Christian Pagan Themes Beowulf Medieval Literature Multiple Chapters

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Medieval Literature


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In Beowulf the warriors are a mix of pagan and Christian traditions. They prove themselves through violence and battle rather than through prayer and piety. Yet they also have a good vs. evil concept that reflects the God vs. Satan paradigm in Christianity. Grendel and his mother are an inversion of the Blessed Mother and Her Son Christ. Beowulf himself fights Grendel without a weapon since Grendel himself uses none. This attitude of fairness and demonstration of valor is associated with Christian virtues. Yet the pagan concepts of warrior practices, ransoming of kin, and elements of revenge can be found; but still the idea of paying another’s debt, as Beowulf does for his father, is a Christian concept—but the practice of it could be seen as a pagan one as well.
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The pentangle on Sir Gawain’s shield represents the virtues that the knight seeks to embody in his life. One point represents his desire to be without sin in the use of any of his five senses (i.e., to not be a sensual person); another point represents his desire to use his five fingers faithfully and without fail; another point represents his desire to be faithful to the five wounds of Christ (the hands, the feet, and the side); another point represents his desire to be succored by the five joys of Mary; and another point represents his desire to live by the virtues of chastity, piety, love, and courtesy.
The meaning of the pentangle functions in the whole of the narrative because Sir Gawain is tested on his senses, his faithfulness to God, his courage, and on his virtue.

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The challenge of the Green Knight is an overwhelming one that basically demands that he submit himself to his sure death—but he is rewarded for his honesty…

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…is bad, but he himself seems to have no problem with being greedy. He even mocks the Host and offers to sell him a fake relic, which causes the Host to fly at him, and the knight has to keep a fight from breaking out. Clearly the Pardoner’s primary concern is having a good laugh and it doesn’t matter at whose expense it comes. Yet there is a spiritual component in the Pardoner that Chaucer seems to ironically convey by leaving it unsaid.
The Miller’s Tale is another bawdy one and focuses on earthly matters—such as two men wanting to sleep with the wife of a carpenter. The carpenter is much older than his wife and the story seems to suggest that he has taken a big risk by marrying someone so much younger. Other men are tempted to pursue her, thinking the old man is not going to be of any interest to her.
These stories all seem to suggest….....

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