BEOWULF and ANGLO SAXON SOCIETY
...r was the customary occupation of the Anglo-Saxon nobleman and he slept with his armour by his side. This preoccupation with war and fighting is apparent from the plot of “Beowulf”. A series of grisly battles are the subject of the poem, a poem whose grim music is the snapping of fangs and the crunching of bones. Under the leadership of the king, warriors spent their time defending their country from the hostile invaders and raiding other countries for wealth. A king was obliged to provide his warriors with food, drink, weapons and armour, land and jewels. In return the warrior was obliged to fight to the death to defend his king. Through the character of Beowulf we learn about this relationship between warrior and king as Beowulf himself matures from a warrior in the first part of the poem to a king in the second part. Beowulf’s character illustrates the responsibilities and traits of the warriors and the kings. As a warrior he is characterized by his feats of strength and courage, his loyalty, his courtesy and his pride. All of these are qualities attributed to the ideal Anglo-Saxon warrior. As a king Beowulf shows how a king must act for the good of the people and not only for his own glory again illustrating an Anglo-Saxon ideal. In fact at the end of the poem Beowulf’s moral standing remains somewhat ambiguous precisely because he has strayed from this ideal. His daring battle with the dragon, although appropriate for a warrior, is seen by several of the Geats as unsuitable behaviour for a king and they resent that Beowulf has left them in a kingless state and vulnerable to attack. “Beowulf” also shows us that Anglo-Saxon society placed a high price on kinship and that therefore much attention was paid to family history. In fact the poem begins with a tribute to King Hrothgar’s ancestry and we are immediately introduced to a world where every man is his father’s son, the world of the Anglo-Saxon warrior. We can see that Beowulf is often referred to as “Ecgtheow’s son”. It is interesting to note that according to the poem Shield Sheafson, the founder of the Danish royal family is also a foundling, an orphan. In a society where such value is placed on heritage it is impossible to have a definitive beginning without a fatherless figure. It is also interesting to note that Grendel, the representation of all that is evil, is not only the descendent of Cain but also his strong parent figure is his mother and not his father. This is very much at odds with the patriarchal society of the Danes, the Geats and the Anglo-Saxons. As Hrothgar assets “They are fatherless creatures, / and their whole ancestry is hidden” , the very idea of an uncertain descent is suspect in Anglo-Saxon society. The reason for such an emphasis beings placed on ancestry is because it is a means for the heroic code to be integrated into society. In a warrior culture the patriarchal lineage becomes an important component of one’s identity and an accent being placed on who one’s father was and on his deeds binds the warriors to act in a similar way to their fathers. For example Beowulf’s father owed a debt of loyalty to Hrothgar and because this debt has been passed on to him Beowulf is obliged to help Hrothgar by offering to fight Grendel. In the warrior society described in “Beowulf” courage, skill in battle and loyalty were the principle virtues from which a heroic code developed. Describing this code is one of the most preoccupations of the poem and it reveals much about Anglo-Saxon society because although the heroic code is a relic of pre Anglo-Saxon culture it was still in use when the poem was written. Already in the first section of the poem some of the main tenants of the code become apparent. The poem opens with the story of Shield Sheafson and a description of a successful hero’s life. Sheafson’s importance is measured by the number of clans which he has conquered. These clans are forced to pay tribute to him and it is obvious that strength is valued because it leads to treasure. However once treasure is obtained the king must show generosity by distributing it among his warriors in ritualised gift giving. This is why a king is often referred to as a “ring giver”. Because of his strength as a warrior and generosity as a king Sheafson is referred to in the following way “That was one good king” by the poet. Briefly the heroic code demands strength, courage and loyalty from warriors, hospitality, generosity and political skill from kings, ceremoniousness from women and a good reputation from all people. All the moral judgements of individual characters in “Beowulf” stem from the moral code and are judged as either confirming to it or not. For example Wiglaf, Beowulf’s kinsman and thane (warrior) is the only man brave enough to help Beowulf fight the dragon and because of this he achieves glory. He confirms perfectly to the heroic code as he is willing to die not only to defeat the enemy but, more importantly, to save his king. Grendel on the other hand is loathsome because he does not follow the heroic code of Anglo-Saxon society, he does not cherish their supreme values of allegiance, honour, loyalty and communality and is condemned for this as can be seen in the following quote “Grendel’s hatred began, /…the monster relished his savage war / On the Danes, keeping the bloody feud / Alive, seeking no peace, no offering / No truce, accepting no settlement, no price / In gold or land, and payi...