Beowulf

Antonija Petrovski

II3Filološka gimanzija

Beograd2012/2013.

Beowulf is considered to be the first epic

poem ever written in English (Anglo-

Saxon or Old

English).This literary piece represents the

foundation of English literature.

Hwæt!We Gardenain gear-dagum,þeocyninga,þrym gefrunon,hu ða æþelingas Ellen fremedon.

Hear ye!

We shall sing of the glory in bygone days, of thekings of Daneland, of the bravery of these kings.

Although it originates from

England, the poem sings about Danish

and Swedish legends and heroes.

This is because the Anglo-Saxon tribe is one of the Germanic tribes, and they all originally lived in the north of Europe. When they went south to central Europe, they started inhabiting new areas, including the British islands.

The British were Christianized in the 8th century, but they told the tales of their still-pagan brothers and ancestors from across the sea. Those were stories of Norsemen, but also the stories of their own past.

Beowulf tells the tale of the mighty hero Beowulf, son of Ecgtheow, raised by the great Goetish king Hygelac. The poem, written between the 8th and 11th century, tells us of three Beowulf’s battles.

The first battle is with the beast Grendel that has been killing all the

strongest Danish warriors.

Beowulf and his fourteen earls receive the blessings

of King Hygelac

and his queen, Hygd the Wise and Fair, and set sail for Daneland.

The Danish king Hrothgar tells them of the beast, and they all attend a

feast in the great mead-hall with the king and his queen, Wealhtheow the

Beautiful.

As night comes,

the beast Grendel

approaches and

enchants the

warriors. The men

cannot escape and it kills many.

But Grendel’s strength is no

match for Beowulf, and he ends up killing the beast and

cleaving its arm off. The Danes

feast and sing to honor Beowulf’s greatness, but darkness falls upon the land once again.

Grendel was a

ferocious beast, but its even more

terrifying

mother seeks

revenge.

She attacks the warriors and Beowulf and his men give chase. The huge hounds track her scent to a dark, poisonous lake.

Beowulf dives in to slay the beast alone. During the descent he kills all sorts of ferocious sea-serpents and at last he descends to Grendel’s mother’s cave, After a tough battle he finally beats the creature with a magic sword. Thus ends Beowulf’s second adventure, and he and his earls travel home victorious and burdened with glorious treasure.

After many happy and prosperous years. Beowulf’s reign as king of Goetland is in peril. A humongous dragon is attacking their town. Beowulf, now carrying the weight of his old age, assembles a group of warriors and goes to face the dragon in its lair.

Even though in the battle he is abandoned by all his men but the brave Wiglaf, Beowulf overpowers the dragon, but loses what’s left of his own strength.

Wiglaf slays the dragon, stabbing it in the heart with the magic sword Naegling.

Even though evil is

destroyed,

Beowulf is too weak.

He crowns Wiglaf king,

and dies.

Beowulf is

buried with all

honours and there the

poem ends:

“Thus passed to his own gods Beowulf, king of Goetsland, in the

north.”

The end