Theme Of Monsters In Beowulf - 758 Words

Monsters. They’re everywhere, from Sulley in Monsters Inc., to the iconic role of Dracula, to being key figures in literature and film.These creatures are recurring characters due to the reactions they invoke from the audience and other characters of the work. Despite (or due to) their gruesome nature and physical appearance, monsters are able to tap into the spiritual, social, and psychological aspect of people to capture their fascination. The placement of monsters in many stories and films fulfills two main purposes. The first purpose is to serve as the ultimate test of strength and bravery, allowing protagonists to prove their heroic worth and highlight others’ inability to properly defend themselves. In Beowulf, there are three†¦show more content†¦To humans, monsters are captivating due to their place, or lack of a place, in the human world. These creatures don’t belong in human society, as they are noticeably different from other creatures and humans with their deformed features and malevolent nature. There’s often curiosity surrounding the unknown, which also explains the fascination with monsters. Monster is a loose term for the many different kinds of creatures that have the same characteristics of being large, ugly, and frightening. However, they vary in their destruction and difficulty, as some could be small-time offenders who rarely encroach on human territory. In Beowulf, Grendel and his mother prove to be quite a challenge to the Danes and the Geats compared to the dragon. This can be attributed to their mysterious origins and nature, as well as the nature of warriors at the time. Grendel and his mother have been isolated from human society for years before coming out to wreak havoc on the Danes. With little to no information on them, it’s difficult to fight them, especially with their supernatural strength and magic. Traditional methods don’t seem to work on these demons, as â€Å"the sharpest and hardest iron could not scratch at [Grendel]† (lines 801-802). Instead, Beowulf had to fight Grendel himself using his bare hands. Similarly, Beowulf was left to fight Grendel’s mother without any of his weapons, wrestling with her before fatallyShow MoreRelatedThe Theme Of Fight In Beowulf798 Words   |  4 PagesRomane Cadot ELA 12 Theme of Beowulf Theme of fight: First of all I will to give you a definition of fight: Fight means limited engagement in space and time of enemy land, air or naval formations. Learn more about. In the book Beowulf we witness 3 fights, this theme is therefore the articulation of the book. Indeed, these fights that Beowulf delivers, the hero of history, intrigues the reader. Thats why I chose this theme. 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