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Compare And Contrast Essay On Beowulf

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Compare And Contrast Essay On Beowulf
Beowulf is the story of a legendary, geat warrior traveling across Scandinavia killing monsters. Beowulf is the oldest piece of English literature discovered to date. It is the original tale of the hero saving the day. It has long been debated if it is a work of fiction or a factual account of Beowulf's adventures. While there are some holdouts, most scholars believe that it is a work of fiction.

While there are many adaptations of this famous story from books and movies to video games and comics, this will be a comparison of the epic poem and an animated television movie from 1998. The epic poem is widely regarded to be the closest to the original story. Both the poem and the movie begin with the monster, Grendel, in his lair being disturbed by King Hrothgar and his people celebrating and feasting. (Beowulf, pg. 14, verse 1). Grendel decides he is fed up with the noise and makes his way to Herot, a hall where Hrothgar and his people were celebrating. When he gets to Herot he finds the men in a drunken sleep. He quickly kills 30 of them and walks back to his lair pleased with his work. The survivors, including King …show more content…
The thief is chased into a dragon's den filled with gold. The thief takes some of the gold and gives it to the man he had stolen from. This act angers the dragon. The dragon then attacks Beowulf's people as it searches for the lost gold. When a soldier tells Beowulf how the thief discovered the dragon’s den and stole its gold, Beowulf decides that the problem can only be solved by killing the dragon. Beowulf calls it fate that he and this dragon should face each other. When Beowulf and some of his men confront the dragon, he attacks the creature only to be stalemated by the dragon's fiery breath. Seeing their fearless leader about to fall to the dragon, all but one of his men flea. This lone warrior then charges the dragon, giving Beowulf enough time to slay the dragon. Beowulf loses his own life in the
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