critical essays
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Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
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A 5 page paper that discusses the difference between the two heroes in these works. Beowulf and Gawain both represent the characteristics of heroes, but both demonstrate them in different ways. While Beowulf fights his battles to achieve fame and glory, Gawain battles the Green Knight in service to Arthur. There personal characteristics determine the outcomes of the works. Bibliography lists 3 source.
Filename: Gawain.rtf

Beowulf and The Poem of the Cid: Epic Legends
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A legend is a story that has probable historical roots but has been told and retold, embellished and personalized to the individual and their culture. The hero in a legend is generally larger than life. Legends are often narrative and present a theme or problem that was central to the development of the time period. Heroic tradition is, simply stated, the ages old pattern of story that begins with a hero in unusual circumstances, the search or quest, the transformation of the Hero and a resolution. Beowulf, an epic poem of Old English origins, and The Poem of the Cid, an eleventh-century epic poem from Spain, are both considered legends from the oral tradition that mirror the developmental stages of their culture. This 5 page paper explores the tale of Beowulf and the Poem of the Cid with an emphasis on their status as legend based on the shared concepts of a hero on a quest and the theme as reflective of the stage of development of feudalism. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: KTbeocid.wps

Family Ties in Beowulf
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A 5 page paper analyzing the way the author of this anonymous early-medieval poem views the ties of family and kinship. The paper concludes that the poem's author considered valor and nobility to have a genetic component, and felt that a person of noble blood bore an extra measure of responsibility for his people. Bibliography lists 1 source.
Filename: Famwulf.wps

Kingship And Downfall In Beowulf And Lear
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A 5 page paper comparing Beowulf and Shakespeare's King Lear in terms of the protagonists' deaths at the end of their respective works of literature. The paper observes that Beowulf's overconfidence caused him to die precisely as he wanted -- a hero -- while Lear's vanity caused him to die a tragic and humbled death. Bibliography lists 3 sources.
Filename: Learbeo.wps

Leadership in 'Beowulf' and 'Gilgamesh'
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A five page paper looking at the way these two very ancient stories develop the concept of leadership. The paper concludes that both epics place equal emphasis on the dual requirements of valor and service as basic components of leadership. No additional sources.
Filename: KBbeo2.wps

Presentation of Kingships in Medieval Literature
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A 7 page paper presenting the role taken by the medieval king in such works as Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The writer depicts the father-son relationship that existed between a king and his warriors. Bibliography lists three sources.
Filename: Kingship.wps

The Character of Hrothgar in Beowulf
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A 3 page essay in which the writer analytically presents Hrothgar as the most 'human' character in the epic 'Beowulf.' It is posited that while Hrothgar does indeed have all of the qualities necessary for greatness, he is the one character with whom we can most identify. Also examined is Hrothgar's relationship with Beowulf and the fact that while he has wisdom, Hrothgar lacks courage. No Bibliography.
Filename: Hrothgar.wps