809 - 836 Flashcards
What happens in this extract?
This forms the climax of the confrontation in which Beowulf rips off Grendel’s arm, moving away from ambiguous combat to a more direct description of the fight
fyrene ġefremede?
Variation on his criminal nature with atol aeglaeca, a formulaic alliterative phrase which also occurs in line 732. Suggests Beowulf’s victory is morally just
hē [wæs] fāg wið God?
This clarifies the previous statement in line 711, resolving that the anger of God was upon him.
his imposition of a monotheistic God onto a Pagan society asserts that the author wanted his Christian audience to be on the side of Beowulf like they would be on the side of Christ.
lǣsten nolde?
The sentence beginning in line 809 only receives its verb phrase ‘lǣsten nolde’ in line 812b, so the progress of the narrative is interrupted by the functional redundancy of the long relative clause, and this suspenseful delay contributes to the tension
syndohl sweotol, / seonowe onsprungen?
Violent imagery of the ripping of the arm
The alliteration of ‘s’ creates an onomatopoeic sound which connotes a wet liquid, portraying the horrific aural imagery of Grendel’s blood splashing to the ground from his limbless shoulder.
burston bānlocan?
His joints burst apart
Plosive and kenning parallels the popping sound of his joints bursting open
feorhsēoc fleon / under fenhleoðu?
to flee mentally wounded under the fern slope
This characterises Grendel as a coward, a contrast to his previous monstrous demeanour
His fleeing to the hapax legomenon ‘fenhleoðu’ emphasises Grendel’s position as an exile, a common theme in Old English poetry
þæt his aldres wæs / ende ġegongen?
The number of his days, the end of his life
Variation highlights his impending death at the hands of Beowulf
hildedēor 834?
Brave on in battle - unclear at to who it alludes to
If it alludes to Beowulf, then it depicts him hanging Grendel’s arm above the doorway above Heorot as a symbol of victory
If it refers to Grendel then it suggests he was forced to leave his arm behind. With this interpretation, a moment of irony is created, as it is clear that Grendel is no longer ‘brave in battle’
inwidsorge / þe hīe ǣr drugon?
Variation on the grief of the Danes
Lexical field of highly negative verbs and compound nouns
This makes the positive imagery of Beowulf’s victory more effective due to the contrast
þe hīe ǣr drugon?
This phrase was repeated verbatim from line 15a of the prologue, which described the suffering of the Danes before the coming of Scyld Scefing. This comparison establishes Beowulf as a heroic saviour, highlighting his fulfilment of his boast to the Danes
hond āleġde, // earm ond eaxle?
Triplet of body parts is a symbol of power due to Grendel’s hand grip
Drawn out by three nouns suggests a kind of revelry in his defeat
under ġēapne hr(ōf)?
Grendel no longer has his power as he left it in Heorot
This use of proxemics creates a physical manifestation of a hierarchy of power, as Grendel’s supernatural power with his hand-grip, which is contained in his arm and shoulder, is physically below the roof of Heorot, built by the Danes. This again suggests that the power in their craftsmanship can rival the power of Grendel, and in this case is able to beat it.
