Beowulf found himself in an enemy hall, free of rushing water. Ready to complete his mission, Beowulf struck Grendel’s mother with Hrunting, the sword. Unfortunately, it did no harm to the monster because she possessed magic that protected her from man made weapons. Beowulf threw the sword to the side, trusting that he would be able to fight the monster with his own two hands. He grabbed her and threw her to the ground, but she fought
They praise sir Beowulf, thanking him greatly. Yet little did this town or Beowulf know the agony yet to come. Grendel was indeed a monster, but a monster who was the spawn of a cruel creature. The slain monster’s mother, a she-wolf would be the hero’s next challenge. He would travel to the home of the monster’s mother, to yet again engage in the act of battle. They shall meet in the deep depths of the marshy hell. Beowulf would try to defeat the she-wolf with his sword but would not be enough. As he begins to become beaten, and weak, he sees a sword that may be to his advantage. “A heavy sword, hammered by giants, strong and blessed by their magic, the best of all weapons but so massive that no ordinary man could lift its carved and decorated length” (page 54 line 530-535) He raised thy mighty sword and struck the devil in the neck, cutting the entire head off. Hrothgar’s men watch the monster’s lake filled with blood. Thinking all hope and gone and mighty Beowulf had been killed. Yet as the old men begin to whisper the mighty hero rises from the lake, only holding the she-wolfs head and the giant’s sword. The Beowulf would return with the head and place the monsters head in front of the
Beowulf sees Grendel's mother in a cave. He tries to hit her with his sword, Unferth's Hrunting, but it fails to pierce her skin. So he throws the sword away and attacks the mother with his bare hands. He trusts "in his strength, his mighty hand-grip." Beowulf manages to throw Grendel's mother down; however, she quickly retaliates and is soon sitting on top of him. She tries to kill him with a dagger, but Beowulf's armor protects him this time. Beowulf managed to throw her off of himself and sees a sword of enormous size, which he immediately grabs.
Beowulf discovers this and goes after the witch and battle. Beowulf is at the bottom of the lake and is fighting to death with Grendel’s mother. On page 60, “But her guest discovered that no sword could slice her evil skin, that Hrunting could not hurt her, was useless.” The quote explains once Beowulf knew his sword Hrunting had no effect on Grendel’s mother, Beowulf had to come up with another strategy to win the battle. Beowulf’s sword is destroyed while fighting Grendel’s mother, and tries to find a new weapon to fight with. On page 61, the quote says “Then he saw, hanging on the wall, a heavy sword, hammered by the giants, strong and blessed with their magic.” The quote is saying Beowulf uses the Giants strong, heavy, sword to fight Grendel’s mother and savagely cut through the witch’s neck. Now have killed Grendel and his mother. After defeating Grendel’s mother Beowulf decides to claim an award one last time for revenge. Page 62 quotes “Had sent him from Herot, then struck off his head with a single swift blow. The body jerked for the last time, then lay still.” Beowulf has cut off Grendel’s head as an act of revenge and claims the head as his reward and leaves Grendel’s body bleeding. Beowulf has slaughtered two monsters, claimed another prize, and once again saved the
Beowulf, while also being a follower of Higlac, he was known to be one of the most strongest and extraordinary geat that has ever existed that is willing to fight for honor and freedom. This caused his adrenaline to skyrocket which resulted in him gathering a total of fourteen other worthy men to go on this treacherous trip to Grendel’s home. Beowulf and his clique decides to stay in Herot where Grendel will come for them. The very next day, Grendel was hungry and he knew the location of the hunters. He began to devour his first victim and he began on the second until he realized it was Beowulf himself. One of Beowulf’s hand grabbed Grendel’s arm, while the other reaches for his mighty sword named Hrunting. Grendel knew he could not defeat
Beowulf’s sword, Hrunting, does not damage Grendel’s mother. Luckily, Beowulf finds “a heavy sword, hammered by giants… And then, savage, now, angry and desperate, lifted it high over his head and struck with all the strength he had left, caught her in the neck and cut it through, broke bones and all” (Raffel 530-531 and 536-540). Beowulf would have died if he did not find the magic sword. Fate is certainly on his side during the battle. The author acknowledges that “At this moment of impending defeat and death it was by divine aid that Beowulf regained his feet and seized an ancient sword from among the war-gear lying in the cave. Though the blade was heavy beyond the strength of other men, he struck with fury and slew the hag” (Kennedy xvii). Beowulf’s superhuman strength is impressive. Beowulf knows he must get rid of this menacing creature. After, Beowulf searches for Grendel. He finds Grendel “armless, exactly as that fierce fighter had sent him out from Herot, then struck off his head with a single blow” (Raffel 559-561). Beowulf chops off Grendel’s head just like he did Grendel’s mother’s. Beowulf seeks revenge for Grendel’s destructive attacks. He is determined to get rid of all of his enemies. Beowulf risks everything by traveling to his enemy’s underwater lair hoping to defeat the terrifying
When Grendel's mother arrives to torment the Danes, seeking vengeance for her son’s death, Beowulf’s fight with Grendel's mother
