Dragon as a Metaphor - 1646 Words

Calvin Starbird Paragraph 1 (Intro): The Epic Tale of the Dragonslaying Hero has been told a hundred times over. But where did the archetype start? Historians believe that the original Dragonslayer story was the English epic, Beowulf, written sometime between the eighth and eleventh centuries. The story of the Dragonslayer is that of a Hero, who starts off insignificant, but after his journey, is strong enough to face and defeat the evil Dragon. The Hero’s Journey is split into three phases; in order they are: Separation, Initiation, and the Return. The story of Beowulf was written for a specific purpose, other than creating a whole genre. The bards who wrote it as though it was a history, describing the past as the way things are when†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"The darkness† in this quote is the forest where Grendel lives, which symbolizes hell. This excerpt ties back to the Anglo-Saxon’s beliefs of good and evil and exemplifies the cultural significance and the darkness as an important re presentation of evil in the Anglo-Saxon world. Another example of the forest is hell metaphor is in the movie Horton Hears a Who. After Horton leaves his home of Nool to begin his journey to the mountaintop, he is forced to go through a jungle and conquer many challenges all by himself. This is part of the Separation in the hero’s journey because Horton has responded to his call to be a hero, and is now crossing the bridge, or threshold into the unknown in this scene: â€Å"http://youtu.be/VblpG7Up76M†. This portion of Horton Hears a Who is culturally significant today because it demonstrates the heroic trait of fighting for what is right. It shows people to never give up, and to keep their promises. Jack Steele Paragraph 4 (Monotheism VS. Polytheism): The last theme explored is the belief in one god, Monotheism, rather than many, Polytheism. In the poem, the members in High Herot try to ward off Grendel with magic and rituals to the old stone gods, Paganistic beings. Ancient monks, in their attempt to convert the ancient Anglo Saxons to Christianity, made paganism sound like dealings with satan, and a way into hell. This is said in the quote â€Å"AndShow MoreRelatedA Literary Analysis of Ray Bradbury’s Short Story â€Å"the Dragon†1111 Words   |  5 PagesINDIVIDUAL WORK A Literary Analysis of Ray Bradbury’s Short Story â€Å"The Dragon† 1) The plot of the story The story begins with the description of a deep night and two men bent by their lonely fire. These men are speaking about a strange, mysterious creature, which seems to ruin everything on its way. They are talking about a dreadful dragon, which is described with much detail: â€Å"This dragon, they say his eyes are fire. His breath a white gas; you can see him bum across the dark lands†Read MoreThe Dragons Of Legend : The Epic Of Gilgamesh1063 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"The dragons of legend are strangely like actual creatures that have lived in the past. They are much like the great reptiles which inhabited the earth long before man is supposed to have appeared on earth. Dragons were generally evil and destructive. Every country had them in its mythology.† (Knox, Wilson, â€Å"Dragon,† The World Book Encyclopedia, 1973) Dragons are told in almost every culture known to man. Descriptions of the Dragon have been written, drawn, and told in culture that coul d have neverRead MoreGeorges Seurat s A Sunday Morning On The Island Of La Grande Jatte1250 Words   |  5 Pagesiconic. While at the Art Institute of Chicago, I spent most of my time in â€Å"The Elizabeth Hammond Stickney Gallery†. 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During his visit with the wise dragon, Grendel receives philosophicalRead MoreThe Tolkien s The Hobbit862 Words   |  4 Pagesstory our relationship to each other, the world and the universe. To tell a myth is to tell a culture s dream about its inner workings and truths. Myth does not convey these truths literally, however. A myth tells its tale through symbol, image and metaphor. They don t explain so much as offer an enchanting, elevating or disturbing experience, sometimes warning us about where we should or should not go. Myths continually come back to life all around us. No one leaves them behind because we always faceRead MoreThe Tolkien s The Hobbit1143 Words   |  5 Pagesframework of meaning, a set of collective fantasies that story our relationship to each other, the world and the universe. To tell a myth is to tell a culture s dream about its inner workings and truths. A myth tells its tale through symbol, image and metaphor. The Hobbit is a mythic image in our modern day society. It is written by J.R.R. Tolkien. This story is more myth than anything. The Hobbit acts as the sister myth to Sigurd and Volsung. There are many mythic images in both of these stories thatRead MorePopular Songs : Drugs And Pro Drugs981 Words   |  4 Pagestend to be lesser known or less popular tell the story of the addiction, about hitting rock-bottom, and of recovery such as D.L. Downer A.K.A. James Williams’ Suga Boom Boom (Chasing Dragons). Drug Ballad, was released on May 23, 2000 in the album The Marshall Mathers LP (www.sing365.com). Suga Boom Boom (Chasing Dragons) was written and sung by D. L. Downer a.k.a. James Williams and his 16-year-old niece Laleazy was produced as a single by MajorEpic music label and was released on October 26, 2014Read MoreBeowulf Quote Discussion Essay980 Words   |  4 Pages49-58) The night after the day of Grendel’s first attack, some of Hrothgar’s warriors fled Herot’s halls. 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ThroughoutRead MoreBeowulf Movie Critic Essay709 Words   |  3 Pagesbetween the characters from the original Beowulf poem to the movie is vast. Grendel’s mother in the movie was beautiful, for example ‘Beowulf’ Movie Review says, â€Å"The link between the early battles of a young hero and his fatal confrontation with the dragon as an aging king is his temptation by the monster’s mother who dangles wealth, power and sexual favors before his bedazzled eyes,† the writer reminds us of the beauty she portrays. In the poem readers are led to believe she looks monstrous; it is