Beowulf And Parzival Essay, Research Paper

The act of being honorable has been written about and discussed for ages,

beginning from The Laxdaela Saga to the more recent works by Tolkein, The Lord

of the Rings. Throughout literary history authors have created and restored

figures from all times that seem to represent what is honorable and chivalrous.

The two literary legends compared in this paper are Beowulf and Parzival. These

two figures in their own way find within them what is virtuous. At first

impression it seems as though Beowulf is the warrior who contains the honor

within himself, but as the two characters are compared in depth, it becomes

obvious that Parzival’s journey through manhood brings him to a much more noble

and honorable place. Beowulf and Parzival’s journey’s began on the same path,

each fatherless, they strove to search out what they saw as adventure. They

jumped to whet their desires for the unknown and the chance to be a hero. A

young Beowulf, we learn, challenges a peer to a match of strength. Unferth tells

this tale of "when for pride the pair of [them] proved the seas and for a

trite boast entrusted [their] lives to the deep waters, undissuadable by effort

of friend or foe whatsoever from that swimming on the sea,"(Beowulf,65).

Beowulf’s stubborn pride lead him even at a young age to challenge what may have

seemed beyond his reach for glory. Later on, Beowulf hearing the horrific tales

of the monster Grendel that had been reeking havoc at Heorot, abruptly left his

homeland to prove his gallantry. "The wiser sought to dissuade him from

voyaging hardly or not at all," but the strong-headed Beowulf refused to

listen to reason. Unlike Beowulf, Parzival was actually hidden from all

opportunities of adventure by his mother. She fled to a place where she believed

she could escape all traces of knighthood, which she believed to be evil. She

was not successful though, and as soon as Parzival laid his eyes on the god-like

knight, he made up his mind to leave his mother and all that he knew to seek

adventure. The absence of her son drove her to an early grave. This action is

one that Parzival was later deemed "unhonorable" for and one he deeply

regretted. These boys both started out young and refused to listen to the reason

of their elders. Against the wishes of the people who were wiser and more

experienced, they let their pride and ambition overtake them. This did not show

to be a promising beginning for either of them. Their roads do take a different

turns though. Beowulf, arriving at Heorot, is immediately described as a person

who, "has the head of a hero," but his arrogance accompanies this

hero-like status(Beowulf, 59). He proceeds to boast to all of the Hall of Heorot,

that he is an accomplished fighter who has come to save them from this terrible

monster. He proclaims, "With bare hands shall I grapple the fiend, fight to

the death here"(Beowulf, 65). Though Beowulf is extremely arrogant, there

is some truth to what he boasts. He does perform in the manner in which he

promised, be with this success comes extreme arrogance that should not be found

in a true hero. Beowulf, unlike Parzival has already experienced combat. He

brags that "fame-winning deeds have come early to [his]hands .. Men knew

well the weight of [his]hands. Had they not seen [him] come from fights where

[he] had bound five Giants – their blood was upon [him] – cleaned out a nest of

them.,"(Beowulf, 64). Beowulf was raised fighting and had never been

defeated, so he never really knew what it was like to not be successful.

