Beowulf/Sir Gawain comparison
Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Both the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, and the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight describe a heroic ideal proved in the battle. The first, Beowulf, is dated back as far as the 8th century ad. Sir Gawain and the Green knight was created five centuries later, in 14th Century, when the Alliterative revival in English literature turned back to the ideals and literary forms of Anglo-Saxon poems. Sir Gawain and the Green knight is very much alike Beowulf in the verse form and narrative style, it has similar conflict and it also celebrates the victory of fearless and brave heroes. But despite all similarities of these two literary masterpieces, they are different. Time changes ideals. Different time periods and societies have different ideals and values, and these two poems serve as a perfect example of this fact. The epic of Beowulf is the highest achievement of Old English literature that inherits the Germanic heroic tradition. Like most European legends of that time it confronts its hero, Beowulf, with evil. The evil is represented in a poem by a supernatural creature, Grendel. Beowulf comes from a land far away to rescue a civili
, p 91, 98 - 100), seeing the blade whistle through the air "he pulled his shoulders back, just a bit. He says, "By Christ, it's Satan who struck me with this meeting, I feel it! He's sent me here to destroy me" (Jovanovich B. Two heroes - Beowulf and Sir Gawain - are heroes of their time. He takes an honor to face the challenge of the Green Knight, who calls Arthur's knights bragging boasts and big words, fainting with fear, when no fight is offered. In any situation Sir Gawain remains an exemplary warrior, approved by the Green Knight as having real courage, honor, and moral purity. The hero, Sir Gawain, is King Arthur's cousin and one of the Knights of the Round Table. He represents moral rules that simply did not exist at the time of Beowulf, when the strength was a primary requirement for a warrior. He is fearless in protecting his people and the whole world as "mighty protector of men" (Jovanovich B. The readiness to take an ordeal proves his courage, and his blow shows his enormous strength. He is proud of his feat - "the Danes Had been served as he'd boasted he'd serve them" (Jovanovich B.
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Acceptance Essays
