In protesting police violence against communities of color, protesters must avoid grief-fueled violence, the archetype of which is Grendel’s Mother.
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Tag Archives: Beowulf
When Grief Turns Violent
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beowulf poet, George Floyd, Marat/Sade, Minneapolis riots, Peter Weiss, police racism Comments closed
Students as Beowulf vs. Covid
Through describing their essays on “Beowulf,” I recount how five students are responding to the Covid crisis.
Homer, Virgil & Dante Visit the Afterlife
In my Representative Masterpieces course, I conclude with Dante’s “Inferno,” where we see sinners creating their own hells.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Aeneid, Dante, Divine Comedy, Homer, Inferno, John Bunyan, John Milton, monsters, Odyssey, Paradise Lost, Pilgrim's Progress, Sin, Virgil Comments closed
Teach Beowulf to Combat Violence
To teach students how to understand and respond to violence, Beowulf is a go-to work.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beowulf poet, John Milton, Paradise Lost, violence Comments closed
Beowulf Transcends Tolkien’s Racism
“Beowulf” and “Lord of the Rings” have blind spots but they are transcendent works for all that.
“Beowulf” Understands U.S. Violence
Thursday When I launched this blog over 10 years ago, I called it Better Living through Beowulf because Beowulf is the starting text for those of us specializing in British Literature. I used Beowulf to represent all of literature and felt free to write about any literary work that provides insight into the life we […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beowulf poet, Dayton shooting, El Paso shooting, mass shooting, resentment, violence, white terrorism Comments closed
Fantasy and the Problem of Violence
Thursday Today I will be delivering the following talk as part of Sewanee’s Lifelong Learning series, delivered in a venue that used to be my high school and where I spoke 50 years ago. It may sound strange to some of you that a literary scholar such as myself would talk about fantasy. Aren’t we […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beowulf poet, Carl Jung, fantasy, J. R. R. Tolkien, Joseph Campbell, Lord of the Rings, Sigmund Freud, violence Comments closed
Grendel’s Mother, Archetype of Grief
Thursday I report today on a memorable encounter I had with an African American alum upon my first post-retirement return to St. Mary’s College of Maryland. I was talking with a former colleague when Candace looked in and began reminiscing. I didn’t recognize her, even after she told me her name, but something clicked when […]