Beowulf is the ultimate man. He takes up several challenges to prove his strength and bravery. Even though he lost the swimming race to Breca (because he was killing the sea monsters), he still has confidence in his abilities. He then travels to Denmark to take on another challenge, Grendel. Beowulf decides to fight the monster without armor and weapons in order to make the duel more equal. This little feat shows that Beowulf is respectful to his opponents. He chooses to fight fair because it is more manly; he wouldn't be proving his strength if he were to fight unjustly. Despite Beowulf's strength, bravery, and admirable character, the one trait that assembles the complete man is his way with words.
Beowulf's articulate language makes him manly; people respect him because he speaks well. This is the one trait that made me ponder Beowulf's character. Because everything about him is manly, it implies that being able to speak well is a masculine trait. After realizing that this attribute makes Beowulf more respectable, I asked myself if this still applies to society today. Do we consider a man who can speak well more masculine than a man who can not? I think that it can be manly but it can also not be; it just depends. Have you ever listened to men that talk in circles just to make themselves sound intelligent even though they are not? That is not masculine; if anything it is aggravating. This even applies to politicians. Most of them are eloquent, but I wouldn't consider any of them manly. Why don't I consider them manly if they can speak well? The answer is simple, because they haven't done anything to prove their strength. All they are doing is talking; that is not masculine. However, it is completely different when a man has already proved his strength and is capable of sounding intelligent, such as Beowulf. Imagine seeing a strong, athletic man performing some kind of physical feat (like winning a race or fighting). You would probably think he was pretty manly, but you wouldn't consider him intelligent. Now imagine that you saw the same man render someone speechless with his eloquence. You would be quite surprised. Not only can he perform athletic feats, but he has intelligence as well. In this case, his ability to speak influences his manliness for the better.
The art of rhetoric is a manly attribute, but it depends on the situation. If a male speaks well but has no physical capabilities such as strength or bravery, he is not manly. He would be considered intelligent and a weak, coward. His ability to speak well doesn't contribute to his manliness, because eloquence alone does not make him a man. However, if a male is strong, brave, capable of physical achievements, and has a way with words, he is definitely manly. In fact, he is the ultimate man because he can fight and he is intelligent. Beowulf is the best example; he beats up monster and gains respect through his words. Hence, Beowulf is the ultimate man.
I agree with what you're saying here, but I want to add another wrinkle. Beowulf doesn't talk in circles. He says what needs to be said, descriptively and with due deference to whom he his speaking, but he doesn't talk in circles. Being able to say what we have to say and then being able to stop talking is a manly trait in oratory. I think it's this trait that has developed our thought that real men shouldn't be talky. After all, if their actions speak loud enough, what would they have to say otherwise?
ReplyDelete