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Beowulf Compare And Contrast Essay

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For this assignment I have decided to compare and contrast Beowulf literature to Beowulf the movie. I thought that actually watching the movie Beowulf would bring to light some of the reasoning of the poem but it did a better job of confusing me. The movie varies greatly from the poem and may have made me lose what little understanding I began with.
There are many, many differences between the writings of Beowulf and the theatrical interpretation of Beowulf. Included in the differences between the poem and the movie is the scenery around Grendel’s mother’s cave. In the poem the cave is protected by sea monsters and Beowulf slayed a monster to gain entry and the other sea monsters are scared off with the trumpets of Thane. In the movie the entrance to the cave is deserted and Beowulf carefully enters the cave with ease. The huge difference between the poem and the movie completely changes the outcome and moral of Beowulf. In the movie there is no forewarning of life’s delicate state by Hrothgar and much of the moral that Beowulf learns is lost within the way the movie focuses on Grendel’s mother’s beauty rather than her …show more content…

In the movie both Beowulf and Hrothgar were unfaithful to their wives numerous including the instance where they both slept with Grendel’s mother, both fathering monstrous creatures with whom they will have to battle. Hrothgar is portrayed in the movie as Grendel’s father and Beowulf is portrayed as the father of the dragon he has to slay several years later in the movie. Also in the movie Hrothgar declares Beowulf as his heir to the thrown then commits suicide, although in the poem Beowulf is declared King after the former king was killed in

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