The tale of Beowulf is one of action. Much of the story’s emphasis is on men, battles, and quests for fame instead of on females or personal relationships. Women are rarely mentioned in the story, with the exception of Wealhteow and Grendel’s mother. The incorporation of these women into the text appears intentional; the author of Beowulf calls into question the delicacy, innocence, and beauty commonly associated with femininity by contrasting Wealhteow and Grendel’s mother in terms of their physical description.
The first mention of Wealhteow in the tale occurs when she is serving the men in the hall. Wealhteow embodies femininity in her physical appearance as well as her actions. She is described as “queen of Hrothgar, heedful of courtesy, gold-decked, greeting the guests in hall; and the high born lady handed the cup […] till come the moment when the ring-graced queen, the royal-hearted, to Beowulf bore the beaker of mead” (lines 614-625). By engaging in servitude to the men, Wealhteow embraces a traditional female gender role of submissiveness and politeness. Her name is made synonymous with “queen” and “high-born lady” in an attempt not only to compliment her status, but also to praise her for her femininity. In general, she is viewed as innocent, courteous, and essentially untouchable. However, her beauty holds an unmatched power over the men that surround her. Her introduction to the story serves as a manifestation of femininity that the author of Beowulf later goes on to challenge with the addition of Grendel’s mother to the poem.
Instead of focusing on her motherly qualities – such as her desire to selflessly protect and defend her child – the author chooses to focus on the gruesome physical appearance of Grendel’s mother. This is done partly to portray her as inhuman, but also to shed light on an alternative view of femininity. The author of Beowulf writes that “the livelong time after that grim fight, Grendel’s mother, monster of women, mourned her woe” (lines 1261-1263). He utilizes this text not to create sympathy for the mourning mother, but to demonize her by referring to her as a “monster”. Such a description offends traditional views of women as being delicate or docile. Speaking of her later stages of grief, the author writes that “his mother now, gloomy and grim, would go that quest of sorrow, the death of her son to avenge” (lines 1280-1282). In this instance, we are presented with femininity not as a symbol of innocence and purity, but of rage, manipulation, and revenge.
The passages on Grendel’s mother are not the only ones that allow us to examine this tainted, darker side of femininity. The yonic symbols present in the text also compliment this idea. One of the first yonic symbols to appear is the cup that Wealhteow carries to the men in the hall. The cup itself is a symbol of femininity, yet it contains alcohol – a drink that, in excess, can cause people to wreak havoc, harm themselves, or be taken advantage of. In this way, the cup shows a side of Wealhteow that is not explicitly described – her ability to manipulate. Another yonic symbol, the lake where Grendel’s mother resides, is frequently referred to as a “murky moor” (line 1409). The fact that the water is unclear again suggests that something evil lurks beneath its surface. This foggy image also suggests that things are not always what they appear to be, which translates into the idea that femininity too is not always what it appears to be.
I know its only tangential to the actual thesis of your rumination, but one sentence really stood out to me: "Instead of focusing on her motherly qualities – such as her desire to selflessly protect and defend her child – the author chooses to focus on the gruesome physical appearance of Grendel’s mother." And this made me think that perhaps the poet was a little unfair to Grendel's mother, after all her murder was motivated only by the death of her son. The rest of the poem establishes that revenge is honorable and necessary and yet Grendel's mother is vilified for it. Perhaps the reason her revenge is treated differently is because she is a woman. What would be honorable in men is discouraged in women who should remain in their proper roles.
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree! I think it might even serve as a warning to women. Women who fit the gender role are seen as beautiful and are praised by those around them (like Wealhteow) whereas women who take on masculine qualities of bravery and strength are demonized. Indirectly, this might be intended to show women what could happen to them if they stray too far from their stereotypical roles.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Beowulf and noticing all of the instances of revenge, I agree with Steve in his comment about how the "poem establishes that revenge is honorable and necessary and yet Grendel's mother is vilified for it." Beowulf himself states before going to fight Grendel's mother "it is always better to avenge dear ones than to indulge in mourning" (lines 1384-1385). Beowulf himself said it is better to get revenge than to mourn. Any mother would want revenge or punishment after the death of her child. As Jessica stated, the author portrayed Grendel's mother as a monster of women, but is the only real reason she is a considered a monster because she is acting out of societal norm in the roles of women?
ReplyDeleteI don't think Grendel's mother being vilified has as much to do with her stepping out of societal norms as much as it does with her heritage. She is simply a cursed ancestor of Cain and I presumed that she was just innately wicked. The general antagonist here seems to be just the general Biblical "evil". I agree that her need for revenge is just as justified as all of the rest in the poem, but I don't think that her vengeful motives are ever portrayed as being more wrong than any other ones by any means. It seemed to me that (for Hrothgar at least) the main motive in killing her, and the reason she's spoken about by the characters with such spite, is the death of Aeschere who Hrothgar described as "everything the world admires in a wise man and a friend" (lines 1328-29)
ReplyDeleteI definitely do agree however that her maternal qualities are portrayed in what's probably a chauvinistic manner. She's a monstrous fury motivated and controlled by her emotions. All other females in the poem are described as fair, and abiding by societal norms. But, I think that the author could have used the maternal element also to simply emphasize the increasing dangers that Beowulf would have to face in his journey.
Honestly, I agree that the monsters in this poem are monsters because they deviate from their general societal norms of traditional upstanding citizenship. But, I don't think it's terribly unbalanced in its chauvinism (naturally any work from this time period is going to have chauvinistic elements). Grendel's mother is most definitely far from the societal role of the woman and does seem to be the embodiment of "negative" (to the time) maternal and feminine qualities. However, Grendel himself is also the personification of the "negative" masculine aspects, as he's driven to murder mainly due to his insecurities about exclusion. He can never live up to the chivalrous masculine roles of the time and he can only build up his self-esteem through violence against safer targets.
I like what you say, Albert, about Grendel's mother representing the "negative" side of maternal and feminine qualities. Jessica's juxtaposition of the queen and Grendel's mother is very striking. I think they are both presented in this story as a way to contrast the "perfected" and the "fallen" versions of a female. They are both equally feminine yet completely opposed to eachother in their looks, words and deeds.
ReplyDeleteThis brings up the concept of "what truly makes something/someone evil"? If two equally feminine beings can be so morally opposed, does that suggest that each has the ability to become more like the other? Because of their shared feminine essence, does the queen contain a small seed of Grendel's mother's rage and hideousness deep and Grendel's mother contain a seed of the queen's goodness and beauty? Now that they are compared in such a way, I get the feeling that things are not so blank and white when it comes to good and evil .
Of course, one can also extend the same kind of juxstapositioning to Beowulf and Grendel. Here's a disturbing question: Does Beowulf have the potential to become like Grendel and vice-versa?
I like the discussion that's happening here. Great conversation-starter, Jessica. Joanna, you do a nice job of bringing the thread together with your final question above about the various possibilities available to the characters.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely about the role of women in Beowulf and how the characterizations of these women convey to the audience a sense of gender roles. The text seems to create a binary between Weahltow and Grendel's mother, as the two are presented as polar opposites. The text deals largely with character qualities, and the goal being that these characteristics exemplify traits that are socially desirable. Weahltow functions as an ideal in the given context. Grendel's mother serves as her antithesis, and in doing so illustrates to the audience traits feared in any woman.
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