Wealth in Beowulf vs. Wealth in Canterbury Tales
Wealth
Wealth, money, gold, property, possession, prosperity, treasure, luxuriance… You probably heard these words millions of times in your life time, but have you considered what they actually mean? What is their meaning to you? What is the value they hold in the world? How are they seen in our everyday life? There are thousands of questions that can be asked about this one aspect of life. The question I want to discuss in this paper differs from all the typical ones. My question is: “How did the theme of wealth change in literature from the beginning of times?” In this paper I will be considering the epic, Beowulf that was composed by an unknown person during Anglo-Saxon period of time, and the Canterbury Tales, composed by Chaucer in the Middle Ages. These works of literature give various purposes and functions to wealth, that we can compare and contrast. How is the theme of wealth in Beowulf different from that of Canterbury Tales?
Beowulf is an epic – a narrative describing the deeds of a hero. It tells the story of Beowulf, who helps the king of Danes, Hrothgar, defeat the scary monster that holds the country in fear. As Beowulf, his team, and the whole country celebrate the defeat of Grendel, another monster, Grendel’s mother, comes to avenge the death of her child. Beowulf as a hero goes to fight this monstrous creature too, and defeats her. Then Beowulf goes back to his country, and becomes a king, ruling for good fifty years. Another problem raises, in Beowulf’s native country, the land of Geats. Someone steals a cup from a dragon, and the dragon starts raging and destroying cities because of it. As a good hero Beowulf goes to fight the dragon, defeats him, but receives an injury that leads him to death. This story has been told through generations before people even considered putting something down on paper, so the original author is unknown. The details of the story were definitely changed with different storytellers. What we have written down
Wealth, money, gold, property, possession, prosperity, treasure, luxuriance… You probably heard these words millions of times in your life time, but have you considered what they actually mean? What is their meaning to you? What is the value they hold in the world? How are they seen in our everyday life? There are thousands of questions that can be asked about this one aspect of life. The question I want to discuss in this paper differs from all the typical ones. My question is: “How did the theme of wealth change in literature from the beginning of times?” In this paper I will be considering the epic, Beowulf that was composed by an unknown person during Anglo-Saxon period of time, and the Canterbury Tales, composed by Chaucer in the Middle Ages. These works of literature give various purposes and functions to wealth, that we can compare and contrast. How is the theme of wealth in Beowulf different from that of Canterbury Tales?
Beowulf is an epic – a narrative describing the deeds of a hero. It tells the story of Beowulf, who helps the king of Danes, Hrothgar, defeat the scary monster that holds the country in fear. As Beowulf, his team, and the whole country celebrate the defeat of Grendel, another monster, Grendel’s mother, comes to avenge the death of her child. Beowulf as a hero goes to fight this monstrous creature too, and defeats her. Then Beowulf goes back to his country, and becomes a king, ruling for good fifty years. Another problem raises, in Beowulf’s native country, the land of Geats. Someone steals a cup from a dragon, and the dragon starts raging and destroying cities because of it. As a good hero Beowulf goes to fight the dragon, defeats him, but receives an injury that leads him to death. This story has been told through generations before people even considered putting something down on paper, so the original author is unknown. The details of the story were definitely changed with different storytellers. What we have written down