The poem Beowulf tells the tale of an extraordinary man who performs great feats. Beowulf is the superhero of his day, unparalleled in strength and willing to take on any challenge that he comes upon with as little help from weapons as possible and no help from other warriors. Hes in a league of his own physically. Because of this, though, he is also in a league of his own emotionally. Being everyones hero and idol can be cool, but its not exactly the best position to be in if you want to form meaningful relationships with people. This is Beowulfs struggle. He is, indeed, an isolationist surrounded by people because his almost godly status combined with his I can do anything on my own attitude fosters an environment of awe and worship around him and a feeling of pride and self-dependence within him.
The idea of idol worship and its effect on relationships is a concept that is prevalent in our current society. Consider the example of a rock star and his fan. There is a barrier keeping them from forming a genuine relationship which is constructed from the fans utter worship of the star and the stars knowledge of this and his feeling of superiority. Beowulf is said to have the strength of thirty in the grip of each hand (380). It is reasserted many times throughout the poem that he is unparalleled. He is superior, and he has every right to feel that way. This makes it nearly impossible for the people he comes across to look at him with anything but awe or envy, as Unferth originally does as Beowulfs coming, his sea-braving, made him sick with envy (501). Unferth sings a different tune once he has seen that Beowulf is the real deal, though. There is less tampering and big talk then / from Unferth the boaster (971) after everyone has seen Grendels severed arm displayed in the hall. This shows evidence of Unferths attitude towards Beowulf shifting from envy to awe and worship.
Upon Beowulfs coming to fight Grendel, Unferth was the most celebrated warrior of Heorot he was the only one who thought he might be on the same level as Beowulf as a warrior. This paves the way for the two to form a meaningful friendship, as many friendships are formed out of an original bad encounter (even nowadays many best friends relationships started off with a playground fight or rivalry). But this never comes to fruition because Unferth realizes that Beowulf is head and shoulders above him when it comes to fighting, and he joins the rest of Hrothgars men in their worship of Beowulf.
The only character in the poem that can realistically be considered a true friend and close to an equal of Beowulf is Hrothgar. Hrothgars first words to Beowulf are Beowulf, my friend (457). Greetings dont get much friendlier than that. Their relationship gradually grows, with Hrothgar eventually saying that he views Beowulf as his own son. Hrothgars deep affection for Beowulf is nowhere more evident in the poem than during Beowulfs departure:
And so the good and gray-haired Dane,
that highborn king, kissed Beowulf
and embraced his neck, then broke down
in sudden tears And such was his affection
that he could not help being overcome:
his fondness for the man was so deep-founded,
it warmed his heart and wound the heartstrings
tight in his breast. (1870-1879)
Anyone who claims that Hrothgar doesnt truly have a deep affection for Beowulf would be hard-pressed to refute the above evidence that he does. But something is strangely missing from the passage. Why doesnt the poet describe Beowulfs affection for Hrothgar? The poet goes out of his way to let the reader know that Hrothgar had extremely deep feelings for Beowulf, but not a word is mentioned about Beowulfs emotions toward Hrothgar. All that we get from Beowulf is a speech that basically amounts to thanks for everything Ill come to your aid if youre ever in need. Without doubt, Hrothgar is the character that Beowulf is closest to in the poem, yet the poet never gives us any clear sign that Beowulf has sincere feelings for Hrothgar beyond respect and admiration. Beowulf even addresses Hrothgar with respect and admiration rather than affection, repeatedly using phrases like wise sir (1384), and my lord (1390), while never calling Hrothgar friend as Hrothgar calls Beowulf. Its not uncommon for a superhero to have a sidekick. Robin, Batmans sidekick, is the most recognizable example of this. In the poem, Hrothgar has a sidekick named Aeschere whom he calls his soulmate, true mentor, and right-hand man (1325). Hrothgar is deeply saddened when Aeschere dies.
Beowulf does mention when confronting Unferth that he and Breca grew up daring themselves to outdo each other (536), but this does not show that Beowulf and Breca are anything other than rivals. The only other allusion to Beowulfs youth is interesting. He had been poorly regarded, was taken for less than he was worth, and his lord never much esteemed him in the mead-hall (2183). This passage seems abrupt and out of place. It might, however, explain Beowulfs need to do everything on his own. Beowulf seems to be obsessed with proving himself throughout the poem, and always wants to do it without any help from other people.
Beowulf is a stubborn man who probably wouldnt stop at a gas station and ask for directions if he was lost and would never read the directions before putting something together. Hes the boy who got picked on and then hit a growth spurt. Why would he want help from the people who used to think they were better than him? Beowulf gets away with doing everything on his own until his battle with the dragon. This fight is not yours, Beowulf says to his men before fighting the dragon, nor is it up to any man except me / to measure his strength against the monster / or to prove his worth (2532). Beowulf is still trying to prove his worth by denying his men the honor to fight alongside him as an old man who is already widely known as the greatest warrior in the world. He should have nothing left to prove, and he should ask his men for their help, which could possibly end up saving his life, but instead he requests that they offer him no help and he gets killed.
Beowulfs death definitely seems to have been preventable. Wiglaf says to the other men after Beowulfs death that when the worst happened / too few rallied around the prince (2882). The obvious connotation of this is that Beowulfs men (with the exception of Wiglaf) are weak-hearted and cowardly. But Beowulf did specifically ask to go up against the dragon by himself. Had he not requested that his men let him go it alone, more of them probably would have helped him, and the outcome may have been different. Beowulfs pride, which gained him all the fame and respect in the world, seems to have led to his death. Beowulfs heroic life led to a tragic death without a son, seemingly without a wife, and with only one of his men by his side.
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