EPIC POETRY - BEOWULF BETWEEN THE LINES

The Anglo-Saxons’ life was extremely hard. Their society was a tough society and the nature surrounding them was hostile. They lived in the cold, dark forest: everything was regulated by nature and natural events like storms and floods were frequent. People had to be strong, brave, loyal and generous with one another in order to survive. Heroes couldn’t but be people that were able to manage situations that common people couldn’t. Epic poetry celebrates heroes and their deeds as well as the values of a specific civilization. It goes back to the roots of the Anglo-Saxon culture.

“Beowulf” is the most important epic poem. It recounts the deeds and legends of the eponymous hero. Beowulf is considered a hero because he is able to defeat a monster, Grendel, who was represented a threat and a terrible danger to the surrounding populations. Beowulf went to help such populations and died for his beliefs.

The setting of the poem is Denmark, which is a Northern European country. In Denmark there were many kings, who were glorious, brave, courageous and famous for their deeds. The poem begins with a genealogy of the Danish royal family. Schield Sheafson, the founder of the dynasty, became King of the Danes through his ability to rout his enemies. When he died, the people buried him and his treasures at sea in a traditional Germanic ceremony. Shield Sheafson’s son, Beow, inherited the kingdom, and had a son, Healfdene. Healfdene, in turn, became the father of Hrothgar, the King of the Danes at the beginning of the poem.

Like his ancestors, Hrothgar had kept the kingdom prosperous through winning battles and honoring his warriors. He decided to build a mead hall named Heorot. Mead-halls were symbols of the prosperity and the power of kings. Historically, the mead-hall represented a safe haven for warriors returning from battle, a small zone of refuge within a dangerous and precarious external world that continuously offered the threat of attack by neighbouring peoples. Mead-halls were also a place of community, where traditions were preserved, loyalty was rewarded and, perhaps most importantly, stories were told and reputations were spread.

One night this hall was attacked by a dangerous enemy: a monster that had a human shape(Grendel). Grendel is a descendant of Cain, the mere-dweller, and with the meanest mother around, becomes Beowulf's first foe. Grendel is described by the narrator as “the demon, possessor of the moors”, “blinded by sin”, “wicked ravager”, “evil, enraged” and “Hell's friend, God's enemy”.
Grendel’s attacks had been going on for twelve years, therefore the monster represented a real danger. Peace was put into question and weakened. Beowulf was called and was ready to give help to those populations (“a warrior of Hygelac's heard of Grendel's doings; that man called for a ship, said he would cross the ocean and help the king who needed help.”). “There was no one like him alive”, he was “loyal, generous and powerful”.

The poet provides the reader with an extremely positive connotation of the hero. Beowulf is someone that in comparison to ordinary people, excels. As a matter of fact, ordinary people remain in the background, heroes come to the forefront. The narrator focuses his attention on the hero’s personality. Most of what he says and tells is about Beowulf, the person everybody respects and admires.

A hero can be described using different devices. The narrator makes a selection: he doesn’t describe the appearance; he decides to introduce Beowulf relying on his qualities. The poet is most interested in personality, in how he behaves, in what he does and in his choices. In addition to this, he informs the reader of what the people surrounding Beowulf think of him. “There was no one else like him alive”, “he was the mightiest man on earth”, “the people believed he was the strongest man one could meet”. He was “high-born” (born in a family of high lineage), “powerful” (ability to fight, having a good reputation, being respected by other people, being brave, able to face a danger). Characterization does not rely on physical appearance but it refers to reputation, actions, qualities and the skills of the character.

The poem “Beowulf” also provides information about the traditions and the habits of the society in which Beowulf lived. Magic was conceded as giving people information about what they should or shouldn’t do. Nowadays there is a scientific attitude to facts.

The text also gives information about the way Beowulf behaves with his men: he enlisted “the best men he could find”, “he went by boat and behaved like a captain”, “a very intelligent pilot along the sea”.

Epic poetry was passed orally from generation to generation and therefore language was organized accordingly. That is it heavily relied on memorization and therefore it was full of refrains, repetitions, alliteration and many other linguistic devices, the most famous of which was the kenning (a sort of rebus: something the meaning of which you have to guess). Examples of kennings that can be found in the poem are: “Swan-road”, “Whale-road” (sea), “Storm of swords” (Battle), “Peace-bringer among nations”, “Peace-weaver” (Queen), “Bent-necked wood”, “Ringed prow”, “Foamy-necked”, “Sea-wood”, “Sea-farer” (Boat), “Twilight-spoiler” (Dragon), “Leavings of the file” (Sword).