The
first half of Beowulf was rather difficult to comprehend at first because of
the terminology used in the text. After re-reading it several times and reading
the footnotes/ glossary of terms, I understood the reading better. To begin
with, the poem starts with the funeral of Sclyd who was the founder of the
dynasty that Hrothgar, his father, and grandfather belonged. Interestingly,
there are two different Beowulf’s in the story, there is Beowulf whom is the
son of Sclyd and then there is the other Beowulf who is the son of Ecgtheow, and
is also the “hero” of the story. The first Beowulf continues to serve his
father’s name by ruling the people, and he was “belovèd
land-prince, for long-lasting season was famed mid the folk” (II, 2-3). He also
has three sons and one daughter, and his son Hrothgar becomes
a great king. As Hrothgar rules his people, there is Grendel, an “ogre” who has
caused chaos amongst the people and the king. Beowulf, the protagonist of the
poem hears that Hrothgar needs help in his kingdom so he takes his fourteen geat
men with him and they land. Hrothgar and Beowulf talk about Grendel’s killing
spree. Beowulf brags about the evil that he has defeated and how he plans to
fight Grendel without any weapons or armor because, “the horrible creature from veriest rashness recks not for
weapons” (VII 61-62). He continues to highlight his success as they are invited
to keep the men company at dinner; Unferth, seemingly a confidential courtier of
Hrothgar get jealous so he makes fun of Beowulf about the swimming match in
which Breca won. Beowulf says that Breca “was
unable To swim on the waters further than I could, More swift on the waves, nor
would I from him go. Then we two companions stayed in the ocean five
nights together, till the currents did part us,” (IX, 43-47). Beowulf told
Unferth that he battled all sea monsters and that he has not done such noble
deeds. As dinner ends, Hrothgar goes to rest, and so Beowulf looks after the
mead hall; moments later Grendel, angry from hearing the joy, attacks and eats
sleeping men. Beowulf awakens and beings fighting Grendel; Beowulf cuts off his
arm, his claw and later cuts off his head when he fights his mother. Hrothgar
rewards Beowulf with gold and gifts for killing Grendel. After that, Grendel’s
mother seeks vengeance, but Beowulf finds her and they battle, Beowulf falls
and she sits on him with a sword, but his armor saved him. He kills her, gets
Grendel’s head and her famous sword; he goes back to Hrothgar and gives him the
trophies in which he is thankful for. Then Beowulf and his men go back to
Higelac, but Hrothgar and his people have difficulty seeing them depart. Once
Beowulf returns to his home land, he tells Higelac his adventures and gives the
gifts the Hrothgar gave to him.
A passage that seems important is one
where Hrothgar is talking to Beowulf about not being overly proud after he
gives him the trophies. Hrothgar expresses,
“ But a little-while lasts thy life-vigor’s fulness;
’Twill after hap early, that illness
or sword-edge
Shall part thee from strength, or
the grasp of the fire,
Or the wave of the current, or
clutch of the edges,
Or flight of the war-spear, or age
with its horrors,
Or thine eyes’ bright flashing shall
fade into darkness:
’Twill happen full early, excellent
hero,
That death shall subdue thee (60,
18-25)”
The
importance of this passage is that Beowulf’s elder, Hrothgar sees how proud
Beowulf is of his success and all that he can offer, but he wants him to
realize the true values of his life because he cannot live forever; in other
words, it seems that Hrothgar said those words to him in order to bring him
back to reality instead of continuously praising him. A related implication of
the passage is that there are similarities between Beowulf and an unedifying religious
aspect because there is the notion that God puts all these obstacles and
battles for Beowulf to overcome; Beowulf succeeds in his battles, but there is
a reminding factor that he must see past the battles and more into the reason
of why he was tested. Some keywords that stood out and also reinforced the significance
of the passage are “strength, age, fade and darkness”. Similarly, Beowulf embraces
his victories, but he must learn that all of that will not last; Hrothgar appears
to want to show Beowulf the overall importance of life without fame from
battles. Overall, the significance of the passage shows that there is a more
profound meaning to all of Beowulf’s achievements, and it is important to acknowledge
the lessons behind his triumph and also to know who is there to help him conquer
all of his obstacles.
I found an interesting article that
explains some trends in Beowulf, and I think that I will use this as a future
reference/ source. Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment