How Is Power Portrayed In Beowulf

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Beowulf, an epic poem written by two unknown authors, portrays violence and the struggles of being someone in power. Beowulf is a warrior king who was raised with the Anglo-Saxons ideals. He faces many barriers and hardships throughout his life, fighting monsters both mentally and physically. Beowulf demonstrates leadership and heroic deeds through courage, pride and greed. Heroism is portrayed in the text through courage and syntax, which affects the way the reader perceives the story. In the poem Beowulf utters, “I shall fight like that for as long as I live, as long as this sword shall last, which had stood me in good stead late and soon, ever since I killed Dayraven the Frank in the front of the two armies” (2498). This leads the audience to read it faster and puts more emphasis on the message that the text is trying to convey. Heroism is portrayed here because Beowulf is willing to go to extreme measures for his men and his country, making the values of an Anglo-Saxon warrior crucial to a king. Beowulf also shows leadership through diction. An annotated quote from Beowulf states, “...will assay the hoard” …show more content…

“No sword blade sent him to his death: my bare hands stilled his heartbeats and wrecked the bone-house”(2506). Beowulf is a good warrior. He knows that he can fight, but at the same time there is a point where one can cross from confidence to greed, or pride. Beowulf is raising himself up on a pedestal. “No blade sent him to his death”, but his bare hands did. This portrays Beowulf as greedy because he wants to be perceived as the greatest warrior, but also it is an example of pride. He has been at the top for so long that he does not think that he can be killed, but when he is in his old age, he easily is. Moreover, he doesn't know what it is like to be at the bottom anymore. Making the downfall of himself more

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