Who Am I? Essay

In class we discussed three stories about someone looking for an identity. In the beginning of all three stories the main characters were virtually asking themselves the question who am I and what am I destined to be? It was very interesting to see these characters slowly transform over the course of their respective stories. Each character slowly moves from an area of uncertainty to where they discover their true meaning and their calling in life.

The first story we read was the adventures of the fabled Scandinavian warrior Beowulf. In this story begins with the tale of the great King of the Danes Hrothgar plight with a beast called Grendel. Grendel comes in his hall, Herot, and kills many of Hrothgar’s warriors. When the great Geat warrior Beowulf hears of Hrothgar’s dilemma he rushes to his aid. Beowulf is already a great warrior, but he feels he is not as great and famous as he should be. When he hears about Grendel he sees it as a prefect opportunity to gain the fame and fortune he desires. Beowulf arrives at Herot and pledges to rid it of Grendel once and for all. In the bloody battle with Grendel Beowulf cuts off the beast’s arm and Grendel fled to its home to die. In the end Beowulf returned home and became the King of the Geats. At this Beowulf found out who he was, a great king not just some other warrior. Beowulf finally felt like he had found his calling. Beowulf showed loyalty and kingship by coming to Hrothgar’s assistance, which in essence helped him transform from the fame hungry warrior to a great king.

In the next story there is virtually the same situation as in Beowulf. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight the featured character, Sir Gawain, is a knight of King Arthur who is searching for meaning. The only reason Sir Gawain is a knight is because he is the nephew of King Arthur. This tale shows the transformation of Gawain from a low class knight to one of the elites of the Round Table. The story starts with the knights and the court of Camelot celebrating the New Year, when a knight dressed in green burst into the hall. He made a challenge to anyone to strike him with his own axe, on the condition that they go to him in exactly one year to receive a blow in return. Sir Gawain sees this as his chance at glory and accepts the challenge. He takes the ax and chops of the Green Knight’s head. The now headless knight picks up his head, reminds Gawain of the deal, and departs. A year later Gawain goes out to find the Green Knight at the Green Chapel. On his way he finds his way to a castle. The host welcomes Gawain and introduces him to his lady and to the old woman who sits beside her. For sport, the host makes a deal with Gawain, in which he will go out hunting every day, and when he returns in the evening, he will exchange his winnings for anything Gawain has managed to acquire by staying behind at the castle. As the story goes on you see Gawain becoming a better and