Identify and explain one interesting contrast between Beowulf and Krebs. What might be the significance of this difference? Make an argument for your opinion based on the text.
Clifford
9/26/2014 12:14:55 am
Beowulf and Krebs are different in the way that Beowulf is proud of his success but Krebs is not. In the story of Beowulf, many times Beowulf would boast about his experience, for example when he was explaining his plan to Hrothgar about slaying Grendel, he boasted about his experience he had proudly. Unlike Beowulf, Krebs wasn't proud about his experiences and he shared what the people wanted to hear instead of his own feelings and experiences. Krebs wasn't proud of his experience and was sick of lying to people how glorious war is but actually its really bad.
Jeyson
9/26/2014 12:14:14 pm
I agree with you, but I think Krebs is actually proud of his achievements. The part that upsets him is that no one really cared about him when he got back. Unlike Beowulf, Krebs didnt get a lot of appreciation for defending the world.
Ian Jang
9/27/2014 01:17:11 am
Respectivey, I don’t really agree with you Jeyson. In fact, you mentioned that Krebs seemed really disturbed by the war. It is the internal satisfaction which brings pride. However, if he was disturbed by the war either emotionally or socially, he would not be proud of what he has done.
Maxwell
9/26/2014 10:59:10 pm
Yeah, I agree with Jeyson that Krebs was initially proud of his achievements but after seeing how people reacted to his stories (they didn't care about them), he did not feel proud of what he did. Bewoulf fought as a hero and came back to his people as a hero too.
Han Joo Kim
9/27/2014 02:32:03 am
I agree with you Mr. Gan. I see that Jeyson and Maxwell argues that Krebs was proud of his accomplishment, but in the text, although not stated explicitly, Krebs is not very satisfied nor proud of what he has done in the war. A few examples of many: 1. Krebs no longer feels he "belongs to '[God's] Kingdom'" and feels "guilty" for that. This shows that he lost faith- which is one universal behavior that indicates sin or evil. 2. Krebs no longer wishes to build relationships with people. Although the cause of this behavior can be attributed to laziness or some type of exhaustion from the war, it can also be inferred that Krebs is psychologically suffering because he killed his own race at the battlefield.
Ariel
9/27/2014 08:16:10 pm
I agree with Jeyson. Krebs is proud of his achievements, however no one is interested in his stories. Therefore, he tries to use lies to create more interesting stories in order to catch others' attentions. He is just trying to proudly tell the world what he had done, but he wasn't given the chance.
Steve Kim
9/27/2014 10:22:16 pm
Great insight, but I'll have to side with Jeyson on this topic. Krebs actually seemed to be proud of his achievements when he returned to town. However, when he was met with indifference, he was not happy. More interestingly, he actually wanted to tell his achievements to the townspeople, but they had already lost interest long before he came.
Jeyson
9/26/2014 12:05:49 pm
One difference between Krebs and Beowulf are their difference in their attitude towards battles.Beowulf is excited to slay Grendel and the evil that bothered the Danes, while Krebs seems really disturbed by the war. Each of their attitude towards war is really different.
Joshua
9/26/2014 10:43:13 pm
I agree with Jeyson that the two characters' views on war are different, but I also feel that the type of war they're fighting are also vastly contrasting. Perhaps its just that Beowulf is fighting monsters, but it seems like Krebs' experiences have caused him to be less emotional, while Beowulf becomes more confident.
Steve
9/28/2014 01:31:39 am
Too add to what you were saying, I also think Beowulf was more excited because there was a particular antagonist.
Alex
9/26/2014 10:18:39 pm
One of the major differences between Beowulf and Krebs is that Beowulf is perceived as a hero while Krebs is not. In the epic poem, Beowulf is respected and honored for his achievements. Yet in Soldier's Home, Krebs is not really respected or honored for his achievements.
Belle
9/27/2014 11:26:01 pm
I agree with you Alex, unlike Beowulf, Krebs is just an ordinary soldier that luckily survived from all the battles he fought in. Instead, Beowulf is treated as a hero that has defeated the invincible monster.
Maxwell
9/26/2014 10:57:22 pm
The difference between Beowulf and Krebs is their reputation when they return back to their homes. In Beowulf's case, he returns with honor and glory. His fame must be great because he is such a huge hero. However, for Krebs, he didn't receive the glory as a solider and people don't really care about his stories. He tried to exaggerate and at last, he even dislike his own stories.
YuJin Yang
9/27/2014 12:15:38 am
Yes, I agree with you Maxwell. Everyone looks up to Beowulf and respects him as an epic hero because he fights vigorously in order to defeat those mighty monsters. However, people in his town doesn't care about Krebs because he is just one of the ordinary soldiers who returned from the war. Thus, they aren't interested in Krebs's war experiences.
YuJin Yang
9/26/2014 11:52:48 pm
Yes, I agree with you Maxwell. Everyone looks up to Beowulf and respects him as an epic hero because he fights vigorously in order to defeat those mighty monsters. However, people in his town don't care about Krebs because he is just one of the ordinary soldiers who returned from the war. Thus, they aren't interested in Krebs's war experiences.
