Chip "Big Tex" Watson

Chip is the athlete of the group.  He is tall and built like he is a Greek god.  He seems to be able to pick the world up and carry it on his shoulders.  He is fairly handsome and seems to have a certain kind of confidence or charisma that most people find attractive.  However, he can also be a very dark person and wants to keep to himself sometimes, but he tries hard not to show this side because he thinks it makes him weak.  Although, if he is caught on the wrong day he can be very hard to get along with, and sometimes rude.  He tries his best to be a respectful guy but often times is considered too much of a flirt and gets in a little bit of trouble.  He is making his way down to Disney World because there is a showcase basketball tournament and he is trying to make it to the NBA.

Green is so suspenseful

In the literary epic Sir Gawain and the Green Knight suspense is introduced at the beginning, and constantly builds up throughout the tale.  Without suspense in this poem the, who is not named specifically, would never have been to create this story the way that he or she did, and in turn, never would have been able to leave the long lasting effect that leaves this story in your memory years after you read it.

From the very beginning of the tale the author begins introducing suspense to the reader.  He or she gives the reader their first dose of suspense when the Green Knight is introduced.  This builds suspense because his figure looks superhuman but he is just a man, then he adds on to the suspense with a game he introduces to Sir Gawain.  With this game being an ill advised game to say the least, Sir Gawain agrees to play it and they begin.  While Sir Gawain prepares to strike the Green Knight with the axe and thus, cutting the Green Knights head of his shoulders, the reader is constantly contemplating on whether or not Sir Gawain is going to have the stomach to go through with the beheading.  Then, all of a sudden, it is over and it leaves the reader wondering how in the world this story is going to be able to go on without one of the main characters when the Green Knight magically picks his head off the ground and begins to speak even though he is obviously headless.  When this happens the reader transfers from being suspended in suspense to in a sudden state of awe, but the suspense builds up again very quickly.

After that powerful shock of an introduction the author strikes the reader again with the sword of suspense by allowing the reader to accompany Sir Gawain on his journey; where he is met with numerous trials and tribulations.  The prime example of a trial that Sir Gawain is faced with occurs during his stay with the hunter and the hunter’s wife.  Every day when the hunter is out trying to provide for his family Sir Gawain is left alone with the wife and he has to then defend himself against the wife’s countless attempts at seducing him into committing an act of lust.  Each day she offers him everything, but all he takes are kisses.  With this situation being in the front of the readers mind it leaves he or she on his or her toes every time Sir Gawain and the hunter’s wife are left alone together.  With the possibility of Sir Gawain becoming weak and giving into the wife’s temptation , or just getting himself in a situation where the wife would be able to play a he say she say game.   If this happened then it could mean Sir Gawain could lose the shelter he is staying at or the hunter could be very protective of his wife and threaten to kill Sir Gawain.

However, with all this being said, Sir Gawain cannot resist all the temptations the wife throws at him; he finally gives in by accepting the wife’s green sash and breaks the hunter and his agreement by not telling the hunter what he has received from his wife.  By making Sir Gawain accept the sash the author sets the reader up for even more suspense.  For example, when Sir Gawain finally reaches his destination he hears the axe being sharpened.  That image alone fills the reader’s mind up with questions of how or if Sir Gawain is going to survive the imminent beheading.  Also, the image is enhanced by the author making the Green Knight swing the axe three times instead of just swinging one blow and done.  By using this tactic it makes the reader wonder whether or not Sir Gawain will take the blow or if the Green Knight is even going to give it.  Although, Sir Gawain eventually receives the blow but he lives and the Sir Gawain, as well as the reader, finds out that the Green Knight is actually the hunter and that the whole stay with the hunter and his wife was really a test.  With this complex storyline this epic is made into a great piece of literature, but without making the reader question, “What is going to happen next?” This epic would be nowhere near as popular as it is. 

All in all, the author could not have written this as well as he or she did without the element of suspense.  The reader could not have enjoyed and really gotten into the story as much as he or she did without suspense constantly slapping him or her in their face.  With all that being said, overall, without suspense this epic goes from one of historical proportion to just another forgotten story.  

What is Beowulf???

I know its been a little while since we read and discussed Beowulf...ok, maybe its been a long while, but I have had this on my mind for a long time and I finally found the time to express it.  Well... I have read Beowulf more times then I can remember for various classes throughout my schooling and the same questions always pops up into my mind every time I read it.  How is Beowulf so powerful? Who gave him these powers? WHAT IS BEOWULF? These questions have been haunting until recently as we were having a discussion in class about the story I had an epiphany.  Beowulf is a demi-god.

Let me go ahead and explain why I think this and explain what a demi-god is for those of you who do not know.  A demi-god is a half man- half god combination where one parent is mortal and one parent is a god.  I got this idea from a movie I watched this summer.  It is called Clash of the Titans, and I know it is a remake but I just like the newer one better.  In the movie the main character Percius is a demi-god that, like Beowulf, goes on journeys and does superhuman things even though he seems to just be a mere mortal.  Now I do there is a big difference in how they go about their business but the overall concept of the two is the same.

So, with all that being said I believe I have finally answer the question that has been in the front of my mind for years.  I mean it makes perfect sense but I guess I will never know for sure, so unless I can travel back in time and find the creator of Beowulf I will just stay with my thought of him being a demi-god, and picture him saying as he does so many times, "I AM BEOWULF....THE DEMI-GOD."