Gold In Beowulf

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Gold, treasure, and gifts are less important for their economic value than their social value. In fact, gold can be seen as a symbol of social interaction: a lord rewards loyalty with gold, and in doing so inspires further loyalty.The Anglo-Saxon culture gave gifts of gold out of honor for heroism.The Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf is not only a great story of valor and honor, but it shows the significance of values gold is when Scyld funeral, Beowulf shows his bravery when fighting Grendel and Grendel's mother, and when Beowulf perish.

Scyld Scefing is the first of the great kings of the Spear-Danes. From humble beginnings as a foundling discovered at sea, he rises to great power and is honored and paid tribute by many. When Scyld dies, he …show more content…
The dragon has this huge hoard of gold, treasures, and goblets. With so much treasure the dragon has, Beowulf is all for fighting the dragon. Beowulf does eventually win the gold hoard, but it is a somewhat hollow victory. Beowulf is slowly dying because he got poisoned by the dragon. Beowulf asks Wiglaf to bring him the treasure so that he can die knowing that he won it not only for himself but for his people. Wiglaf gathers some of the treasure and returns to Beowulf, who thanks God that he could win such treasures for his people before he dies. The treasure hoard, without a person to use and polish it, is useless. It is only as a means of creating bonds in society that treasure has value. Beowulf describes the treasure as his final gift to his people. The final significance is when Beowulf gives Wiglaf the gold necklace he wears and his armor, “the collar of gold from his neck and gave it / to the young thane, telling him to use / it and the war shirt and the gilded helmet well” (2810-12) . Beowulf passes on his kingship to Wiglaf, who is clearly the most deserving and competent of the Geats. In this case passing down his gold necklace is a symbol of not only his gratitude to Wiglaf, but it also shows us the readers that Beowulf is a good

Gold In Beowulf

The epic poem, Beowulf, was written in the Anglo-saxon period, when people were all about the glory and valor of war. That glory and valor includes the rewards of war, specifically speaking of treasure and gold .At the beginning of Beowulf, Beowulf is a new and fierce warrior who receives lots treasure as gifts for his fearlessness. This treasure is used in a traditional sense, where it is given as a gift or reward and symbolic of a warrior's honor and bravery but at the end of the story the meaning…

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Use Of Gold In Beowulf

Beowulf is a story of an epic hero set in present day Europe between 400 A.D. and 600 A.D. Beowulf is a larger than life hero who faces many enemies throughout his life. He battles Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the Dragon. In each of these battles, the reader learns something new about the characters and the themes of the story. In Beowulf’s last battle, he fights a dragon that is terrorizing his kingdom because someone stole a treasure. The treasure that the dragon is guarding is a very important…

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Unferth: A Possible Theme In Beowulf

forgive than to hold small grudges. When Beowulf first appears in Heorot, Unferth becomes jealous because the King was giving more attention to Beowulf than to Unferth. As time progresses, Unferth creates a grudge over Beowulf. When Hrothgar's men were helping Beowulf armour up, Unferth decides to help and choose “ to forget old quarrels, gave him his sword, With hilt of twisted gold, of steel infallible, Hrunting his name.”(10) Unferth realizes that Beowulf is the more superior warrior compared to…

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Treasure In Beowulf

Throughout history gold and treasure have been a driving force in this world, this is no different in the Christian epic, Beowulf. During the poem, there are several references to treasure as being a symbol of loyalty, status, and reward. In the Anglo – Saxon community, it is known that gold rings were given to thanes by the king as a reward for being loyal to him. At any moment, they were liable for sacrificing their lives for his, which is because the Anglo-Saxons community, including the warriors…

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Symbols In Beowulf Research Paper

symbols in the world of Beowulf ,and each symbol has its own unique story behind it such as Herot ,Grendel's claw and head, the giants sword ,and of course the dragons hoard of gold and jewels. These are the main symbols portrayed throughout the epic poem. The battle between Beowulf and the mighty Grendel was a great one. Grendel came thrashing into Herot like any other night he would and expect an easy fight and quick dinner ,but he did not know the notorious Beowulf was among them when he came…

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How Does Beowulf Mature

the anonymous epic Beowulf, Beowulf is challenged to fight three battles. In these battles, Beowulf uses various methods to defeat Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon, and takes different trophies each time. As Beowulf continues to fight more monsters, he not only develops his own trophy collection, but also develops as a character. Further, Beowulf’s attitude and personality change as he transitions from youth to adulthood and further on into old age. The weapons Beowulf uses in battle and…

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Anglo Saxon Unit Essay

Victoria Whaley Period 5 Meluish British Literature The Hero of the Anglo-Saxon Period Beowulf shows what qualities an Anglo-Saxon hero must have and the most important characteristics would be strength and courage and you cannot have one without the other. A hero cannot fight with only strength because he will surely lose. A man can have courage, but what damage will you do if you're weak and cannot back yourself up. Although it doesnt only take strength and courage to be an Anglo-Saxon hero,…

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Beowulf's Ideal Epic Hero

Beowulf is a hero that saved Hrothgar's men from a beast named Grendel who was killing his men. Beowulf came from another town and told them he would step up and sacrifice himself for the safety of Hrothgar's men and to bring pride to his masters name. He ended up fighting both Grendel and Grendels mother and won both. The mead hall was a hall that was made for the king, it was one big grand room with lots of lights and gold and was used for gathering after a battle was fought. It was a celebratory…

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Middle Ages and Beowulf Essay examples

can be qualified as a hero because he has heroic qualities and is regarded as a model. Same as, Beowulf, the epic character can also be considered as a hero due to his heroic traits. Each of these heroic traits emphasizes an Anglo Saxon value. These heroic characteristics are loyalty, bravery, and honor. These three heroic traits that Beowulf had were very important to the Anglo Saxon. The loyalty Beowulf shows to the Danes illustrates the importance of loyalty to the community of the Anglo-Saxons…

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Beowulf's Loyalty

Loyal to one or all Beowulf is a tale of a hero defeating many beasts. The story is so significant that there is only one remaining original copy. This tale has lasted through many generations and will continue to do so. In the tale we find Beowulf time and time again being the hero and saving the day. He saves the day for other nations on many occasions and then decides to lead a nation of his own. Late in Beowulf’s career he rises to the challenge to defeat the dragon. His soldiers do not know…

Words 1762 - Pages 8