Essay on Ideal Women vs Real Women in Beowulf and The Wife of Bath

Anglo-Saxon women had specific roles in society: mother, wife, hostess, mediator, and retainer. Any woman that did not fit in this societal mold was rejected and considered unfeminine, which, at the time, was synonymous with monstrous. In Beowulf, Grendel’s mother is characterized as a monster because of her defiance of Anglo-Saxon gender roles and failure to follow the social expectation of hospitality, which is enhanced by her juxtaposition to Wealhtheow.

Grendel’s mother is portrayed in a negative and objectified image. First, she has a sexual appeal. Grendel’s mom wears no clothes; her skin is gold, which covers her body. She is half woman and half monster. She has a promiscuous look that draws in attention from the opposite sex. In addition, she has a sexual attitude. Right when Beowulf enters the

    Throughout the epic Beowulf, the importance of male heroism is far exceeding than that of the significance of women. The idea that women are obedient and docile is a likely thought in medieval Britain, although the women of Beowulf  are different, being known as noble, powerful, and assertive. Throughout the text there are major women that play integral roles in society: Grendel's Mother, and Hildeburh. “These women entertain, bring peace, and contradict societal expectations of the female gender, either directly or indirectly, … and illustrate the major roles for the women in the society: the Peace-weavers, and the Goaders ” (TheDomesticBeast). Although there is little mention of women throughout this epic, their fundamental roles within the society were clearly immense.

Beowulf is an Old English poem written somewhere between the eighth century and the tenth century; the culture of Germanic times is depicted through varying concepts of masculinity that not only describes their capability as a warrior, but also their aptitude as a leader. Beowulf shows of a demon named Grendel attacking Heorot, and the king, Hrothgar, calls Beowulf, a warrior, for help with the slaying of Grendel. Characteristics and qualities of leadership are directly linked to the masculinity of the characters within Beowulf. The leaders in the prologue are demonstrated with the aspects of masculinity through their strength and brutality. In Beowulf, a man demonstrates his essential worth through evidence of masculinity as seen in Unferth’s cowardice, Beowulf’s heroism, and Wiglaf’s bravery.

Women have had many different roles in the history of European literature but have generally been restricted to the roles assigned to them in a largely patriarchal society. As a result of this society, these roles have often been powerless ones. This calls into question the constitution of a powerful woman in literature: in Beowulf, being a powerful woman means becoming the bond between families and alliances; in Lanval, power comes from assertion and control-- a powerful woman is a woman in charge. The primary difference between the representation of women in Beowulf and Lanval is that the latter transcends overarching patriarchal boundaries, and the former does not; the reason for their respective representations lies in the literary time periods in which the stories were written. From this, one can see that the introduction of romance as a central theme gave way to new representations and roles of women in predominantly heteropatriarchal English literature and gives new meaning to the analysis of stories like these.

In the poem of Beowulf, the female gender view was that the wifhealf noble women, influenced in the hall ceremonies and played an active role in diplomacy such as the role of hostesses. Their duties include carrying the mead cup in order to pass it to the king and the warriors “ at mead drinking she must at all times and places approach the protector of princes first, in front of the companions, quickly pass the first cup to her lord’s hand.” In addition to the role of women in this poem, males had a stronger perspective and impact, the males in Beowulf were viewed as leaders, warriors, and protectors. Beowulf states that he will fight Grendel, “without armor or sword, hand to claw, because the ogre does not use weapons.” Beowulf shows loyalty through the poem by paying off his dad's deft off, "healed the feud by paying." Beowulf historic/modern heroism is that Beowulf is both evil and good he is a perfect hero that never makes mistakes. "I had a fixed purpose when I put to sea.As I sat in the boat with my band of men,I meant to perform to the uttermost what your people wanted or perish in the attempt,in the fiend's clutches. And I shall fulfill that purpose, prove myself with a proud deed or meet my death here in the

Beowulf is an epic tale written over twelve hundred years ago. In the poem, several different female characters are introduced, and each woman possesses detailed and unique characteristics. The women in Beowulf are portrayed as strong individuals, each of whom has a specific role within the poem. Some women are cast as the cup-bearers and gracious hostesses of the mead halls, such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, while others, Grendel's mother, fulfill the role of a monstrous uninvited guest. The woman's role of the time period, author's attitude, and societal expectations for women are evidenced throughout the poem.

Beowulf is an Anglo-Saxon epic that was written around 1000 AD and passed down through scops orally, eventually being written down. There is a stereotypical notion that Beowulf is a male dominated story, one that is written and told in a society where women are subservient to men. It’s clear to see why many believe this stereotype to be true, as throughout the poem male characters commonly demonstrate their dominant role in society. Beowulf provides us with a vivid picture of the Anglo-Saxon culture; one that is warrior based and male centered. Conversely, women tend to the more subtle roles, and their sole purpose is to serve the men during that time.

