Reference no: EM133381334
Assignment: write an essay of 1000 words minimum, 1500 words maximum(4-6pages typed, double-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman font) in which you develop an argumentabout one of the topics below.
WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ANSWER ALLTHE PROMPT QUESTIONS FOR A GIVEN TOPIC!!! These questions are not a systematic way to organize your paper. They are "jumping-off points" to guide your thinking and help you craft a more focused approach and argument of your own - you might think of it as designing a topic within the topic. I will take your paper on its own terms; it's your job as a writer to make those terms clear to me. And another thing: Please avoid the three-pointthesis, in which one body paragraph corresponds to one of the three points or subtopics given in the introduction. Papers set up this way might look well organized, but they almost always lack focus and depth.
The Female Presence (and/or Absence) in Beowulf. When females appear or are mentioned in the man's world of this heroic epic, what purpose do they serve? How is motherhood depicted, and how do the maternal roles of Grendel's mother and Queen Wealhtheow compare? How does Wealhtheow address her husband (lines 1168-1186) and Beowulf (lines 1215-1232)? Who or what is important to her? To what extent do her speeches convey female agency and self-assertion? How much power and influence does she actually have?
Swords in Beowulf.What do the detailed descriptions of swordssuggest about the role of artisans and weaponsmiths in this warrior culture? What's important about the dual status of these items as valuable treasures on the one hand and useful tools on the other? (e.g., the sword that Hrothgar gives Beowulf is described as "both precious object and token of honor" [l. 1023]).When and why do swords let Beowulf down? Given that the poet was Christian (even though Beowulf the character is pagan), what might the poem suggest about the value, reliability, and durability of swords as material things? (Why) does it matter that the dragon's hoard - the treasure burned and buried with Beowulf at the end - includes some swords?
Man versus Time in Beowulf. "He who wields power / over time and tide: He is the true Lord" (lines 1610-11), the Beowulf poet writes. These lines are about God, but humans also have ways of "wielding power over time and tide," or at least of trying to do so. How do the warriors live on after their physical deaths? How important are stories and storytellers ("carriers of tales") in bestowing fame and immortality? How does Beowulf seek to wield power over time? How does the poet himself wield power over time? The ability of a literary text to endure across time - to captivate readers generation after generation - is an important criterion for canonicity; how might the poem itself make a bid for its own canonical status?
Female Agency in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Aside from a brief (and silent) appearance by Queen Guinevere, there are two significant female characters in the poem: Bertilak's wife and Morgan Le Fay. How much agency do these characters actually have? What is the correlation between a woman's physical presence and her status in the world of the poem? In other words, Lady Bertilak appears often and speaks a lot, Morgan appears briefly and speaks not at all, yet who seems to have more power? Although Bertilak takes the credit for his wife's attempts to seduce Gawain ("it was all my work!"), does some "credit" rightfully belong to Lady Bertilak for her bedroom performance? Bertilak also gives Morgan the credit for leading him to Camelot and transforming him into the Green Knight. Does the poem seem to limit, qualify, or undermine Morgan's agency, and if so how?
Flesh in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. When is flesh mentioned in the poem and why is it important? Why is the reader subjected to such graphic descriptions of animal flesh in the hunting scenes?How might these scenes relate allegorically to Sir Gawain's struggle against temptation of the flesh? Given that the poet was a Christian writing for a Christian audience, what is supposed to be the religious lesson or spiritual takeaway for the reader?
Gift Giving in Beowulf and in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.Compare the nature of gifts - and the culture of giftgiving - in the worlds of the two poems. What kinds of gifts are given or exchanged in the poems, by whom, and why? What purpose(s) do these gifts serve? What, if any, are the "strings attached" to gifts in both poems? In Sir Gawain, what gifts are refused and why? How and why do material gifts (i.e., objects or things that are given) have significance beyond the material realm?