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FreshmanEnglish 205, Writers of the British Isle
Hunter
First Essay Topic:
discuss teh treatments of war in Beowulf and Morte Darthur, paying closeattention to the literal or figurative treatment of fratricide- the “sinof Cain”- as it appears in the works. In both works, the interwineddestinies of family and civil society mean that family and extendedkinship ties will be broken in time of war. compare and contrast howthese issues are presented in teh two works.
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How to find and correct micro-sentence-level errors
I’m discussing the topic of fratricide in the two works
In Beowulf, the symboilic allusions to fratrcide sketch out a “good vs.evil” theme, where as in Morte Darthur, the focus on fratrcide is indirectand the theme is repentenace.
I’m not sure if the way my citations are correctly formatted there was nodirection
Lynn, Newton, “A Symbolic Reference to Genesis”
English 205Writers of the British IslesProf. Hunter, A Symbolic Reference to Genesisî
*** The influence of Christianity on Middle English literature can be seenin a variety of period texts. More specifically, biblical references tofratricide can be found in the epic tale of Beowulf as a representation ofChristian thought, good vs. evil. In Sir Thomas Malloryís Morte Darthur,allusions to the sin of Cain are weaved into the stories themed aroundChristian beliefs of redemption.
*** The tale of Beowulf unfolds in a Mid-evil society blitzed with war.The author makes many allusions to Christianity in his poetry, even thoughthis particular story is was written adaptation of a pagan oral poem.*** The religious influence during the time Beowulf was written seems tohelp the author convey his understanding of war, the human condition andthe role that sin plays by our separation from God.
*** The author alludes to books of the Old Testament which are intertwinedwith the dark and often bloody lyrics of this poem. We know that Beowulfís persona is essentially good, because he has won favor in the eyes ofGod. After Beowulf defeats Grendel he speaks of Godís will saying, ìTheLord allowed it.î
*** Through Beowulf the author describes the evil nature of Grendel, ìLikea man outlawed for wickedness, he must await the mighty judgment of God inmajesty.î Based on the premise that anything not of God is evil, Grendelwould represent evil. Grendel, separated from God by sin, is also adirect descendent of the Biblical Cain.
*** Beowulf is a heroic warrior who bravely battles and defeats theGrendel, Grendelís mother and the dragon, all decedents of Cain. We knowthat Beowulf believes in God and therefore symbolizes that he of Godsdivine will by conquering the evil monsters.
*** Metaphorically, the poem is written in a way so that all that isdeemed ìgoodî in the world, even war and death is of Godís divine will.Separation, or evil, occurs in this case for those who have sinned againstGod and have not repented.
*** A major explanation of separation can be found in the biblicalreferences pertaining to the sin of Cain. Allusions to this importantChristian tale can be evaluated further by reading Genesis 4.***In short, the text describes the first recorded act of fratricide inthe Bible when Cain kills Able. Two brothers were in the field one day;Cain rose against his brother and killed him. The following versesdescribe how the tribes of Adam and Eve (mother and father of Cain andAble) were separated.
*** God told Cain, ìSo now you are cursed from the earth, which hasopened its mouth to receive your brotherís blood from your hand. When youtill the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitiveand a vagabond you shall be on the earth.î (1)
*** In Beowulf we know that Grendel and his mother live under the ground.We also know that Grendel is ìfrom the seed of Cainî. This is a symbolicfigure of evil, since Christian belief dictates that sin is what separatesus from God.
*** Because Cain sinned, he would endure an eternal separation from God.Biblically, fratricide is an unpardonable sin. Cain did not repent, andtherefore God put a mark on him, banishing him from his homeland.
*** God did not avenge Cain with death; rather, Cain was separated fromthe tribe of Adam and became a wanderer with no place in society. Anallusion to the split tribe of Adam can be found in Beowulfís lines1725-1728: ìit is a great wonder how Almighty God in His magnificencefavors our race with rank and scope ad the gift of wisdom.î Since Grendelis from the seed of Cain, it is assumed that Beowulfís race can only befrom the Tribe of Adam, and therefore, is favorable in the eyes of theLord God.
*** This allusion to race and banishment of Cainís tribe is alsosuggested in lines 2291-2292 of Beowulf, ìSo many a man not marked by fateeasily escape exile and woe by the grace of God.î
*** Recall that God had told Cain, ìyou are cursedî because he committedsin and did not repent. The separation from God would cause Cain to be ìAfugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.î
*** We know that in lines 2354-2355 Beowulf defeats evil when fightingGrendel. ìHe out grappled the monster and his evil kin.î Thus theclassic battle of good vs. evil is apparent in the poem. Grendel and hismother represent the spawn of CainThe dragon is pure evil. They all live under ground, where Abelís bloodspilt into the earth. Since Cain was marked and exiled, so too are hisoffspring. Like the prince that died in Beowulfís story, there is novengeance for killing a brother.
