Tag Archives: Grendel's mother

Finn, Hengest, and Terror in Israel

The Finn episode in Beowulf applies only to well to the Hamas terror attack on Israel–and to the probable Israeli response.

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Grendel’s Mother Attacks Israel

Hamas’s attack on Israel brings to mind Grendel’s Mother, who is the archetype of perpetual blood feuds.

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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 […]

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When Great Souls Die

Tuesday Today is the 19th anniversary of my oldest son’s death. When Justin died in a freak drowning accident in 2000, our world turned upside down. He was 21 at the time and would have been 40 this year. In “When Great Trees Fall,” Maya Angelou captures much of what I experienced. I’m struck by […]

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Homer’s Warning about Revenge Killings

What will it take to bring peace between police and black communities? Homer has a vision of such a truce at the end of “The Odyssey” but it may not be realistic.

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We Risk Becoming Grendel’s Mother

In reaction to the horrors of the Paris massacres, we are in danger of becoming consumed by the vengeful grief of Grendel’s Mother. The times call upon us to be Beowulf strong.

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If Beowulf Went to War with ISIS

The Jordanian response to the burning alive of a Jordanian pilot reminds us that Grendel’s Mother is on the loose in the Middle East. Beowulf models how we should respond.

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Destructive Grieving for a Lost America

Grieving for a lost America reaches deep across the political spectrum, “Beowulf” provides a healthy response.

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Befriending, Not Fighting, Grendel’s Mother

I am still vibrating from the powerful student essays I received last week. I talked about one yesterday and will share another today. This is one from a student whose mother is dying of brain cancer. Erica Rutkai (she is letting me use her name) decided to move from California to the east coast when […]

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