Beowul Journals 14 - 20

14.

Lines 1557-1562 ~ Then he saw a blade that boded well…so huge and heavy of itself only Beowulf could wield it in battle. 

Grendel couldn’t be harmed by man-made weapons and neither could his mother. Unferth’s sword is useless in Beowulf’s battle against Grendel’s mother. The sword that Beowulf finds was created by giants, therefore it was able to melt of Grendel’s head (to prove that he was dead) and behead his mother. Why didn’t man-made weapons work on the monsters? Probably because of Cain’s curse that was put on them. God’s curse stated that if anyone were to kill Cain, they would suffer vengeance seven times over.  

Was the curse transferred to Beowulf?

 (I don't know why there is a line here and it won't go away. Just Ignore it)

15.

Lines 1240-1241 ~ … and one man lay down to his rest, already marked for death.

This is a foreshadow. Grendel’s mother grabs one man and takes him back to her lair. This man just happens to be Aeschere, Hrothgar’s right-hand man. Did Grendel’s mother know that this man was important to Hrothgar; or was she blinded by revenge and just grabbed a random person?

16.

Lines 1299-1306 ~ Beowulf was elsewhere. Earlier, after the award of the treasure…both parties having to pay with the lives of their friends

Grendel’s mother not only wanted wergild, but she wanted peace. If she only wanted revenge, she would not have taken the Dane’s ‘trophy’ with her. She would have massacred the hall. Instead, she took Grendel’s arm as well a man, showing that she wants to be at peace with Grendel’s death. She wants all of the pieces of her son in one place for a proper burial, as proper as a monster burial can be.

Did Grendel’s mother choose to attack on that night because she knew Beowulf wasn’t there? Or was it pure coincidence? I believe that under some level, Grendel’s mother knew this was the perfect time to attack, whether it was because of Beowulf’s absence, or the fact that the terror that harassed Heorot was gone, so the Danes would most likely be celebrating all night.

17.

Lines 653-661 ~ Hrothgar wished Beowulf health and good luck, named him hall-warden and announced as follows…There’s nothing you wish for that won’t be yours if you win through alive.

Hrothgar names Beowulf the protector of Heorot. Beowulf isn’t a Dane, so this shows how much trust and faith Hrothgar is putting in Beowulf to rid his people of Grendel.

18.

 Lines 3024-3026 ~ …but the raven winging darkly over the doomed will have news, tidings for the eagle of how he hooked and ate…

The Raven is a symbol of death in Old English. The raven is brought up a few time in Beowulf and each time, having to do with death. The eagle symbolizes heroes and bravery. The raven conquerors the eagle, meaning that evil has overcome good.

19.

Lines 2688-2693 ~ Then the bane of that people, the fire-breathing dragon… Beowulf’s body ran wet with his life-blood: it came welling out.

The dragon draws blood, and also injects venom; which is what kills Beowulf. Why? Beowulf has fought many monsters, why was this monster essentially able to kill Beowulf? Beowulf may be old and has been king for fifty years, but I don’t think that he would be able to stop killing monsters. Was Beowulf only concerned with making sure the dragon dies that he wasn’t really

20.

Lines 2680-2684 ~ And Naegling snapped…by the cutting edge of weapons made of iron.

Again, Beowulf brings a weapon that has never failed him, until now. He tries to strike the dragon on the head and the sword snaps. He hasn’t been able to use man made swords from the beginning so I’m not sure why he thought this time would be any different. The last two monsters were under Cain’s curse; does this mean that the dragon is also marked by God?