Beowulf And Judith Comparison

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To Be Victorious With Style There are many Anglo-Saxon poems that speak of great victory and triumph, but the two that stand out amongst the others are Beowulf and Judith. These two poems tell a story about great heroes who went to even greater lengths in order to protect the people around them. Throughout Beowulf as well as Judith the protagonists have a great determination to free themselves and the people around them from danger, however, Beowulf and Judith both have a certain swagger in order to be successful in battle. Beowulf is the nephew of a Geatish king named Hygelac, and he has the strength of thirty men in each hand. This young hero seeks out to find a demon named Grendel in order to slay the beast to truly prove his strength.…show more content…
Beowulf battles for himself in order to receive the fame that accumulates around him when he succeeds. Fighting Grendel without weapons or armor was not necessary in the slightest, but Beowulf decided to do so for the clout that will be brought around a hero bold enough to fight a demon with nothing but their bare hands. The fight with Grendel concludes with Beowulf ripping the demon's arm off, and leaving the bystanders in awe of what was just witnessed. The fight with Grendel shows Beowulf’s true power. Grendel has killed many people and many people have met their demise attempting to kill the demon. Everyone that has made the attempt to slay the demon always wore armor and used weapons. However, Beowulf stated that he would not use…show more content…
The story of Judith is surrounded around the supplication of God with the battle of good versus evil as well as the faithful Christian heroine against a pagan oppressor. Much like Beowulf Judith knows that she must do something in order to free the people being oppressed by this gruesome Assyrian General named Holofernes. Judith is a woman of great integrity and is willing to put her neck on the line to achieve the world she wishes to live in. The General is not only a nitwit, but evil as well, and he also displays a plethora of qualities in which a General should not have. On the other hand, Judith displays all sorts of qualities that would make her a strong leader. One evening at the camp the Assyrian General takes a liking to Judith, and has her summoned to his personal tent in order to seduce her. Judith allows herself to be subjected to the General’s wishes and waits her opportunity to strike. Judith, with nothing but her faith in the Lord, intelligence, and cunning ability awaits patiently while the General falls more and more into a drunken slumber. As soon as he slips deeply into his drunken stupor Judith beheads the ruthless General leading in triumph for the Jews over their Assyrian oppressors, she states; “when the captains of them shall run to the tent of Holofernes, and shall find him without his head wallowing in his blood, fear shall fall upon them(14.4)”. Judith
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