Parzival did not expierence success until he learned what honor really was. It

was said of him that, "No kurvenal had reared him, he knew nothing of fine

manners," (Parzival, 83) He seemed doomed to fail in the world of the

knighthood, because of his lack of spiritual and physical training. He is

described as "naпve", "simple", and as a "raw

young man" not at all prepared for he sought out in his vast world. His

first encounter was with the Red Knight, Ither, who we later learn is a relative

of Parzivals’. Parzival battles with Ither and kills him. After the battle is

finished, Parzival stripped the corpse of its armor for himself. "Later on

reaching years of discretion, Parzival wished he had not done it." (Parzival,

91) At this time in his life though, because of his ignorant nature and

preconcieved notions of knighthood, he does not see how this is wrong. A great

example of Parzival’s ignorance is his tendency at a young age to take

everything literally. When entering the Gral castle, which is where his greatest

dishonor occurs, he is greeted by squires who try to help him dismount and

remove his armor. Parzival proclaims, when asked to dismount, "It was a

king who commanded me to be a knight," and refuses to get down off the

horse (Parzival,92). Parzival takes the definition of knight literally. A

knight’s literal definition is "rider", so because of his naivetй,

Parzival would not dismount. He took the term Knight to be literal, and did not

want to dishonor himself be getting off the horse. He completely ignored the

common reference to knighthood and made a fool of himself. Another example of

Parzival’s naivetй in the realm of knighthood, is his failure to ask the

Gral King what is ailing him. This failure proves to be Parzival’s biggest

mistake throughout the entire tale. He must spend the rest of his young life

repenting for his dishonor to the king. Through this repentance he learns and

matures. We never truly see this growth in Beowulf. When comparing what is

honorable between these notable characters, it is necessary to see where they

were at their strongest and weakest point. When Beowulf is at Herot, Hrothgar

warns Beowulf that he must beware the temptation of power, and that he must

always be honest, fair, and just. Beowulf fights both Grendel and Grendel’s

mother, and comes up victorious in both struggles. There is honor in his

fighting these monsters, but it also seems that a great motivation for him is

glory. He returns home and the kingdom falls upon his shoulders. With this

responsability he proves that he is capable of being a great king and a virtuous

leader. Parzival’s journey to greatness takes him on a much more difficult path

to virtuosity. The reader sees Parzival grow through being educated and

encountering many life altering experiences. He is taught that to be honorable,

"you must never lose your sense of shame,"(pg. 91). When he receives

this advice, he is still at a point in his life where he does not completely

understand the notions of humility and integrity, but he begins to show some

signs of compassion. Parzival realizes his mistakes and knows that he must

"make amends" for the wrongs he has done to others, (pg. 135). The

reader sees a natural progression in Parzival’s behavior. As the tale continues,

the adjectives to describe him evolve from naпve and ignorant, to strong,

valiant, and brave. He states, "may I forever be disgraced in this life and

my fame brought to naught; and that these words are fact let my prosperity stand

surely in the eyes of Him Whose hand is highest?and let me be mocked and

damned in this life?I was a young fool-no man-not yet grown to years of

discretion."(pg 141). Through his travels he grows to become chivalrous and

honorable. To fully compare Beowulf and Parzival though, one must define what

honor and chivalry really are. In Parzival, chivalry is described to be

"endowed with two rich revenues: a true sense of shame and noble

loyalty."(pg. 167). Beowulf seems to be lacking in ones of these areas. He

does not have a "true sense of shame." As he grows older and rules

over his kingdom, he is faced with no real challenges, until a dragon in his

kingdom is disturbed. With only one man standing behind him to rally against the

dragon, he goes on to fight this fateful battle. This step is extremely

ignorant: as an old man, there is no way to defeat the dragon and survive. As

king, he has a duty to serve his people, and by challenging a fire breathing

dragon, it is doubtful that he will come out victorious. This move is extremely

pigheaded, because Beowulf does not have an heir to his throne and he will leave

his kingdom without a leader. This act of Beowulf’s shows excessive pride.

Beowulf does put up a good struggle and defeats the dragon, but by doing this he

also kills himself and any real leader that Geatland had, and leaves the country

in chaos. It seems as though through the entire tale of the heoric Geat, he

never learned anything; he never really made a transition in character. Without

growth, it is very hard to be truly honorable. Parzival realizes his faults and

asks to be guided and taught. He recognizes that he is a "sinner" and

through trials and tribulations, he finds himself in an exalted position. His

story, unlike Beowulfs’ ends on a happy note. Parzival finds his true love and

rules over the kingdom he was destined to lead. He becomes "worthy in God’s

eyes" and a "man of reputation and honor."(pg 388, 394). Beowulf

and Parzival begin their journey to honor on the same path, but only Parzival

experiences fully emotional and spiritual growth. Beowulf never experiences any

humbling confrontation, he only knows success. Beowulf though, never experiences

true happiness. He never marries or bears an heir to his throne, and dies a sad

old man. With Beowulf’s death, so goes the death of his kingdom. Parzival as a

young man commits several sins, and does not fit the hero stereotype, but

through his sins and misdeeds, he learns honor and virtue. Though Beowulf was

successful and seems to achieve everything in life, he never knew what it was to

be truly honorable like Parzival. Though Beowulf was successful and seemed to

achieve everything in life, he never achieves true honor like Parzival.