Beowulf in the 21st Century

When I flicked over the first page of Beowulf, I about went into a coma of panic and thought, what on earth have I signed myself up for this fine spring semester? Finding it hard to get a really good grasp of the poem and the language etc I of course turned to my trusty friend YouTube as it never disappoints in my desperate hour of need…I thought that if I listened to the poem in its most traditional form that I would be able to understand it better, I stumbled across this native Swede speaking it and realized I was very much mistaken as it didn’t help in the slightest.

After being very stressed for a second I soon realized that I just had to make the poem relatable to myself, read it from a different point of view and have an optimistic attitude. So I did this and upon finishing the poem it became clear to me that Beowulf in fact mirrors the exact same universal themes as our literature today, even though it was written centuries ago.  I read the poem like it was an action- adventure story that bombards the book selves of Barnes and Noble today and viewed the poem as a great hero who overcomes obstacles until he meets his match in battle…just like Harry to Voldemort, Hamlet to Claudius or Simba to Scar.

Although there has been countless cultural and technological advancements the main themes of Beowulf are still a prominent part of our 21^st century society, namely the qualities of a good leader, the relationship between leader and follower, and the human struggle between good and evil. When reading from this perspective you will soon realize that the two worlds are uncanny. By reading this it has not only allowed me to understand the historical view of Anglo-Saxon life but also general life lessons because throughout the poem there is an underlying emphasis on innate human characteristics and themes of life that will forever be universal. Thus Beowulf will always have some relevance to modern day readers.

So much so that they even made a film version of Beowulf in 2007… word on the street is that it’s terrible, has anyone seen it?? Either way, whether its Oscar worthy or has rotten tomatoes for days, the fact that they made the film in the first place reiterates the fact that life in modern America continues to resemble the Anglo-Saxon story of Beowulf.