Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Responses to you

I think the anecdote about Beowulf’s competition in the sea is interesting for a couple of reasons. First, I wonder what the purpose of this competition is. As far as I can tell, Beowulf and his friend simply decide one day that they will do this when they get older. I am leaning toward interpreting it as a right of passage of sorts. These two men found the need to prove themselves and test their limits by traversing into a very dangerous place. For some reason this still doesn’t sit right with me, however. Apparently the tales of this exploit is known far and wide. I wonder if it doesn’t serve more as a manner of self-promotion. Beowulf certainly has no qualms about bragging. Maybe this trip into the sea was meant to bring fame.
Beowulf showing up to fight Grendel is the same thing: the hero is going forth into the world to conquer.

I don't think that the term "rite of passage" applies here. The rop in a strict sense is for indoctrination into a society or to move to "another level" of society. The process whereby the boy becomes a man, etc. Beowulf and Breca do it "for a silly boast. (l 492).

As for boasting, I like line 558-560,
Neither Breca nor you in the press of battle/Ever showed such daring with dripping swords--/Though I boast not of it...."


I find it interesting that these people are reasonably well skilled in navigating the sea and even send their dead leaders out into the waves as a funeral right yet still see these bodies of liquid as frightening and unknown.


I'd argue that the Vikings were the greatest navigators of the Middle Ages, although that's neither here nor there.

As for the sea being familiar to them but it also being "frightening and unknown," I think that it follows perfectly, if on the level of metaphor.

For some reason my first read through this section, I thought Beowulf lost the race. I then wonder if the story of him being attacked by the monsters (I'd imagine that his story, if true, would be describing storms rather than evil beasties) would be an excuse for losing.

Of course, on further readings, it doesn't say that he lost at all. Did you get that in your reading?

I read a web page a while back about Scandinavian combat and they mentioned a form of wrestling that seemed very similar to the combat between Beowulf and Grendel.
Could it be Glima? The article's dating makes it appear newer than Beowulf, but perhaps it's worth reading again.

If we fit this into the society vs. anarchy theme, Beowulf, by necessity, enters the same state that Grendel is in, that of murder and unorganized war, and doesn’t even use weapons yet still manages to force Grendel into a civilized manner of combat. Of course, this is all assuming that Beowulf would have actually been familiar with this sort of dueling technique.


Interesting - read this as "Grendel doesn't follow the norms of society, so society's punishments won't be able to deal with him." I can see this sort of thing applied to the War on Terror, but that's probably a bit off topic for this discussion.

Wrestling is one of the oldest sports (if I had to wager, I'd put it as #2. #1 being running away from something trying to eat you) and is very ritualised as training for combat that isn't meant to hurt your partner and cause them to rendered unfit for combat. It's also putting rules on something as primal and savage as killing.

Grendel then has no training and the weapons of man can't hurt him, so Beowulf has no choice but to sink to his level - but, he can still win by virtue of his superior skills.

We've established that Beowulf isn't a human like anyone else and neither is Grendel (OK, he's not human at all, but you get the idea). The thing that separates the terrible power of Beowulf from that of Grendel is that Beowulf is "civilized." Thus, civilization is stronger than barbarism.

This makes quite a bit more sense than my previous remembering of the "Beowulf v. Grendel is about the power of the individual and B. vs. Grendel's Mom is about technology" because we see that Beowulf's thane tries to attack Grendel with the sword and the sword breaks.

Ah well, we'll see how well the magic weapon motif holds up when we get to the next part.

I think you're on to something though.

I noticed as I was reading that Hrothgar still inhabited the mead hall 12 years after the attacks began! Apparently, Grendel only visits during the night. I just can’t get my head around Hrothgar’s lack of action. Not only does he not personally confront the monster, despite being a great warrior, he also decides not to move away. He is completely passive. At the very least you would think he might be a bit reluctant to stay in a place that is covered with gore, as the hall is described in my translation. I suppose I am overanalyzing a literary device used to set Beowulf up for his triumphant victory, but I still find it strange.


I covered this in part in at the bottom of this post. They do try numerous mehtods to stop Grendel, but are unable.

As for Hrothgar not leaving, I'm going back to the level of allegory and thinking that this is about civilization defending itself against outside attack. If they leave, they've proven that they're unworthy of all that they had to go through to "earn" Heorot. If they give up civilization, then they'll go back to being like Grendel. If they leave Heorot and start again, Grendel will just find them. The problems of the barbarians at the gates will persist no matter where they go.

If Hrothgar leaves Heorot to sleep in the bowers, it's as good as saying that it's all for naught.

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