*** The sin of fratricide is an especially important symbolism inBeowulf. Lines 2435-2440 of Beowulf speak of King Hrethelís sons. ìForthe eldest, Herebeald, an unexpected deathbed was laid out, through abrotherís doing /when Haethcyn bent his horn-tipped bow/and loosed thearrow that destroyed his life. /He shot wide and buried a shaft/in theflesh and blood of his own brother.î
*** The descriptive poetry describes the mortal sin of fratricide withdark lyrics, portraying that this appalling act of killing is indeed agrave social injustice. It is also described in Beowulf that there isnothing anyone could do to avenge the princesí death. As in those days,the killing of one from outside the family was an act of vengeance.
*** However, vengeance for fratricide, the killing within ones ownfamily, could not occur in their society. In Genesis, God put strife uponCainís life and banished him. Similarly, when dealing with the death ofHerebeald, the lord of the Geats said he ìcould not punish the killer inaccordance with the law of the blood-feud, although he felt no love forhim.î
*** The dragon is symbolic of satin in that he too lives beneath theearth. Beowulf attacks the dragon: (Lines 2514-2515): ìIf the evil onewill only abandon his earth-fort and face me in the open.î
*** Beowulf, who is the divine hero of the poem claims of his comradesthat, ìSent my whole brave highborn clan/to their final doom. Now I mustfollow them.î This is an excellent illustration of how Beowulf feels ontopics concerning the kinship and loyalty in war.
*** Additionally the social perception of loyalty and kinship during warcan be examined in lines 2600-2602: ìin a man of worth the claims ofkinship cannot be denied.î The heroic warriors in Beowulf are portrayedas noble, and, therefore, of goodness and not the spawn of evil. Perhapsthe outstanding social acceptance of the warriors is and authors attemptto build religious theme into the pagan poem.
*** Other particulars are sprinkled through out the poem, showing justhow elevated the author has portrayed Beowulf, even making him seemChrist-like. Lines 2843-2834 state, ìThe treasure had been won, boughtand paid for by Beowulfís death.î In Christian theory, Jesus Christ paidfor the sins of all people with his death on the cross. The treasure wonby Beowulf would be elvated to the ìtreasureî of live eternally inparadise through Christ. Both Christ and Beowulf, as with his fight withthe dragon, scarified themselves to save others. It is clear that theauthor thought highly of both loyalty and truth. Through poeticexpression of the author, Beowulf is seen as loyal and representative ofpure good.
*** The dragon on the other hand was evil to the core. 2824-2825: ìthedragon from underneath, /his nightmarish destroyer, / lay destroyed aswell, / utterly without life.î Good conquers evil.
*** Further, passages in Beowulf state (beginning line 2874) ìGod whoordains who wins or loses allowed him to strike with his own blade whenbravery was needed.î When **** stood behind Beowulf in the great fightagainst the dragon, (2855) ìthere was no way he could preserve his lordíslife on earth or alter in the least the Almightyís will. What God judgedright would rule what happened to every man, as it does this day.î Thisis a metaphorical allusion to Christ dying on the cross for our sins. Itwas Godís will from the beginning, as Christ was the savior of every man,
woman and child, therefore the divine will could not be stopped.*** In Christian texts we know that God judges the human soul after oneísdeath. The price Christ paid for sins what that he descended into hellfor three days, then rose from the dead and ascended into heaven.
*** Beowulf also ìpaidî a heavy cost for a pile of rings (riches), inwhich he paid for with his own life. It was said that those who ìwalk inthe path of exileî will bow under woe. That line can be compared toBiblical similarities pertaining to judgment of the wicked.
***Thus the sin of Cain is a dramatic illustration of good vs. evil. InBeowulf it is embellished with literal allusions to Christ as the savior,or ìGoodî and Stain, being profoundly ìevilî.
***Morte Darthur, written by Sir Thomas Malory, is a ravishing Britishliterary work retelling the French version of the Death of Arthur. Thestory is a romantic frolic in the life of Lancelot and his Queen.Lancelot is a favorite knight of King Arthur. The seductive drama isloaded with Christian allusions to the cause of forgiveness throughredemption.
***The main theme of redemption in Morte Darthur has taken on a figurativeallusion to the biblical story of Cain killing able. However, otherChristian allusions appear through out the texts with no direct link tothe main theme.
