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Green Knight Vs Beowulf

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Beowulf, written during the eight century, is an Anglo-Saxon epic poem. The story revolves around the strongest warrior at the time, Beowulf, who accomplishes heroic feats to gain glory and fame. In the medieval romance “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” the story dramatizes a knight’s traits of honesty and loyalty. The stories share many similarities such as questing, protecting self-honor, and achieving glorious deeds on behalf of his king. Moreover, Beowulf and “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” are structured in verses. However, looking beyond the identical context, they portray distinct differences regarding the characters' level of human essence. Furthermore, the stories occurred during different time periods. Nevertheless, these traditional …show more content…

While they depict parallel concepts, one notices stark differences between Beowulf and "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." The main difference between the two stories is the degree of struggle against the opposing force. In Beowulf Grendel is a vicious beast terrorizing the Danes. Furthermore, Grendel, ravaging the land of the Danes for twelve years, is a force of evil that advances humankind to their best. Although the Grendel’s war on the Danes lasted for a long time, Beowulf sails to the rescue defeating Grendel in a bloody fight within a day. The author of Beowulf depicts their quarrel as a gruesome fight leaving Grendel fatally wounded. However, in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," the Knight is a supernatural being who can withstand decapitation. Although the Green Knight seems to be immortal, Gawain continues to seek out the mysterious figure to uphold the chivalrous code. Contrarily, Furthermore, both stories differed in their endings. Beowulf ultimately dies as the warrior-king defending his kingdom from the wickedness of the dragon. On the other hand, Sir Gawain seeks out the Green Knight to fulfill his promise allowing the knight to strike a single blow. However, Sir Gawain did not die; rather, the Knight lauds Gawain’s bravery and honor and teaches him valuable lessons such as loyalty, honor, and

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