dj #2-35

Blake Fletcher

AP English

Dialectal Journals

3.) line (175-188) “Sometimes at pagan shrines they vowed offerings to idols, swore oaths that the killer of souls might come to their aid and save the people….”

This portion of Beowulf brings up several questions about the content. This is a pagan story but this portion of the text goes on to have a very obvious Christian undertone. This is defiantly a place where the Christian author really steps into the text. I would like to see a version of Beowulf or hear the original story told before these Christian ideals pretty much copy and pasted into it. Would the story change or would it still be similar? It is hard to tell but I think the original would make more sense because Christianity and paganism are two very different concepts that don’t mesh all to well so there is really no benefit to these introjections.

4.) line(293-295) “I’ll order my own comrades on their word of honor to watch your boat down there on the strand”

This section of Beowulf shows how the warrior lifestyle kind of works. This man sees Beowulf and his men in all of these very honorable things with swords and shields and this shows how these things are important to your acceptance into this lifestyle. Beowulf is a great warrior and it shows with all of his accessories. Therefore he gets respect where respect is due.

5.) line(380-381) “A Thane, they declared, with the strength of thirty in the grip of each hand.”

This is a parallel to the fact that Grendel took 30 men the first night. They are pretty much saying that Beowulf is stronger than Grendel right now.

6.) line(392) “he knows your ancestry.”

During this time not only was your fame or failures are not just credited to you they are also credited to your father. The same with your father’s failures and fame are passed on to you. So if someone says they know your ancestry then it can mean the best or the worth either they respect you or they don’t at first impression.

7.) line(397-398) “But shields must stay here and spears be stacked until the outcome of the audience is clear.”

This is saying that even though Hrothgar knows and respects Beowulf he does not trust him enough to have weapons around him incase Beowulfs intensions where not pure. Im sure this is common procedure I just found this interesting with Hrothgar knowing Beowulf’s dad and all.

8.) line (438-440) “hand to hand is how it will be, a life and death fight with the fiend.”

Beowulf sees that weapons for some reason do not work against Grendel so he chooses to fight him hand to hand. In my opinion Grendel can not be killed by weapons because he is a descendant of Cain and god doesn’t want Cain to be killed by man because he wants him to suffer for what he did. So maybe because he is a descendant of cain a man made weapon can’t kill him because god doesn’t want him killed by man either.

9.) line (499-502) “From where he crouched at the kings feet , Unferth, a son of Ecglaf’s, spoke Contrary words. Beowulf’s coming, his sea braving, made him sick with envy.”

Unferth is nothing a warrior should be. He is envious of Beowulf’s success and is a kin killer. Why he is able to speak at all I don’t know. He was a kin killer and had never done anything in battle. Everything was to show what a warrior should not be.

10.) line (603-604) “Then whoever wants to may go bravely to mead”

Beowulf is making fun of the people who fear Grendel when he says the because he is making a joke out of drinking and boasting because it doesn’t take bravery to go get drunk and say how great you are.

11.) line 654 “hall warden”

Hrothgar names Beowulf the hall warden or protector of the danes hall when he is not a dane. This is showing great trust and is a way to pay back Beowulf for freeing his people of Grendel.

12.) line (659) “Keep in mind your fame”

When Hrothgar tells Beowulf this it isn’t really necessary Beowulf’s main concern is always his fame. So why is it necessary to say this. I think this might be foreboding to the fact that Beowulf’s pride and addiction to fame may lead to his death.

13.) line (665-666) “The king of glory (as people learned)”

I thought it was odd that the author would refer to god in the story as the king of glory. Then immediately after say that they didn’t quite know yet by saying “as people learned” I just think that the usual tone of the author wasn’t present in this particular part.

14.) line (677-678) “When it comes to fighting, I count myself as dangerous any day as Grendel”

Beowulf says this the night of the battle to show that he is not afraid of Grendel and that is why he chooses not to fight him with a sword. This is his pride. He believes that even though no person has killed Grendel even with a sword he believes that his hands alone are good enough to kill him. Arrogance.

15.) line (798) “Through the strength of one they all prevailed”

I can’t tell if in this section the author is referring to God or if the author is referring to the strength in Beowulf’s arms. If he is referring to God then this is just another sermon mid poem.

16.) line (749) “The captain of evil”

The author refers to Grendel as the captain of evil in this passage. When he says captain of evil I see religious value I see captain of evil as descendant of Cain. Or hell spawn sounds like a fair way to describe Grendel. So is the term “the captain of evil” a referance to satin? I think yes!

