Geat vs. Greek: Paternal Injunction in Beowulf and The Iliad

Beth Lewis English 288 02/28/00 Geat vs. Greek: Paternal Injunction in Beowulf and The Iliad Picture this. Inside the hall, mighty shields and glistening swords await the visitors’ arrival. Skillfully crafted armor decorations proclaim great battles and fierce hunts. The prevailing warrior ethos and his manly power are evident throughout. It is these strong patriarchal images which gave birth to two epics from two totally different cultures: The tale of Beowulf from Scandinavia and The Iliad from …

…picture of how women were seen in the eyes of warriors: monsters, pests and prizes. This goes back and places even more emphasis on where the role of the patriarch. Paternal injunction is the cause of readiness and fearlessness before death, with which the warriors go to war. Identification with the father and the father’s name is the effect of the patriarchal society, which created two masterpieces of ancient literature, Beowulf and the Iliad.