Textuality » 3A Interacting
The second part of the poem tells about Beouwulf's departure and voyage.
First of all the narrator describes the departure of Beowulf and his crew from their land.
They had to face a voyage (from Geatland to Denmark) because they had to defeat a monster: Grendel.
The narrator says that the boat was on water and that the men climbed up the gangplank. "Gangplank" means the wooden bridge from the dock to the ship.
But the narrator adds that there was a difficult situation because of the sea foam.
In the 4th line there is a relevant word: "warriors". The narrator uses this word because he wants to have the people understand that those people weren't only seamen but also warriors. As a matter of fact they hadn't to face only a voyage but also a monster.
In the following lines the narrator tells about the cargo: the warriors loaded all the equipment ("shining war-gear") that might be useful to face the difficulties of the situation. After that they heaved out.
In the 7th line there is an important word: "will" in the sentence "away with a will in their wood-wreathed ship". It means that all the crew had a strong-willed.
In the following lines the narrator describes the voyage: in particular he tells about the ship.
He wants to create the idea of speed of the ship: he uses ran on line (=enjambement) that adds speed to the verse. He also uses the alliteration: packs and sticks the words together and so creates a speed rythm.
The narrator uses a simile: he compares the ship's voyage to the flight of a bird.
In the 8th line there is an alliteration: "waves", "with" and "wind".
After that there is the end of the voyage: Beowulf and his crew arrived in Denmark.
"At the due hour" means that they arrived just when they had programmed to arrive.
The Geats vaulted over the side and anchored their ship.
There is an alliteration: "clash" "thresh". Both of the words refer to the noise of clanking armour and mechanical pieces.
The narrator concludes this part saying that Beowulf and his crew thanked God. From this final sentence you can understand that they were religious people.