Beowulf 

is a heroic poem, considered the highest achievement of Old English literature and the
earliest European vernacular epic. It deals with events of the early 6th century CE and is believed
to have been composed between 700 and 750. Although originally untitled, it was later named
after the Scandinavian hero Beowulf, whose exploits and character provide its connecting theme.
Beowulf, heroic poem, the highest achievement of Old English literature and the earliest
European vernacular epic. The work deals with events of the early 6th century, and, while the
date of its composition is uncertain, some scholars believe that it was written in the 8th century.
Although originally untitled, the poem was later named after the Scandinavian hero Beowulf,
whose exploits and character provide its connecting theme. There is no evidence of a historical
Beowulf, but some characters, sites, and events in the poem can be historically verified. The
poem did not appear in print until 1815. It is preserved in a single manuscript that dates to circa
1000 and is known as the Beowulf manuscript (Cotton MS Vitellius A XV

Plot
Beowulf falls into two parts. It opens in Denmark, where King Hrothgar has a splendid mead hall
known as Heorot, a place of celebration and much merriment. However, the joyous noise
angers Grendel, an evil monster living in a nearby swamp. For 12 years the creature terrorizes
Heorot with nightly visits in which he carries off Hrothgar’s warriors and devours them.

After learning of the Danes’ trouble, young Beowulf, a prince of the Geats in what is now
southern Sweden, arrives with a small band of retainers and offers to rid Heorot of its monster.
Hrothgar is astonished at the little-known hero’s daring but welcomes him. After an evening of
feasting, much courtesy, and some discourtesy—at one point, one of Hrothgar’s men insults
Beowulf—the king retires, leaving Beowulf in charge. During the night, Grendel comes from the
moors, rips open the heavy doors, and devours one of the sleeping Geats. He then grapples with
Beowulf, who refuses to use a weapon. Beowulf grips one of Grendel’s hands with such force
that the monster finally wrenches himself free only when his arm is torn off at the shoulder.
Mortally wounded, Grendel returns to his swamp and dies. Beowulf then displays the monster’s
arm in Heorot for all to see.

The next day is one of rejoicing in Heorot, and a feast is thrown in Beowulf’s honour. However,
as the warriors sleep that night, Grendel’s mother, another swamp monster, comes to avenge her
son’s death, and she kills one of Hrothgar’s men. In the morning Beowulf dives into her mere
(lake) to search for her, and she attacks him. They struggle in her dry cave at the mere’s bottom,
and Beowulf finally kills her with a sword. In the cave, Beowulf discovers Grendel’s corpse,
whose head he cuts off and takes back to Heorot. The Danes rejoice once more. Hrothgar makes
a farewell speech about the character of the true hero, and Beowulf, enriched with honours and
princely gifts, returns home to King Hygelac of the Geats.

The second part passes rapidly over Hygelac’s subsequent death in a battle (of historical record),
the death of his son, and Beowulf’s succession to the kingship and his peaceful rule of 50 years.
However, the tranquility ends when a fire-breathing dragon becomes enraged after a man steals
from its treasure-filled lair. The creature begins ravaging Geatland, and the brave but aging
Beowulf decides to engage it, despite knowing that he will likely die. The fight is long and
terrible—a painful contrast to the battles of his youth. Painful too is the desertion of all his
retainers except for his young kinsman Wiglaf, who comes to his aid. They ultimately kill the
venomous dragon, but Beowulf is mortally wounded from a bite in the neck. Before he dies, he
names Wiglaf his successor. Beowulf is cremated on a funeral pyre, and his remains are buried in
a barrow built by the sea. As his people mourn his death, they also express the fear that, without
Beowulf, Geatland will be invaded by nearby tribes.

Analysis.

Beowulf belongs metrically, stylistically, and thematically to a heroic tradition grounded in

Germanic religion and mythology. It is also part of the broader tradition of heroic poetry. Many
incidents, such as the tearing-off of the monster’s arm and the hero’s descent into the mere, are
familiar motifs from folklore. The ethical values are manifestly the Germanic code of loyalty to
chief and tribe and vengeance to enemies. Yet the poem is so infused with a Christian spirit that
it lacks the grim fatality of many of the Eddaic lays or the sagas of Icelandic literature. Beowulf
himself seems more altruistic than other Germanic heroes or the ancient Greek heroes of the
Iliad. It is significant that his three battles are not against men, which would entail the retaliation
of the blood feud, but against evil monsters, enemies of the whole community and of civilization
itself. Many critics have seen the poem as a Christian allegory in which Beowulf, the champion
of goodness and light, fights the forces of evil and darkness. His sacrificial death is seen not as
tragic but as befitting the end of a good (some would say “too good”) hero’s life.

That is not to say that Beowulf is an optimistic poem. English writer and Old English scholar
J.R.R. Tolkien suggested that its total effect is more like a long lyrical elegy than an epic. Even
the earlier, happier section in Denmark is filled with ominous references that would have been
well understood by contemporary audiences. Thus, after Grendel’s death, King Hrothgar speaks
sanguinely of the future, which the audience would know will end with the destruction of his line
and the burning of Heorot. In the second part the movement is slow and funereal: scenes from
Beowulf’s youth are replayed in a minor key as a counterpoint to his last battle, and the mood
becomes increasingly sombre as the wyrd (fate) that comes to all men closes in on him.

