Only the wise and mature realize that all glory is fleeting. He lived a joyless life and justifiably suffered for the damage that he brought to his people.įrom that example, Hrothgar generalizes about all of those who benefit from God's gifts. Among other sins, Heremod indulged in hubris, an overwhelming pride or arrogance that leads to outrageous behavior. The Danes' chief example of a gifted king gone wrong is Heremod, who not only failed to treat his people generously but actually killed other Danes in his own hall, a sin of unpardonable proportion in the world of the comitatus, the honor code binding a ruler to his thanes. If a leader is not careful, God's gifts can lead him to vanity. Hrothgar quietly begins by praising Beowulf but quickly follows with a warning. It is not Hrothgar's own vanity that precipitates his speech but a genuine concern for the young warrior. Hrothgar considers the ephemerality of human existence and the vanity of earthly achievement. There are also runes on the hilt revealing the identity of the first owner. We are informed that the hilt's engravings tell the story of "the origin of past strife, when the flood drowned, / the pouring ocean killed the race of giants" (1689-90). This trophy, along with Beowulf's account of its magic, seems to bring on the king's reflective mood. Beowulf also presents Hrothgar with the "strange gold hilt" (1677) of the giant sword. The trophy of Grendel's head is more satisfying to Beowulf and more valuable to him than the riches that he might have retrieved from the cave of the ogres because of the important achievement that it symbolizes. Nevertheless, Beowulf respects the wisdom of the aging king and patiently listens. It may seem odd to a modern reader that the celebration of his outstanding victory should be interrupted by a solemn sermon by Hrothgar, a king who was unable to protect his own people. The themes of fame (sometimes best thought of as reputation) and, even more, generosity dominate this section as Hrothgar warns Beowulf of the dangers of the former and the virtues of the latter. In the morning, Beowulf returns Hrunting to Unferth and receives numerous gifts before he and his men exchange farewells with the Danes and sail for home. Hrothgar notes that he himself had great fortune as a young man and ruled successfully for 50 years until Grendel brought him down. The king examines the hilt and then speaks to Beowulf, giving a sermon on the dangers of fame and success and the vicissitudes of life. Assuring the king of Heorot's safety, he places the gold hilt of the giant sword in Hrothgar's hand. Continued abuse of our services will cause your IP address to be blocked indefinitely.Beowulf presents Grendel's head to Hrothgar and briefly recounts his battle with the mother. Please fill out the CAPTCHA below and then click the button to indicate that you agree to these terms. If you wish to be unblocked, you must agree that you will take immediate steps to rectify this issue. If you do not understand what is causing this behavior, please contact us here. If you promise to stop (by clicking the Agree button below), we'll unblock your connection for now, but we will immediately re-block it if we detect additional bad behavior.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |