Chapters two and three of Beowulf quickly crumble into what I expected: blood, guts, death and sorrow. Grendel won't harm Hrothgar, but essentially kills and mames just about everyone else at Herot. Grendel was "so set on murder that no crime could ever be enough."
The king lived as a hermit in Herot for twenty years, living in fear of Grendel; word spread across the known world that Herot was a desert of half-alive forlorn nobles suffering from Grendel's ruthless pillaging. Hrothgar was "in living sorrow, simmered, bitter and fresh and no wisdom or strength could break it: that agony hung on king and people alike, harsh and unending, violent and cruel and evil."
Luckily for Hrothgar, Beowulf, a Geat, heard of this suffering and vowed to fight the spawn of Cain. It's a good thing Beowulf responded, as he was "stronger than anyone anywhere in this world." Beowulf, unrestrained from leaving his homeland by belief in his strength and positive omens, lands on the shores of the Danes and is questioned by the guard as to his reasons for coming..."Speak, say exaclty who you are, and from where, and why."
No comments:
Post a Comment