Beowulf is an epic poem that, above all, gives the reader an idea of a time long past; a time when the most important values were courage and integrity. The only factors that could bestow shower fame upon a person were heroic deeds and family lineage. Beowulf, as the paradigm of pagan heroes, exhibited his desire to amass fame and fortune; the only way to do so was to avenge the death of others. This theme of retribution that is ever present throughout the poem seems to color the identities of its characters.
Revenge is presented both as an honest motive and a rhetorical tactic in Beowulf. For Beowulf himself, reprisal of monsters misdeeds is his path to the top: worldwide fame, endless wealth, and universal respect. Grendels violence is caused less by revenge than by complete frustration with his situation. Other characters actions are fueled directly by a sincere desire for a settling of scores. Grendels mother kills Aeschere solely because Beowulf killed Grendel. The last monster that the Hero of the Geats ever faces has only one goal: to guard his hoard of treasure. When his fortune is pilfered, revenge is the dragons only way to react. While revenge is a common faade in Beowulf, some characters feel an honest need for retribution and seek it to their lifes end.
Grendelsmother exhibits the most pure form of revenge out of all of Beowulfs enemies. She is never heard from or seen until Beowulf killsGrendeland keeps his talon as a token of victory. ... It became clear,/obvious to everyone... that an avenger lurked and was still alive,/ grimly biding time (Beowulf, lines 1255-1258). The sole cause and motivation behind her murder ofAescherewasGrendelsdeath at the hands of Beowulf. [Grendels] mother had sallied forth on a savage journey,/grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge (Beowulf, 1276-1278). Her desire to avenge her son is carried out, but it ultimately leads to her death. Beowulfs desire to garner fame and respect overpowers all of the raw emotion and anger felt byGrendelsmother. She serves the purpose of showing the purest form of revenge, and how its blindness can lead to ones demise.
Beowulf, the defender of Hrothgar and Heorot, exhibits far more complicated (and less sincere) shades of revenge than the Grendels mother. At the end of the day, Beowulfs goal is to become the preeminent warrior in all the land. In his society, the only way to gain such widespread celebrity is through courageous and self-endangering acts. Beowulf masks these deeds with a faade of seeking revenge; he supposedly comes to Heorot to save the Danes from Grendels terror, but his true motives lie in becoming a hero. His reward is not the pride of doing a good deed; Beowulf is rewarded with lavish and expensive gifts.
[Hrothgar] presented Beowulf / with a gold standard as a
victory gift, / an embroidered banner; also breast-mail / and
a helmet; and a sword carried high... It was hardly a shame
to be showered with such gifts / in front of the hall-troops.
There havent been many moments... when men exchanged
four such treasures at so friendly a sitting. (Beowulf, 1019-1028)
After slaying Grendel under his pseudo-revenge, Beowulfs aspirations of riches and respect are realized. This pattern is continued after Grendels mother retaliates when Grendel is killed. Beowulf again hides his personal aspirations under a pretense of retribution. By killing Grendels mother, he is again remunerated with riches, rewards, and an even more far-reaching reputation as a warrior. Above all, Beowulfs goal is to become the Pagan Hero, and he uses revenge as an effective form of rhetoric in that quest.
Like Beowulf,Grendelexhibits little actual revenge in his actions.Grendelis frustrated with his nature of being an outcast, and feels insulted when he witnesses the joyful revelry ofHeorot.
... A powerful demon, a prowler through the dark / nursed
a hard grievance. It harrowed him / to hear the din of the
loud banquet / every day in the hall... [He] began to work
his evil in the world. (Beowulf, 86-89; 101)
Grendel attacks Heorot and Hrothgars men simply because he is tired of their ignorant carousing and their inability to sympathize with his dire situation as an outcast even among monsters. He seeks revenge for the lot he has been cast in life; he is the horrible, monstrous descendant of Cain, while the Danes go through their existence insensible to pain / and human sorrow (Beowulf, 119-120). Unlike his fellow monsters in the poem, Grendel exhibits a surprisingly human-like complexity of emotion. While the dragon acts out of a pure sense of vengeance, Grendel attacks out of jealousy and insecurity; he wants to see the people happier than him suffer. So Grendel waged his lonely war, / inflicting constant cruelties on the people, / atrocious hurt... he was the Lords outcast (Beowulf, 165-166; 169)
The final and most absolute act of revenge in Beowulf comes from the last antagonist; the dragon. Beowulfs men had been raiding the treasure hoards of the dragon, which sent him into a rage of fire and destruction. The dragons only purpose was to defend his riches, and when he failed at that mission violence was the natural retribution. When Beowulf learns that his own home, / had been burned to a cinder (Beowulf, 2325-2326), he decides that the time has come for the defender of the Geats to face this beast.
In his fight with the dragon, Beowulfs actions lie in the hands of fate, the final requirement of the Heroic Code. While the dragon acts out of unadulterated revenge, Beowulf seeks out the duel with thedragon in order to fulfill his destiny. The veteran king sat down on the cliff-top... he was sad at heart, / unsettled yet ready, sensing his death. / His fate hovered near, unknowable but certain (Beowulf, 2416-2421). The author of Beowulf uses the dragons act of vengeance to create the pivotal scene in which Beowulf meets his demise; the settlement of his destiny.
Clearly, revenge is a theme that permeates nearly every aspect of Beowulf. It is used throughout the poem both as a source of violence, and a cover-up for more selfish motives. WhileGrendelsmother acts out of pure revenge for her dying son,Grendelhimself, who may appear vengeful, is truly acting out of jealousy and a sense of resentment towards people happier than him. The dragon also acts out of a sense of vengeance, but its actions are ultimately used to create a fateful deathbed for Beowulf. While he Beowulf masks his true intentions with a pretense of vengeance, Beowulf himself best describes the sense of revenge in the poem.
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