*** For example, there are twelve Knights of the Round Table and twelvedisciples of Jesus.Lancelot is a traitor for sleeping with queen. In the story of Jesusícrucifixion, Judas is the one who betrays Jesus.
*** The shame of betraying the king by sleeping with his queen weighsheavily on Lancelotís heart. Lancelot says, ìBut and ye be slain I willtake my death as meekly as ever did martyr take his death for Jesu Christís sake.î Although Lancelot did not kill himself, the ideas portrayed havestrong religious allusion to Judas hanging himself after betraying Jesus.
*** Revenge for infidelity in Morte Darthur is achievable through thedeath of Lancelot and the queen. Sir Gawain would also like revenge, ìforthe death of my brother Sir Garteh I shall seek Sir Lancelot throughoutseven kindsí realms but I hall slay him, or other else he shall slay me.î
*** Lancelot is banished in Morte Darthur, part of the vengeance KingAuthor would seek for Lancelot. This is different from Beowulf, in whichGrendel and his kin were banished from the earth. Grendel was a directdescendent of Cain, who committed fratricide.
*** Lancelotís affair, on the other hand, is a metaphoric allusion to theBible because King Arthur saw Lancelot as one of his kin, perhaps like abrother.
*** King Arthur stated, ìthis day I sor missed thee, and alas that ever Iwas against thee, for now have I my death, whereof Sir Gawain me warned inmy dream.î The dream King Arthur had was almost like a prophecy, anothercommon phenomenon in the Christian texts.
*** The death of Christ is centered on redemption if a soul should chooseto accept Christ and repent of all sins. Indirectly, a scene in MorteDarthur is linked to this Christian philosophy by appearing to be a remakeof the days during Christís trial.
*** While King Arthur is lying on his death bed, he instructs SirBedivere to throw his prized sword into water. Instead, Sir Bediverehides it under a tree. King Arthur, ìah, traitor unto me and untrue, SaidKing Arthur, ìnow that thou betrayed me twice.î This symbolicrepresentation of one of the disciples of Jesus named Peter. Peterbetrayed Jesus twice on the night of his crucifixion. Sir Bediverebetrayed the king twice on the night the king died.
*** The redemption theme thickens when Sir Bedivere, as Peter did, criesto his king, ìah, my lord Arthur, what shall become of me, now ye go fromme and leave me here alone among mine enemiesî
*** King assures Sir Bedivere all will be well. He says, ìFor I mustinto the vale of Avilion to heal me of my grievous wound and if thou hearnevermore of me, pray for my soul.î Avilion said to be like an earthlyparadise. Jesus said he was going to paradise when he died on the cross.
*** The hermit, who finds King Arthurís body, says that some men inEngland say King Arthur is not dead and that ìmen say that he shall comeagain and he shall win the Holy Cross.î This is a strong allusion to theChristian theology that ìhe (Jesus) shall come again to judge the quickand the dead.î
*** The striking references to the death of Christ symbolize the theme ofredemption through out the whole story. Repentance also occurs among thequeen and Lancelot, who die on separate death beds.
*** Before the death of Lancelot he had a vision of the death of the queenGuinevere. In the vision he found remission of his sins.
*** Queen Guinevereís parting words were, ìI beseech Almighty God that Imay never have power to see Sir Lancelot with my worldly eyes.î This is amajor change in her heart, for she knew that deceiving the king was wrong.
*** When Lancelot saw the queen, after she died, he wept. He alsorepented, became ordained, and recited prayers. It was clear thatLancelot was forgiven for his sins.
*** ìI trust I do not displease God, for he knoweth mine intentófor mysorrow was not, not is not, for any rejoicing of sin, but my sorrow maynever have end.îHe also said (page 437) ìme repenteth soreî which means, ìIím sorry.îUnlike Beowulf, Morte Darthurís Lancelot becomes ìgoodî because heìrepented.î There is no shame on Lancelotís as he lay on his death bed.The elaborate funeral for him was also a display of the peopleísforgiveness, and they forgave him and he became ìgoodî in their eyesthough his repentance.
*** The forgiveness of Lancelotís sins mimics Christian theology becauseChristians believe that through repentance we are reunited with God. Thetribe of Cain was never reunited with God because neither Cain nor hisdecedents asked God for forgiveness. Through Morte Darthur the ideaísof the author and the influence of religion can be recognized in thisliterary work of art. It is a blend of classical Christian thought andthe provocative revolution of sexuality during the period in which it waswritten.
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