Beowulf Review

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Beowulf Review

• because I know you have forgotten everything over
  these snow days

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King Hrothgar

• of Denmark enjoys a prosperous and successful
  reign. In his great mead-hall Heorot, his
  warriors can gather to drink and listen to
  stories sung by the bards.

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• But the jubilant noise from Heorot angers
  Grendel, a horrible demon who lives in the
  swamplands of Hrothgars kingdom. Grendel
  terrorizes the Danes every night, killing them
  and defeating their

efforts to fight back. The Danes suffer 12 years
of fear, danger and death at the hands of
Grendel.
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• A young Geatish warrior named Beowulf hears of
  Hrothgars plight.
• Inspired by the challenge, Beowulf sails to
  Denmark with a small company of men, determined
  to defeat Grendel.

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• Beowulf gives King Hrothgar a boastful
  description of some of his past accomplishments.
  His confidence cheers the Danish warriors, and
  the feast lasts merrily into the night.
• At last, Grendel arrives. Unarmed, Beowulf fights
  him, proving stronger than the demon, who is
  terrified. As Grendel struggles to escape,
  Beowulf tears the monsters arm off.

• Mortally wounded, Grendel slinks back into the
  swamp to die. The severed arm is hung high in the
  mead-hall as a trophy of victory.

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Beowulf, Beowulf, hes our man!

• Overjoyed, Hrothgar holds a feast in Beowulfs
  honor. The celebration lasts late into the night,
  but another threat is approaching.
• Grendels mother, who lives in a desolate lake,
  comes to Heorot seeking revenge for her sons
  death. She murders one of Hrothgars most trusted
  advisers. To avenge this death, Beowulf and both
  the Geats and the Danes travel to the murky
  swamp.

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• Beowulf dives into the water and fights Grendels
  mother in her underwater lair.
• He kills her with a sword forged for a giant.
• He then finds Grendels corpse, decapitates it,
  and brings the head as a prize to Hrothgar.
• The Danish countryside is now purged of its
  treacherous monsters.

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Anglo-Saxon ValuesHonor, Bravery, Loyalty

• The Danes are again overjoyed, and Beowulfs fame
  spreads across the kingdom. Beowulf departs after
  a sorrowful goodbye to Hrothgar, who has treated
  him like a son.
• He returns to Geatland, where he and his men are
  reunited with their king and queen, to whom
  Beowulf recounts his adventures in Denmark.
• Beowulf then hands over most of his treasure to
  his king, who, in turn, rewards him.

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We pick up here

• Fifty years later, when
  Beowulf is an old man,
  
  a thief disturbs a mound
  where a great
  dragon guards a horde of treasure.
• Enraged, the dragon emerges and begins unleashing
  fiery destruction upon the Geats.
• Their king, Beowulf, goes to fight the dragon.
  With the aid of his loyal friend Wiglaf, he kills
  the beast, but at a heavy cost. The dragon bites
  Beowulf in the neck, and its fiery venom kills
  him.

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Beowulf, the epic hero

• According to Beowulfs wishes, the Geats burn
  their departed kings body on a huge funeral pyre
  and then bury him with treasure in a mound
  overlooking the sea.

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Why do we read this literature?
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(No Transcript)
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Make connections
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Good versus evil
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A classic theme in literature
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and in life
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Please take out your blue handouts

• And turn to page 56