The Devine Power in Beowulf’s Hands

In “Elements of the Marvellous in the Characterization of Beowulf: A Reconsideration of the Textual Evidence,” Fred C. Robinson fails to acknowledge certain elements within the passages he examines that not only speak to Beowulf’s super-human or supernatural power, but elevate him to a status closely associated with the divine and transform him into an ‘other.’ Through a close examination of the text, and by re-examining the translation of certain passages, Robinson affirms Beowulf’s status as a ‘heroic hero’ or ‘man,’ rather than a ‘demi-god, ’ and asserts that his ‘super human strength has been largely fictionalized’ (80): Yet, Robinson seems to focus only on those details that support his arguments, and although he is persuasive at times, there are elements in the story that contradict his arguments.

It is curious how Robinson in his essay devotes little attention to the fight between Grendel and Beowulf. Robinson does point out that ‘Beowulf lacked the strength to hold the monster in the hall,’ yet he fails to acknowledge that the main character exhibits superhuman strength by literally ripping one of Grendel’s arms out of the socket with his bare hands, during the fight. Afterwards, King Hrothgar exhibits the arm for all to see, and at the same time is figuratively displaying Beowulf’s superhuman or supernatural power - Grendel’s dismemberment becomes symbolic of Beowulf’s superhuman strength. Beowulf’s strength is a characteristic that sets him apart from everyone else in the story, and it persistently establishes him as a ‘heroic hero,’ with all the virtues and characteristics assigned to a ‘hero’: In the same instance, it also elevates Beowulf above the image of a ‘mortal man,’ and pushes him into a realm that promises immortality and transforms the main character into an ‘other.’ Line 789, ‘he who among men was the strongest of might,’ seems to illustrate this. Moreover, Beowulf’s superhuman strength seems repeatedly invoked when the poet describes his hands and grip, which I think also become symbolic of his strength for it is through his hands and grip that he ‘mortally wounds’ Grendel. Robinson also fails to examine how Paganism and Christianity are instilled within Beowulf, and instill him with a supernatural strength.

In my previous blog, I argued that Beowulf simultaneously possesses both Pagan and Christian elements within his character. I think the poet in assigning certain Pagan qualities to Beowulf, illustrates him as possessing a higher nature or much greater power, a super-power, than humans. Complimenting this, is the idea of Beowulf as both a ‘Christ-like’ figure, and, as Janel pointed out in a comment, a ‘martyr.’ Beowulf is seen as encompassing this Christian idea of ‘good,’ as well as Christ’s nature, when he defeats Grendel; he is carrying out God’s work, and one could view Beowulf’s superhuman strength as coming from or facilitated by God so that he can carry out ‘God’s anger.’ Reinforcing this idea is the image of Beowulf’s hands which become symbolic of the strength he possesses, and further associates him with God. In Christianity the hand is symbolic of the power and might of God, and the repeated image of Beowulf’s hands, as well as this image of Beowulf as a Christ-like figure, further instills a divine quality to his actions. Like Christ in the Gospel of Luke,. who is able to cast a demon out of a man through the authority of his word because God spoke through him, Beowulf is able to defeat Grendel, ‘a fiend from hell,’ through his superhuman strength, a power instilled in him by God. In light of this, Beowulf surpasses the notions assigned to a ‘heroic hero’ because he’s placed simultaneously within a Pagan and Christian context that seems to push him into a realm where he surpasses ‘mans’ mortality, and becomes the ‘other,’ for he is more than human, and although he can be seen as less of a god, he is none-the-less instilled with a divine power.

In the section, “The Swimming Feat with Breca,” Robinson convincingly make us question the amount of time Beowulf spends in the water fighting off the ‘man eaters,’ and also points out that that the main character might be seen as fighting these monsters on a boat or raft. Despite this, Beowulf does not only fight one sea creature, but nine, and he describes himself submerged in the water. In lines 553 and 554, Beowulf states, “Down to the ocean floor, a grisly foe dragged me,’ and we see the main character literally defeat a sea monster under water. Later on, Beowulf states how the ‘storm of battle took away that mighty sea beast, through my own hand.’ The battle figuratively speaks to the fight and tension (storm) between ‘Good and Evil,’ and in light of my previous argument that asserts Beowulf’s associations with the power and might of God, once again his hands become symbolic of a divine power, or perhaps in this case, of a divine intervention. Although Beowulf doesn’t use his bare hands to kill the first sea creature, this last line seems to reaffirm his associations with a divine power, for it ends on the image of his hands.

There seem to be a lot of flaws in Robinson’s arguments; he fails to acknowledge a number of elements that illustrate Beowulf as being more than a ‘man’ and a ‘heroic hero.’ At one point, he also argues that Beowulf is not ‘conceived as a romance hero,’ but I wonder why he didn’t examine the different ways Beowulf can be seen as a tragic-hero?
By the time Beowulf fights the dragon he is spiritually wounded by his previous experiences because they have been driven by his flaw, his hunger and desire for fame. In fact the very last line seems to illustrate him as a tragic hero, for it asserts that he was ‘the most eager for fame’; this too seems to contradict Robinson’s argument that Beowulf exists as a ‘heroic hero.’ It will be interesting to hear our class’s reaction to Robinson’s essay, and even more, to discover if they’ve found any additional flaws in his arguments.