No New Tale to Tell

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In the Pardoner's tale, the story is centered around greed and mistrust. Personally I feel that these are lasting truths. Greed and mistrust go hand in hand. The Pardoner's tale can be applied today for the reason being that it still portrays the same idea. The idea that greed is the root of all evil might not be as true as the moral of the story is. I think there are a lot of things that pertain to the word evil. Greed is one of them, but definitely not the reason for it all. However, I think that the Pardoner's tale does a good job at showing how greed relates to mistrust. It is hard to trust people when either person involved is concerned with acquiring more of what they want. It becomes a game of schemes, and the truth is often avoided. I do believe that nothing good comes of greed. It drives people to do shameful things. People disregard their moral obligations in order to have more for themselves. Greed is definitely not something that will go away which is why this tale is nothing new. I think it is a human trait; it’s not necessarily something you can eliminate. Greed will always be a problem in society.

The Truth

In Grendel, Grendel knows that the shaper is twisting the truth. He spins it so that it justifies and glorifies Hrothgar's actions. Although Grendel does have a sense of this, there is part of him that wants to believe what the shaper is saying. Once Grendel comes to his senses and realizes that all their talk is nonsense you see him descend into a darker character. The same thing can be applied to propaganda. Even now we are led to believe information that isn't always true because it's meant to promote a certain biased idea. It's hard to hear the truth sometimes. I think that a lot of the time it's covered because we are scared to face the consequences and realities of what we have done. By lying and twisting the truth, like the shaper, it's easier for us to accept our actions. It puts a positive light on something negative. And who is to tell you wrong if you make it your reality.

Modern Day Beowulf

Our modern day Beowulf. It's an interesting inquiry. I don't think there's a clear cut answer, most of it is subjective. In any situation where there is a good guy and a bad guy, your opinion depends on your point of view. Even Beowulf can be a monster if you look at it from Grendel's side. I don't think I can label anything in our modern day a true Beowulf. There are a lot of things that try, and for that they deserve some credit. Maybe the UN. But even then the UN is very flawed. They work for a greater cause and I respect that. They hold ideals that are admirable. Accomplishing them is a whole other story. I guess that's what I'm getting at. There are no longer clear hero's. In certain situations I am sure there are. But there is no person or thing that I can immediately go to when I think of Beowulf for our modern world.