Thursday, January 14, 2010

Beowulf--"Bee Hunter"

After reading the the 900 lines of Beowulf, it took me a moment to digest the content. Honestly, it's difficult to comprehend each section in its entirety, but there was one part that stood out to me. When asked who he was, this hero from Geats, this traveler from the north, he answered, "I am Beowulf." I find this part to be the emphasis of my reading because of, not only the historical repetition of such a phrase, but the power of Beowulf's hero. His presence is commanding, creating a need to be noticed. Like many heroes in modern times, short, simple phrases like this continue to be used. They're volatile statements that leave an imprint in the text, and cause the reader to remember. The hero doesn't seem to babble on and on, but instead he/she gives commanding, short, one-liners to present himself/herself. Perhaps Hollywood has done this on more than one occasion? I think so.

"I am Batman!" "We're the A Team!" "This is Sparta!" - to name a few.

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