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A short summary of Anonymous's Beowulf. This free synopsis covers all the crucial plot points of Beowulf.
- Rumi, Björn Collinder, Harold Bloom, Gerald J. Davis, John D. Niles, Burton Raffel, Seamus Heaney, K...
- 1815
- Overview
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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.
Where does Beowulf take place?
Beowulf takes place in early 6th-century Scandinavia, primarily in what is known today as Denmark and Sweden.
Who was Beowulf written by?
The author of Beowulf is unknown. It is possible that the poem was composed by and transmitted between several different poets before it was preserved in a single manuscript that dates to about 1000.
What does Beowulf present to Hrothgar?
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.
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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.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Beowulf . Beowulf , 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 and was probably composed c. 700–750.
15 de jun. de 2023 · Beowulf Summary. Beowulf is an Old English poem about a Geatish hero who comes to Denmark to kill a monster. Beowulf comes to the aid of Hrothgar, king of the Danes, to fight the...
Sinopsis – Resumen de Beowulf. El poema comienza con una cronología de los reyes daneses, comenzando con Shild (cuyo funeral se describe en el Prólogo) y concluyendo con el reinado del actual rey Hrothgar, bisnieto de Shild. Hrothgar es querido por su gente y un guerrero eficaz.
Overview. Beowulf, an epic poem of unknown authorship, was likely composed between the 8th and 11th centuries. It stands as a cornerstone of Anglo-Saxon literature, embodying the heroic spirit of the time.
At Heardred's death, Beowulf takes the throne of the Geats, and rules in great prosperity and fame for fifty years. In Beowulf's old age, a thief finds a passageway into an old barrow. Inside, a dragon guards a treasure trove left there long ago by the last survivor of an extinct people.