It is possibly the oldest surviving long poem in Old English and is commonly cited as one of the
most important works of Old English literature. It was written in England some time between
 the 8th and the early 11th century. The author was an anonymous Anglo-Saxon poet, referred
to by scholars as the “Beowulf poet.”

Principal Characters
 Beowulf
The protagonist of the epic, Beowulf is a Geatish hero who fights the monster Grendel,
Grendel’s mother, and a fire-breathing dragon. Beowulf’s boasts and encounters reveal him to be
the strongest, ablest warrior around. In his youth, he personifies all of the best values of the
heroic culture. In his old age, he proves a wise and effective ruler.

 King Hrothgar
The king of the Danes. Hrothgar enjoys military success and prosperity until Grendel terrorizes
his realm. A wise and aged ruler, Hrothgar represents a different kind of leadership from that
exhibited by the youthful warrior Beowulf. He is a father figure to Beowulf and a model for the
kind of king that Beowulf becomes.

 Grendel
A demon descended from Cain, Grendel preys on Hrothgar’s warriors in the king’s mead-hall,
Heorot. Because his ruthless and miserable existence is part of the retribution exacted by God for
Cain’s murder of Abel, Grendel fits solidly within the ethos of vengeance that governs the world
of the poem.

 Grendel’s mother
An unnamed swamp-hag, Grendel’s mother seems to possess fewer human qualities than
Grendel, although her terrorization of Heorot is explained by her desire for vengeance—a human
motivation.

 The dragon
An ancient, powerful serpent, the dragon guards a horde of treasure in a hidden mound.
Beowulf’s fight with the dragon constitutes the third and final part of the epic.

Other Danes
 Shield Sheafson
The legendary Danish king from whom Hrothgar is descended, Shield Sheafson is the mythical
founder who inaugurates a long line of Danish rulers and embodies the Danish tribe’s highest
values of heroism and leadership. The poem opens with a brief account of his rise from orphan to
warrior-king, concluding, “That was one good king” (11).

 Beow
The second king listed in the genealogy of Danish rulers with which the poem begins. Beow is
the son of Shield Sheafson and father of Halfdane. The narrator presents Beow as a gift from
God to a people in need of a leader. He exemplifies the maxim, “Behavior that’s admired / is the
path to power among people everywhere” (24–25).

 Halfdane
The father of Hrothgar, Heorogar, Halga, and an unnamed daughter who married a king of the
Swedes, Halfdane succeeded Beow as ruler of the Danes.

 Wealhtheow
Hrothgar’s wife, the gracious queen of the Danes.

 Unferth
 A Danish warrior who is jealous of Beowulf, Unferth is unable or unwilling to fight Grendel,
thus proving himself inferior to Beowulf.

Read an in-depth analysis of Unferth.

 Hrethric
Hrothgar’s elder son, Hrethric stands to inherit the Danish throne, but Hrethric’s older cousin
Hrothulf will prevent him from doing so. Beowulf offers to support the youngster’s prospect of
becoming king by hosting him in Geatland and giving him guidance.

 Hrothmund
The second son of Hrothgar.

 Hrothulf
Hrothgar’s nephew, Hrothulf betrays and usurps his cousin, Hrethic, the rightful heir to the
Danish throne. Hrothulf’s treachery contrasts with Beowulf’s loyalty to Hygelac in helping his
son to the throne.

 Aeschere
Hrothgar’s trusted adviser.

Other Geats
 Hygelac
Beowulf’s uncle, king of the Geats, and husband of Hygd. Hygelac heartily welcomes Beowulf
back from Denmark.

 Hygd
Hygelac’s wife, the young, beautiful, and intelligent queen of the Geats. Hygd is contrasted with
Queen Modthryth.

 Wiglaf
A young kinsman and retainer of Beowulf who helps him in the fight against the dragon while all
of the other warriors run away. Wiglaf adheres to the heroic code better than Beowulf’s other
retainers, thereby proving himself a suitable successor to Beowulf.

Read an in-depth analysis of Wiglaf.

 Ecgtheow
Beowulf’s father, Hygelac’s brother-in-law, and Hrothgar’s friend. Ecgtheow is dead by the time
the story begins, but he lives on through the noble reputation that he made for himself during his
life and in his dutiful son’s remembrances.

 King Hrethel
The Geatish king who took Beowulf in as a ward after the death of Ecgtheow, Beowulf’s father.

 Breca
Beowulf’s childhood friend, whom he defeated in a swimming match. Unferth alludes to the
story of their contest, and Beowulf then relates it in detail.

Other Figures Mentioned

 Sigemund
A figure from Norse mythology, famous for slaying a dragon. Sigemund’s story is told in praise
of Beowulf and foreshadows Beowulf’s encounter with the dragon.
 King Heremod
An evil king of legend. The scop, or bard, at Heorot discusses King Heremod as a figure who
contrasts greatly with Beowulf.

 Queen Modthryth
A wicked queen of legend who punishes anyone who looks at her the wrong way. Modthryth’s
story is told in order to contrast her cruelty with Hygd’s gentle and reasonable behavior.