HUM 210 - Beowulf Paper[1]

8/8/2019 HUM 210 - Beowulf Paper[1]

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Erika Perera

HUM 210

11/23/10

Beowulf: Book vs. Movie

There are many differences between the movie of Beowulf and the written myth.

Though both portray the myth well, I prefer the movie because of the different way the

characters appeared. I felt like in the movie, the Beowulf character has more human

qualities which I believe make him more realistic whereas in the written version, hes

portrayed just like all the other heroes weve read about.

In the written version of the myth, Beowulf is seen as more the perfect hero,

someone everyone looked up to with no flaws. But a warrior of Hygelacs heard of

Grendels doings; he was the strongest of men alive in that day, mighty and noble. That

man called for a ship, said he would cross the ocean and help the king who needed help.

Wise men urged him to that adventure though he was dear to them. They examined

omens and whetted him on. In the movie however, Beowulf is still seen as the great

warrior he was, no doubt about that but he is also made to have flaws just like any other

human being, making him a more likeable character in my opinion. When he exaggerates

on his previous fights as well as when he lies about killing Grendels mother, he makes

mostly every believe (as well as some speculate) his great actions.

One major difference I noticed right away as the movie started was the difference

between the movie and the story in the description of Grendels behavior when first

entering the mead hall. In the movie, all the characters are enjoying themselves, laughing,

drinking, and dancing. Then all the lights disappear and Grendel bursts through the door,

starting to kill people almost immediately. Some try to fight him back but he destroys


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everyone in his path, also throwing some people into a pit of fire he somehow conjures.

Went he forth to find at fall of night that haughty house, and heed wherever the Ring-

Danes, outrivaled, to rest had gone. Found within it the atheling band asleep after feasting

and fearless of sorrow, of human hardship. Unhallowed wight, grim and greedy, he

grasped betimes, wrathful, reckless, from resting-places, thirty of the thanes, and thence

he rushed fain of his fell spoil, faring homeward, laden with slaughter, his lair to seek.

Then at the dawning, as day was breaking, the might of Grendel to men was known; then

after wassail was wail uplifted, loud moan in the morn. In the story, it is described like

Grendel slowly crept up on the unsuspecting Danes and quietly killed them. Another

difference in this scene is while all the fighting is going on between Grendel and the

people in the mead hall, Hrothgar tries to get in Grendels face and fight Grendel himself.

In the book, Hrothgar isnt even at the mead hall when Grendel first strikes, he ends up

hearing about it the destruction the next morning when he wakes up to the news.

Another major difference the actual description of the monster, Grendel. In the

movie, Grendel is seen as a scaly monster with a huge head, giant body, bad teeth, barely

any hair on his head, and it looked like his intestines were actually coming out. In the

book, Grendels appearance wasnt made as a huge deal and wasnt described very well.

For Grendel, a joyless giant of a man, ghastly and grim, lived somewhere in the lonely

border-land. He dwelled at night deep in the darkness of that murky moor. And by day,

shielded by its mist from the eyes of ordinary men, he haunted that marsh-land (387).

Grendel is also described in the movie as hating the noise the Danes make when they are

celebrating and having a good time. The laughter, cheer, and yelling of the Danes make

him so angry and thats why he attacks them. You can see his ears in a close scene in the

movie right before he attacks and they are throbbing, as if to show the viewer that he is


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bothered by the noise he hears, and it irritates him so much that he needs to kill. In the

written version of the myth, Grendel is also described as hating the noise the Danes

make. Day after day, Grendel heard the sounds of the harp and the happy songs of

heroes, and he hated them. And it came to pass that, one-day; he waited until the sun, that

bight candle of the world, had glided over the land. And then, that shadow-walker,

ghastly and grim, left his lonely lair in the marshy borderland. And shielded by the

darkness and mist, he strode forth upon silent feet toward King Hrothgars Hall of

Heroes, that gold-gleaming treasure-house, for his hard heart longed to spy on the Spear-

Danes. (387) This similarity was nice to see a connection between the two versions of

the character but there was also one other difference that I noticed. In the book, not only

was the joyful noise fueling Grendel to attack the town, also was a curse he inherited that

made him hate the Danes. Grendels hard heart was always flooded with a surging sea-

swell of hatred, for he despised the Dane-folk. Descended from the race of Cain, Grendel

bore the age-old curse, the mark of murder, of his death-dealing ancestor. Like Cain,

Grendel has been banished from life among happy folk. He was condemned to live in a

lonely lair, where only his mother and sea-monsters kept him company. (387)

In the movie, there is a slight undertone of a religious theme but it wasnt so big

that it overthrew the rest of the themes circling the movie. There were some references to

praying and God but not very much. However in the written version, religion is a very

strong theme, recurring throughout the myth. And so it came to pass that the Dane-folk

gathered in their heathen temples. And there, they offered sacrifices to their idols and

prayers to Satan, the Slayer of Sould. They did not now that they were neglecting the

Lord of Heaven. Nor did they know that their salvation would never come from Hell.


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(389) Just this excerpt shows how much of an influence religion had on the written

version whereas this sort of dialogue wasnt seen at all in the movie.

Some similarities between the movie and the written version were that Beowulf

was always seen as the hero, no one overtook his title or role. The Danes always held a

certain respect for him and this is seen in both versions of the myth. Beowulfs warriors

brandished many a sword, inheritances from the ancient days, trying to protect their chief

but that did no good: they could not have known, those brave warriors as they fought,

striking from all sides, seeking to take Grendels soul, that no battle sword could harm

him he had enchantment against the edges of weapons. We see Beowulfs men as well

as the Dane-folk men tried to protect him as long as they could but it was certain that they

werent able to however they tried with all their might hoping he wouldnt be hurt. We

see this in the movie especially when Wiglaf has to take over as King for Beowulf after

Beowulf ultimately loses his life fighting the dragon, the offspring of him and Grendels

mother. Also, Wiglafs character stays pretty much the same throughout both the written

version as well as the movie version. He is always the loyal warrior Beowulf needed him

to be, to in time take over for him as leader of the Danes.

As stated before, I really do like the movies representation of the myth Beowulf

because of the way the characters are presented, giving them more realistic traits instead

of like in the written version where the characters have a more story-like character.

Documents

HUM 210 - Beowulf Paper[1]