One of the most fascinating scenes for me was Beowulf's death scene (morbid, I know). But this is the climax of the epic. Particularly, what inspired Beowulf to face death on behalf of his people. While I would like to think that if I ever had to die for a cause, it would be something incredibly noble, like becoming a martyr, or dying on behalf of my friends. However, this is where I found Beowulf to be painfully honest- he rose up again to slay the dragon because he was "Inspired again
By the thought of glory". I feel almost let down by this. Is it just as noble to do a noble and selfless act if the motivation behind it is anything but selfless? I was even hoping for a thought of his people, or their need for the treasure.
But he found his courage by being inspired by glory. Does this make him less of a hero if he was motivated by self-glorification?
P.S. I commented on Caleb's post
He does give thanks to God that he had the ability to leave his people "so well endowed." Maybe his motives changed as he was dying, or maybe he was motivated by both his glory and by his people.
ReplyDeleteI saw it as a glory for his people. A big part of the story after Beowulf's death concerned the numerous people who would want to wage ware with the Gaets because of Beowulf's absence. Beowulf's glory actually helped to shield and protect his people during his life.
ReplyDeleteTheir priorities were so different from ours now... glory was so much to them. It reminds me of Greek literature, too. It's like what we talked about last week, too, about heroes practically being required to boast, instead of to be humble. Maybe Beowulf thought he would help his people by winning glory - protection through reputation - or maybe... selflessness and other people just aren't quite on his mind as much. It was a huge cultural disconnect for me, too.
ReplyDelete