Beowulf And The Dragon: Which Is More Human?

Beowulf, regardless of the time, place, or form of the translation, at the very least follows

the same plot every time it is recreated. This includes the main character’s legendary battle and

eventual triumph over a mythical and terrifying dragon. In the scenes in Seamus Heaney’s

translation following the beast’s death, as well as the hero’s, Beowulf’s followers come in to

inspect the corpses created from the battle in the dragon’s home, his barrow. (205) In this

moment, the dragon and his barrow are meant to directly refer to Beowulf in several ways,

illustrated through specific diction, symbolic imagery, and semi-vague use of pronouns. This

correlation draws the ideas of ‘monster’ and ‘human’ closer together to show that mankind can

be just as monstrous as the beasts we create through fiction, or conversely, that these beasts can

be equally human. When we compare the classic Seamus Heaney translation to the far more

recent Robert Zemeckis film adaptation, we can see that this idea has lasted for over a

millennium as a comment on society at the time of each version, showing that time may change

Beowulf, but not us.

To begin, there are several obvious relations between the dragon and Beowulf in lines

3040 to 3050 of Heaney’s translation. First and foremost, the dragon is given the description of

being fifty feet long; this stands out on its own without considering its deeper implications

because, unlike nearly any other character throughout the poem, the appearance of the dragon is

described. This on its own stands out as peculiar, which serves as bait to the audience to look

further at the proceeding lines. Then can be noticed that the number fifty appears solely one

other time: to describe Beowulf’s reign as king of the Geats, one foot for every year. The next

sentence furthers the likeness by explaining that the dragon “shimmered forth [once], then

winged back down to its den,” just as the prince of the Geats had once shone with the light of

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triumph in his youth when he conquered both Grendel and the demon’s mother, but then returned

to his Geatland “den.” (Heaney, 205)

To continue, the second half of the passage contains strong imagery and use of

personification to suggest the replication of a human funeral for the supposed monster. The

treasures that inhabit the dragon’s barrow are said to be “standing,” “silent,” and have “waited;”

all are given human traits through the context provided. (Heaney 205) These inanimate objects

becoming human has the effect of likewise making this pseudo-memorial service rather like that

of a human’s, even similar to that of Beowulf’s in the following pages. This subtle, yet effective

personification thus opens the door to a deeper meaning for the passage as a whole.

The idea of the passage is drawn together, though, through the pronouns scattered

throughout the four sentences, in which the dragon is only expressly determined to be the subject

once. All proceeding instances make use of ‘he’ or ‘him,’ leaving it open to debate who exactly

is being referred to, the supposed monster or the supposed human. (Heaney, 205) Considering

the previously mentioned similarities between the dragon’s life and Beowulf’s, either option is

just as possible.

The film adaptation directed by Robert Zemeckis takes a different, but in this situation no

less valid approach, to blurring the line between man and beast. By introducing a love affair

between lustful Beowulf and Grendel’s temptatious mother, the makers of the film were able to

justify the dragon not only being able to transform into a golden human figure, but also being

Beowulf’s son. Being half human, half monster, this demon takes blurring the distinction

between the two types to a whole new level by being a physical manifestation of the idea itself. It

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also goes without saying that the monster literally being able to take the form of a human assists

in the argument towards some sort of sameness between the two enemies. The fact that his

human form is colored pure gold also indicates a purity or perfection about him, that which

surpasses the quality of mankind. In fact, heros of this time seek gold and treasure above all else;

this golden man represents what mankind wants to become. (Zemeckis, Beowulf)

It is clear that both Heaney and Zemeckis draw on this central idea; however, it must be

reemphasized that while Zemeckis's version strays from the original text (but is no less valid a

form of Beowulf), Heaney maintains a relatively direct translation of the base poem. With this in

mind, it can been seen that the border between monster and human has been disputed for over a

millennium, standing as a comment not only on the characters of this work of fiction, but on

society itself. Certainly, mankind has committed some heinous acts throughout history worthy of

the title “monstrous,” with genocides, wars, and much, much more; the job of Beowulf, then, is to

remind its audience of such transgressions in an artistically subtle way, in hopes of lessening or

even preventing potential misdemeanors in the future, through speaking to individuals.

Ultimately, individuals induce change, as can be seen during each crucial moment of Beowulf,

where the hero chooses to take each enemy unaccompanied by his countless followers. Even in

his final moments, when the dragon claims victory over Beowulf, it is the single loyal adherent

Wiglaf who turns the tide of the battle. (Heaney, 183) In a metaphorically similar fashion, only

individual readers, listeners, or watchers of any particular version of Beowulf possess the power

to bring about change, even if they do so through the inspiration of crowds; because every crowd

is filled with individuals.

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Beowulf remains, after 1500 years of history, a reminder to each audience it has ever held

to consider the actions of mankind just as critically as those in the poem. Though the form it

takes may change, as well as some ideas it attempts to illustrate, the modification will always be

suited to its place in history; it will be adjusted to meet what is needed of it. As Professor Martin

Foys always says, “each generation gets the Beowulf they deserve.”

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Citations

Heaney, Seamus. Beowulf. New York: W. W. Norton, 2000. 183, 205. Print.

Zemeckis, Robert, dir. Beowulf. 2007. Film.

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