Beowulf is an epic poem that connotes the contents of the world including history, terrorism, different cultures, and gender roles through the life events of the character Beowulf. Among the contents, gender roles played a significant role throughout the story of Beowulf. In the story, the conceptions of the male and female roles are emphasized through the diverse characters, which give a glimpse the similarity and dissimilarity of the gender roles in modern-day society. During the post-war era, the women's characteristics and attitudes of the roles in society were circumscribed and unnoticeable, but the men's roles compare to the women's roles were desirable and prosperous. However, gender roles in the modern-day society, the new generations, distinctly altered the roles compared to the post-war era just as Beowulf, who represents older generations, passed as Wiglaf, who represents newer generations, approached. While the gender roles in Beowulf's era were restricted and definite, the gender roles in modern-day society are unconstrained and diverse compared to Beowulf's age that can be proved by historical and global evidence.

As an epic tale of heroes and monsters, Beowulf gives its readers much excitement and adventure, but Beowulf's importance is more than just literary. It offers many insights into the beliefs and customs of seventh-century Anglo-Saxon culture. Among these insights is the Anglo-Saxon view of women and their role in society. Good Anglo-Saxon women are peaceful and unassertive, greeting guests and serving drinks to the warriors and other men in the meadhall. Wealhtheow, the queen of the Danes, represents a typical subservient Anglo-Saxon woman. As a foil to Wealhtheow, Grendel's mother is a strong and combative monster whom Beowulf must kill. By analyzing these two characters in Beowulf, we can understand the

Beowulf is known for displaying the importance of male heroism via Beowulf, but what about the significance of the women in the poem? The significance of women in Beowulf is overshadowed by the great heroism of the character Beowulf, but the women each have a reason for participating in the epic. The ideal woman was someone who was a noble, a mistress and loyal. An ideal woman is described in Maxim I: “at mead drinking she must at all times and places approach the protector of princes first, in front of the companions, quickly pass the first cup to her lord’s hand”. The significance of women in Beuwolf is a minor detail in the epic, but proves to be vital to Beuwolf. The epic of "Beowulf" illustrates three major roles for the women in the society: the hostess, the peacemaker, and the monster. Five women in Beowulf play the major roles throughout the epic: Wealhtheow, Freawaru, Thyrth, Grendel's Mother, and Hildeburh. These women entertain, bring peace, and contradict societal expectations of the female gender, either directly or indirectly.

Welthow is introduced in chapter nine. In chapter nine it states that “Welthow, Hrothgar's gold ringed queen, greeted the warriors; a noble woman who knew what was right, she raised a flowing cup to Hrothgar first, holding it high…” (28-29). Although, most women do not have real names Welthow is one of the most important women, not only, because she is married to Hrothgar, but because she is the queen. Welthow always seems to be happy and pleased with the words that are brought to her from the other characters. Welthow may be the queen, but there is  someone who was the total opposite of a queen and that is Grendel's Mother,she was a monster.

The role of women in English literature from Beowulf up to the late eighteenth century mostly represented the mores and gender expectations of the time. Exceptions were Rebecca in Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe who epitomized an intelligent and courageous woman and Grendall's mother in Beowulf who tried to attack the trolls. Judith too was a retelling of the story found in the Latin Bible's Book of Judith of the beheader of the Assyrian general Holofernes and also demonstrated a hardy, perspicuous woman. Whilst She Stoops to Conquer, also describes Kate an intelligent and self-determined heroine.

Although traditional Anglo-Saxon society emphasizes on patriarchal views, women play significant roles in “Beowulf”, challenging the masculinity presented. This is portrayed through Wealhtheow, Hildeburh and Freawaru, and Grendel’s mother through their hospitality, their peace weaving, and their anger. In contrast to the stereotype of women being submissive and compliant, “Beowulf” brings new light to the idea of women. An example of hospitality is when Wealhtheow, queen to Hrothgar, is a hostess for people in the hall, allowing all the nobles there to drink and have an appropriate celebration for the event.

In the 21st century, many women have been successful because of feminism. Women empowerment in our current time is a lot strong than in the Medieval period, but it is still weak. In “The Canterbury Tales” by Chaucer it represents strong feminist characters in, “The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale”. The characters such as a Wife of Bath, an old hag, and also a Queen from “Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale,” play a feminist character in the male-dominated society during that time. Through these three characters, we see strong examples of feminism.