Truth

Despite the dragon's claim of complete, unlimited knowledge, I still am questioning him and whether or not he is actually a real being or just a figment of Grendel's imagination. Grendel, unhinged by the Shaper's words, visits the dragon to find answers to his questions about order, language, and truth. The dragon tells him that the Shaper's words are an "illusion of reality," and that they only serve to make the men think that there is meaning in the universe. In a way, when the dragon says this, it makes you think that he just wants you to believe what he says, but he is actually telling the truth, or at least the majority of it. The Shaper, on the other hand, has become quite untrustworthy in my mind and is hard to trust. Although I definitely favor the dragon over the Shaper, the dragon’s charm, which renders Grendel physically invulnerable, is both a blessing and a curse. At first, Grendel rejoices in the feelings of superiority this new power affords him. He enjoys feeling strong and superhuman in front of the creatures who once made him feel confused and ashamed. At the same time, however, Grendel also feels lonelier than ever before. Even though Grendel considers man’s moral and religious systems ridiculous at this point, he nevertheless has—perhaps subconsciously—found a way to experience the kind of connectedness such systems provide their believers. The dragon’s charm, however, destroys that sense of connectedness, preventing Grendel from ever fully engaging in his battles with the humans, and ensuring his separation and disconnection from them. To conclude, I think that the dragon is more trustworthy and all around better compared to the Shaper, but neither of them are very moral or good beings all around.

Modern Day Beowulf

It is very difficult to compare Beowulf to a modern hero. Beowulf fought a giant monster, while common heroes fight typical villains. Beowulf was trying to save Scandinavians from a giant invincible monster. Martin Luther King Jr., though not really seen as a hero, was trying to save African Americans from the monster of racism. Both the Scandinavians and the African Americans were trapped by evil things in society, both physical and intangible. The outcome was the same and they were both trying to do the same thing, just in a different way. Beowulf not only agreed to take on Grendel and his mother, but he defeated Grendel with his bare hands and also survived a trip into the mysterious lake, where he eventually defeated Grendel’s mother. Like Beowulf, civil rights hero Martin Luther King Jr. fought his entire life for the advancement of his people. Like Beowulf, he was aging and his power was in decline when he was faced with a hero’s ultimate dilemma. Was he more of an inspiration to his people alive, or more powerful as a martyr who went out fighting the impossible fight? Dr. King had been warned by the FBI that his life was in danger in Memphis that fateful day, but he went to face his dragon. Like Beowulf, he fought and died for his people and the power of his legacy to his people.

"Me"

Hi, my name's Ciara Lynch and I'm a sophmore at Whitney Young High School. I guess I'm supposed to talk about myself. Well, I'm 15 years old and I have triplet brothers that are 10. Both of my parents are from Ireland, so I'm first generation American. I'm not a very sporty person, but I love performing. I've been doing musical theatre since I was five years old. Singing, dancing, acting, I love it all. I have met all of my best friends through theatre and dance and I love being onstage. I live on the south side of Chicago,  but I'm so glad that I decided to come to Whitney because it allowed me to broaden my horizons outside of Beverly. In my spare time, when I'm not doing theatre or dance, I do a lot of community service. I volunteer at Christ hospital and Smith Village nursing home. When I graduate high school I hope to attend Stanford University or NYU to be a physical therapist. Well, I guess that's it, tata for now.