Beowulf Journal 3

Lines 86-98 ~ Then a powerful demon, a prowler through the dark…and quickened life in every other thing that moved.

This passage tells us about Grendel’s hatred for the music that is playing from the halls of Heorot. Grendel loathes these songs because they are all about God creating the Earth and the beginning of man. It may be referring to the story of Cain and Abel; which would irk Grendel because it’s Cain’s fault that Grendel is hated by God. Hearing the song just reminds Grendel that he is out casted from not only God’s eyes but the rest of the world.

Beowulf Dialectical Journal 2

Line 102-109 ~ Grendel was the name of this grim demon haunting the marches, marauding round the heath...Cain got no good from committing that murder
        Grendel is from Cain's Clan. Cain killed his brother, Abel, because he was jealous and God cast him into exile. From Cain's anger and sorrow, came Grendel and other vicious monsters. Much like Cain, Grendel can't be aided by other men because of the mark placed on him by god, so he lives as an outcast. This is a parallelism to Cain's story. Grendel is like Cain because he is envious of the men in Heorot. He just wants to be loved by God like they are. Like Cain killing Abel, Grendel kills all of the men because he is jealous; he is resentful that God loves them instead of Grendel.

Beowulf Dialectical Journal 1

Line 64- 72 ~ The Fortunes of war favoured Hrothgar...his God-given goods to young and old-

         The construction of this hall and Hrothgar's intentions to use it for the good of his people is proof that he was a good king. Some of the qualities of a king are that he must be compassionate and loyal to his country. Hrothgar demonstrates these characteristics by creating the hall, Heorot, as a throne room for his people to sit with him and celebrate.

Branwen Daughter of Llyr

 Wales, a strong, independent nation that was destroyed when King Bendigeidfran agreed to marry his sister, Branwen, to the King of Ireland. In the short story, Branwen Daughter of Llyr, there is an underlined theme of hatred toward the Irish. The Welsh have an underlying opposition toward the Irish.  Perhaps the man that despised the Irish the most was Bendigeidfran’s brother Efnisien.

 It was King Malthwch’s plan to unite the countries together. This would have worked except the countries would never be able to get over the fact that the Welsh thought the Irish were below them. An instance that shows the Welsh’s, particularly Efnisien' animosity toward the Irish is after the party celebrating Branwen and Malthwch’s engagement, Efnisien decided that he was going to dismember Malthowch’s horses until they were useless.  

There are many other instances in this short account, most dealing with Efnisien, that back up the Welsh’s despise of the Irish, such as when he kills his own nephew. Branwen and Malthowch had a son, and when the Welsh and the Irish hold council in Ireland on Branwen’s behalf, he picks up the child and throws him into the fire, burning him alive. The boy’s father was an Irishman, therefore making him half Irish. Malthowch being the current King of Ireland also meant that one day his and Branwen’s son would be king of Ireland.

Efnisien was a great warrior that put the needs of his country before his own. He had a deep hatred of the Irish that drove him to do such inhumane things such as murder his nephew to killing 200 Irish soldiers with his bare hands to butcher the king of Ireland’s horses. He did whatever it took to make sure the Irish stayed below the Welsh.

The Death of Conchobhar

Conchobhar was a Pegan, so the story was most likely originally told by a Pegan. The story may have been retold by a Christian monk. The story ends with Meis-Geghra's brain springing out of Conchobhar's head, and then his blood proceedes to purify his body allowing him to go to heaven. If this story had not been written by a Christian, Conchobhar would not have gone to heaven.