17.) line (755) “Devils litter”

I think this just further supports my speculation of the fact that Grendel is related to satin in some way. Like I said in the previous paragraph all of these terms could be related to satin.

18.) line (761) “The dread of the land was desperate to escape”

I think it is ironic that the very land that he was exiled from the very land that drove him to kill all these people is the land in the end that he can’t escape. Maybe if his dread had not brought him to be this terrible thing then he would not be desperate to escape with his life.

19.) line (785) “A God cursed Scream”

The way god chose to exile Cain was to make it so he couldn’t speak. Grendel carries the same trait being a descendant of Cain. It is odd that the last thing to be said is that he let a “god cursed scream” go and everyone felt it. Without the inability to talk maybe he could have been accepted to the society. Grendel is a prime example of how different point of views can drive people crazy.

20.) line (836) “as I’ve heard”

This line shows a different voice from the author. Through most of this story he has only told the story and that is all. In parts he has interjected his Christian ideals but generally he kept his same tone accept for right here.

21.)  line (846-851) “The bloodshot water wallowed…”

This section says that hell claimed Grendel’s heathen soul when he tried to get back to his home under the lake. This section makes me think that maybe Grendels home is hell. It makes a strong argument in the descriptive nature of the quote and says that hell claimed him. Is it plausible?

22.) line (967-968) “The lord allowed it, my lock on him wasn’t strong enough”

This doesn’t strike me as something Beowulf would say. He is far to into fame to give some to god. He is pagan and believes in a warrior society so this must be something the author interjected. Beowulf’s fame is the most important thing to him, not the spreading of the lord so he wouldn’t care to give some of his glory away.

23.) line (1017-1018) “The shielding nation was not yet familiar with feud and betrayal.”

I believe this is foreshadowing to something bad happening in the future. I think Grendel kept other nations at bay from attacking the danes because they didn’t want to attack a place that wasn’t pleasant to live. Who would want to deal with a demon?

24.) line (1019-1022) “The Halfdane’s son presented….”

The gifts that where given to Beowulf as a reward show that the time period the warrior life style was very material based. With extravagant weapons and shields came more respect.

25.) line (1240-1241) “One man lay down to his rest, already marked for death.”

This is a Foreshadow to Hrothgars death.

26.) line (1251-1288) “They went to sleep. And one paid dearly…”

This section talks about how Grendels mom wants revent for how they killed her son. She has every right to be mad and this is her version of wergild she wants blood for her sons blood and she wants to take his arm from that roof. One pays dearly because she gets her revenge.

27.) line (1289-1291) “She came to Heorot….”

Grendels mom comes to Heorot to get her revenge. The only difference between her and her son is that she isn’t as strong as he is but she uses a sword to slaughter all of these people.

28.) line (1302-1303) “She had snatched their trophy”

Grendels mom did not want her sons arm to be used as a trophy of the Danes triumph. She got even and then some by taking the rest of her son back to his resting place.

29.) line (1321-1331) “Then Hrothgar, the sheildings helmet….

Hrothgar lost a dear friend and comrad and wants revenge. The man Grendels mother took was his best friend and he is taking it as his responsibility to make Grendels mother pay for what she did, with her own blood.

30.) line (1383-1396) “Beowulf, son of Ecgtheow, spoke:…”

During this paragraph we see a very Pagan speech. When Beowulf says “Let whoever can win glory before death” that is very unchristian he is pretty much saying the most important thing is to be famous before you die. That is very ani-christian. One of the few places so far in the text where we get to see a real pagan view.

31.) line (1484) “Let the lord of the geats gaze on that gold”

Beowulfs main concern in his death is that he makes his lord happy? This is a true warrior, everything Beowulf does, doesn’t just make him famous and rich it also pleases his king which is one of his main concerns throughout?

32.) line (1534-1535) “he would have to rely on the might of his arm.”

It seems as though human weapons never really seem to work for Beowulf possibly could go back to the idea that god didn’t want these mosters killed by a man.

33.) line (1557-1569) “Then he saw a blade that boded well….”

It is odd that Beowulf’s man made swords never work for him but he finds this giant sword on the wall that with one swing he kills her. Is it fate that he has the strength of 30 men to swing this sword?

34.) line (1570-1590) “a light appeared…”

The idea of mutilating a dead body is very unchristian so this must be a pagan idea that is a very strong idea that I am extremely surprised the author kept. There is no Christian meeting and no underlying tone. Suprising.

35.) line (1607-1611) “Meanwhile the sword….”

Does the sword melting possibly symbolize the last of Cains line dying off because the sword no longer needs use or could this be showing that cutting a dead body’s head off is wrong and so the sword will no longer work for Beowulf?