Grendel’s mom was furious; she invited the one who they called Beowulf down to her lair as she wanted revenge for her son’s death. She carried him and his sword to her battle hall where no one could get to them and he could not escape without defeating her. Beowulf tried to use his sword but it had no affect due to her spell on human weapons. They fought and Beowulf was already tired from getting attacked by the sea creatures on the way. As they fought he became weary and there was nothing he could do, but he realized that he had spotted the mythical sword hand crafted by the magical giants themselves. He reached out to it and ripped it from the chains. It was so big it took all his might and all the energy he had left to raise is above his head and chop down on the vicious beast. Slicing her head clean off as it cuts through all the bones and muscles in the neck like butter. Beowulf spotted Grendel lying lifeless In the corner. He walked over to him and cut his head right off. He took the head of the monster who took many lives of his fellow soldiers and his friends. He brought it back to the
People have a fear in their mind, something that they will never want to see in the night , it could be something horrible or it could be something that deeply attract to people that they always want to know but afraid to know. Beowulf is translated from the West Saxon language by Burton Raffel, the author creates a mood in which everybody is terrified of the monster, and the monster has the ability to destroy everything that it wants. This not only happens in the past, but also in real life. My phone is like Grendel , it changes my habit. When there is something like Grendel, people need a hero to help them, that’s why Beowulf is important. He is the only one that could beat Grendel, and save people’s lives , even though he is not sure whether he could beat Grendel or not, but he tries everything to help people. Phones and Grendel are both hard to defeat, because they are both negative and hard to change. Phones make people’s lives different. Phones bother you at night, and keep you awake, but
Beowulf is an epic tale written over twelve hundred years ago. In the poem, several different female characters are introduced, and each woman possesses detailed and unique characteristics. The women in Beowulf are portrayed as strong individuals, each of whom has a specific role within the poem. Some women are cast as the cup-bearers and gracious hostesses of the mead halls, such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, while others, Grendel's mother, fulfill the role of a monstrous uninvited guest. The woman's role of the time period, author's attitude, and societal expectations for women are evidenced throughout the poem.
After defeating Grendel Beowulf enjoys the celebration and rewards that Hrothgar has treated him to. Beowulf earns the respect of the whole kingdom of Heorot. A few nights later Grendel’s mother learns that her son was killed by a human. She comes angrily back to the mead hall where she will take vengeance for her son. “But now his mother had sallied forth on a savage journey, grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge” (pg. 89). Grendel’s mother is another stage in Beowulf’s step toward an older warrior. Before the great battle with Grendel’s mother, Beowulf was a little bit more mature and was not as confident. “Beowulf got ready, donned his war-gear, indifferent to death; his mighty, hand-forged, fine-webbed mail would soon meet with the menace underwater.” (pg. 101) He needed armor because he feels that it wasn’t the kind of battle he would face without his necessity to survive. After a long fight Beowulf finds the strength in him to grab the weapon that would kill Grendel’s mother. Once again good has defeated evil. Beowulf comes through as a hero one more time before his departure from Heorot.
As beowulf starts to walk into the hall, he tells the story of his encounter with Grendel, as he is talking he relates the story to Grendel's mother also.
As an epic tale of heroes and monsters, Beowulf gives its readers much excitement and adventure, but Beowulf's importance is more than just literary. It offers many insights into the beliefs and customs of seventh-century Anglo-Saxon culture. Among these insights is the Anglo-Saxon view of women and their role in society. Good Anglo-Saxon women are peaceful and unassertive, greeting guests and serving drinks to the warriors and other men in the meadhall. Wealhtheow, the queen of the Danes, represents a typical subservient Anglo-Saxon woman. As a foil to Wealhtheow, Grendel's mother is a strong and combative monster whom Beowulf must kill. By analyzing these two characters in Beowulf, we can understand the
than the demon. As Grendel tries to escape beowulf rips Grendels arm off and she
Before Beowulf goes into the sea, Unferth offers him his sword, Hrunting. During the ensuing battle Grendel's mother carries Beowulf to her underwater home. After a terrible fight, Beowulf kills the monster with a magical sword, probably put there by the Al-Weilder, that he finds on the wall of her home. He also finds Grendel's dead body, cuts off the head, and returns to
Many readers of the poem Beowulf may find it difficult to distinguish the 'good' kings from the rest – indeed, almost every man who holds a throne in the epic is named at one point or another to be 'good'. By examining the ideals of the time period as identified by the 'heroic code', it becomes clearer that a truly 'good' king is one who generously distributes treasure and weaponry to deserving retainers to honour courage and strength displayed in battle and to encourage the defense of the kingdom (Intro). When Beowulf ascends the throne of the Geats, the heroic traits of courage and strength for which he was so highly praised as a warrior do not serve well in making him a good king. Indeed, by exhibiting the traits of a thane, that is, by