BRINGING CIVILIZATION: SAVAGERY AND THE TAMING OF THE SAVAGE

Abstract

“See, the Conqu’ring Hero Comes” goes the famous chorus from Handel’s Judas Maccabeus, but how does the hero conquer? Achilles defeats his enemies through his extraordinary prowess in battle, Odysseus by using his wit, but some heroes must abandon the trappings of civilization in order to conquer. This paper examines two examples of such heroes from Germanic and Greco-Roman myth: Beowulf and Herakles. In the texts analyzed, these heroes not only set aside their civilized veneer, but must journey into the territory of the monster they wish to destroy and there use savagery to defeat the savage, in order to bring civilization.

Keywords

• latin
• greek
• heroes
• civilization
• savagery