beowulf, and the Iliad and Odyssey, especially as oral tradition, frame the journey of the hero through trials and tribulations to, eventually success. The saving of society, though, is often met with grave personal sacrifice, sometimes of tangible wealth, more often of loved ones, or, in the case of Beowulf, the ultimate sacrifice -- giving up one's own life in the service of society.

Yet in each of the tales there is at least one, and frankly many more, characters that have a fatal personality flaw that causes not only consternation, but increases the…...

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Works Cited

Bittarello, M.B. "Recrafiting the Past: The Complex Relationship Between Myth and Ritual." Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies 10.2 (2008): 214-19.

Cambpell, J. The Hero With a Thousand Faces. New York: New World Library, 2008.

Campbell, J. And B. Moyers. The Power of Myth. New York: Anchor Books, 1991.

Voytilla, S. Myth and the Movies. New York: Michael Wiese Productions, 1999.

Beowulf is one of the oldest heroic sagas in existence, yet it contains many themes that occur and reoccur in modern heroic literature. The hero is designated as 'special,' with a 'special' mission to aid others. He faces a series of trials that enable him to help others and prove his manhood at the same time. Yet ultimately, Beowulf is a lonely man, set apart from others because of his greatness. He is, in his own way, as lonely as Grendel the monster he strives to kill.
There are, of course, some distinct differences between the saga and modern action stories. The purpose of Beowulf is not simply to tell an involving narrative; it is also designed to affirm the values of the tellers of the tale. Beowulf is noble and self-sacrificing. In the first part of the story, he agrees to kill the monster plaguing Hroogar and the Danish…...

Off from the sill there
Bent mead-benches many, as men have informed me,

Adorned with gold-work, where the grim ones did struggle.

The Scylding wise men weened ne'er before

That by might and main-strength a man under heaven

Might break it in pieces, bone-decked, resplendent,

Crush it by cunning, unless clutch of the fire

In smoke should consume it. (12. 62-73)

The physical properties that Hrothgar's men had built into the Hall withstood this battle of good vs. evil. Heorot was intended to be a place of greatness and glory to God which gave it the symbolic ability to make good prevail and evil sink.

After Beowulf's victory over Grendel, Beowulf must travel to Grendel's home to do battle with his monstrous mother. Her den is described by Hrothgar to Beowulf as an evil place shrouded in darkness, yet "there ever at night one an ill-meaning portent / a fire-flood may see" (21.4-5). Even animals know not to…...

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Works Cited

The Epic of Beowulf. Trans. Lesslie Hall. 2003. 27 October 2006. http://www.bernijohnson.com/beowulf/beowulf.html

Niles, John D. "Beowulf's Great Hall. History Today 56.10 (Oct. 2006): 40 (5p.).

Ebscohost. 27 October 2006. http://www.web110.epnet.com

Thesis Statement:

Beowulf's heroic legacy resonates in modern-day heroes, who embody similar virtues of courage, loyalty, and selflessness in the face of adversity.

Argument Structure:

I. Introduction

Establish the relevance of Beowulf and its lasting impact on Western literature.
Define heroism and its core qualities.
State the argument: that Beowulf's heroic legacy continues to manifest in modern-day individuals.

II. Beowulf: A Paragon of Heroic Virtues

Summarize the epic of Beowulf and highlight his exceptional courage, loyalty, and selflessness.
Analyze specific episodes that demonstrate these virtues, such as the battle with Grendel, the fight with the dragon, and his unwavering loyalty to his king.
Discuss....

Beowulf: The Conflicting Portrayal of Heroism Introduction The epic poem Beowulf stands as a testament to the enduring ideals of heroism and its multifaceted nature. Through the central figure of Beowulf, the poem explores the complexities and contradictions inherent in the heroic ideal, shedding light on the ways in which conflicting portrayals of heroism impact its overall message. Contradictions in the Portrayal of Heroism The portrayal of heroism in Beowulf is far from monolithic. Beowulf emerges as both a valiant warrior and a flawed individual, whose actions sometimes align with the heroic code and at other times deviate from it. Beowulf as a Paragon of....