Ian jang
9/27/2014 01:16:23 am
One of the main differences between Beowulf and Krebs is that Beowulf voluntarily engaged in the war. He seemed courageous and proud for what he did, and seemed to be excited about the war. However, Krebs did not voluntarily go to the war. In fact, his emotions were destructed by the aftermath of the war. Unlike Beowulf who received honor from the victory, Krebs did not receive any emotional encouragement
Alex
9/27/2014 02:04:03 am
I don't think we can be certain that Krebs involuntarily go to the war. A lot of young men joined the army voluntarily during World War I with pride, believing that their participation can bring "true democracy" to the world. In fact, there is no evidence in the text that shows Krebs was forced into the war. It only says that he "enlisted in the Marines in 1917."
Han Joo Kim
9/27/2014 02:34:58 am
"He enlisted in the Marines in 1917..."
Here is a direct quotation that explicitly states that Krebs himself enlisted in the Marines.
Ariel
9/27/2014 08:18:50 pm
Most people are sefish. When they balance "living in a democray" and "their own lives", I believe that their own safety definityle weight more. No one would put themselves in danger or in an environment they may get injured badly, thus I don't think Krebs joined the military voluntarily.
Nick
9/28/2014 12:19:16 am
I agree with Ian's view. Krebs is not someone who will enjoy the excitement of a war. Yet, Beowulf is enjoying and even proud of what is doing. So that is why Beowulf boast about his stories, and Krebs chooses to not tell anyone because he thinks it is not something that he should be proud of.
Kim Steve
9/28/2014 01:35:10 am
I am not sure if Krebs really did not want to tell anyone about his story. He could be proud of his achievements at war, but the towns people may be the ones that lost interest.
Han Joo Kim
9/27/2014 02:52:40 am
Although Beowulf and Krebs differ in many aspects such as strength or their reputation when they return, I think the most important contrast is the motivation. When Beowulf came to the Danes land to fight Grendel, he was motivated by his intuition to fight this monster and prove himself strong. In his next battle against Grendel's mother, he was again, motivated by the impulse to prove his strength. And in his last battle against the dragon, although he was partly motivated by the will to protect the Geats, he was mainly motivated by his will to prove that he is still strong and young-blooded.
In contrast, in Soldier's Home, there is no sign of Kreb's desire to prove his strength nor save his country from the enemy. His motivations are not explicitly stated in the text, but it seems to me that he enrolled in the marines because that was the trend and that was what everyone was doing.
Although I am not too sure about Kreb's motivation, he definitely did not have a strong motivation that impelled him to join the war, and in fact, I think Kreb's post-war problems may be related to his unclear motivations.
Alex
9/27/2014 03:00:50 am
I agree with Hanjoo, especially on the last part. Since Krebs did not have a clear goal or motivation when he joined the war, he probably thinks that two years of his life was wasted for nothing. I think this depressing thought is what makes him listless.
Kim Steve
9/28/2014 01:39:21 am
The two characters were also described in a different tone. Beowulf, from the beginning of the epic, was a strong protagonist who serves as a her, while Krebs is just another soldier who fought in the war. Accordingly, their role from the start, Beowulf as a hero, and Krebs as a ordinary person, differs each of their motivation.
Ariel
9/27/2014 08:25:52 pm
I think the biggest difference between Krebs and Beowulf is that Krebs is just a normal man who is nominated to the fight for the country while Beowulf is a great leader with a couple of loyal followers. Because defeating the monster can bring him a great honor and respect, Beowulf has the motivation to sacrifice himself to fight against Grendel. However, Krebs gains nothing after the war, and he should be happy enough knowing that he survived another attack. He has no need to take the role of being a man with leadership and strength, thus he has no motivation to be devoted to the war.
Steve Kim
9/27/2014 10:28:00 pm
The contrast between Beowulf and Krebs ultimately lies on the two's different identity. Beowulf is a hero of great strength and pride. In the epic, he is depicted as a hero that saves towns from the evil. Differently, Krebs is only a commoner, who is drafted to fight a war and came back with not much satisfaction. The only thing he brought home seems to be exhaustion.
Guillaume Xing
9/27/2014 11:17:25 pm
One of the biggest differences between Beowulf and Krebs is the kind of enemy that he has to deal with. For Beowulf, he fought primarily against monsters such as Grendel and his mother. He's praised for his heroic actions and takes pride in those actions, as shown through his multiple self-boasts about defeating monsters. Krebs, on the other hand, did not face monsters or other forms of supernatural forces. He fought against an innumerable number of soldiers in the wars, and his bravery as a soldier was not recognized. Krebs also had to fight an internal conflict when he got back home from the war. He was constantly struggling between telling the truth or telling lies that the people are more willing to hear. He was also deciding on whether he should comply to the demands of his family, or whether he should spend the rest of his life without a purpose. It can be concluded that Krebs had to deal with a lot more stress as compared to Beowulf, because Krebs has enemies existing in both external and internal dimensions.
Nick Yang
9/28/2014 12:14:20 am
The one big difference between Krebs and Beowulf is that they have different roles in their own society. Krebs is just a ordinary person who is nominated to fight the First World War, but Beowulf is the king of the Geats who is volunteered to take down the harmful monsters. Base on their positions, Krebs does not know what and why he is fighting for, on the other hand, Beowulf is fighting the monsters for peace, glory, and pride. So, even though, both of them participate in a war, Krebs will not be remembered, and Beowulf will be written down in the history forever.
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