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Beowulf Summary: Literature - A Research

Guide for Students
6-7 minutes

Beowulf is without doubt the most ancient surviving epic poem of the so called Anglo-Saxon
epic tradition. Set in the sixth century in the southwestern part of the contemporary Sweden, the
poem begins with a genealogy of the royal dynasty of the Scyldings, or Danes. This royal line is
named for a mythic hero ancestor who arrived at the shores of this region as a castaway infant.
The child, Scyld Scefing, landed on the shore in a ship loaded with treasure.

This funeral of Scyld is marked as an early event, but the poem soon shifts to the present
moment in which the current King Hrothgar, the great grandson of Scyld, presides over a great
mead-hall, called Heorot as a successful warrior-king. However, for 12 years, his mead-hall has
been beset by a murderous ogre. This ogre, Grendel, is a descendant of the biblical murderer
Cain, and attacks the mead-hall nightly, menacing Hrothgar, raiding the mead-hall, and killing
the warriors (thanes as they are called in the poem).

A young warrior named Beowulf from Geatland, in present southwestern Sweden, with 14 of his
men, comes to the aid of the Scyldings. Hrothgar, it turns out, helped shelter Beowulf’s father
during a deadly feud. For this Beowulf wishes to return the favor while gaining honor, glory, and
treasure for himself and for the king of the Geats, Hygelac.

On his first night in Hrothgar’s mead-hall, during a feast, a drunk and rude thane named Unferth
insults Beowulf by saying the Beowulf once lost a swimming contest against to one of his
boyhood friends named Breca. Because of this, he claims, Beowulf is no match for Grendel.
Beowulf responds by explaining to Unferth that he and the other swimmer were in fact separated
at sea on the fifth night of the contest, at which point Beowulf killed nine sea monsters before he
finally swam ashore. He puts Unferth in his place while maintaining his dignity.

That night, after the Danes retire to their sleeping quarters, Beowulf and his men lay in for the
night in the mead-hall to await the raid from Grendel. Of course, Grendel arrives, furious that
there has been so much celebration in the mead-hall.

He attacks the Geats. After killing one of them, Grendel goes after Beowulf. Beowulf has the
strength of 30 men and he takes hold of Grendel’s arm, gripping it and refusing to let go. The
battle nearly destroys the great mead-hall, but Beowulf succeeds in ripping Grendel’s arm out of
its socket from shoulder to claw. Victorious, Beowulf sends the mortally wounded Grendel back
to his mere, or pool. The claw of Grendel is hung from the roof of the Heorot as a trophy.
The next day the Scylds celebrate their victory in the battle of Beowulf and Grendel. Hrothgar’s
official bard (scop) performs on his harp and sings traditional lays, which recount great victories
of the past. He sings of the victory of the Danes at Finnsburh. He also improvises a song
celebrating the victory of Beowulf. Hrothgar’s wife, Queen Wealhteow, offers Beowulf a gold
collar and her gratitude. After a night of feasting and drinking mead and wine, the entire party
beds down for what they think will be their first peaceful night in many years.

However, Grendel’s mother comes to seek revenge for her son. Not quite as powerful as
Grendel, but fueled by grief and rage, she takes her son’s claw from the mead-hall and abducts
one of Scyldings (Aeschere) as Beowulf sleeps unaware.

The next day, Hrothgar, Beowulf and group of Scyldings and Geats track Grendel’s mother to
her swamp at the edge of a mere. They discover Aeschere’s head on a cliff which overlooks a
lake which conceals the ogre’s underground lair. Beowulf takes the sword, called Hrunting, from
Unferth, who he had argued with previously, and dives into the cave to find Grendel’s mother.

As Beowulf approaches the bottom of the lake, Grendel’s mother attacks. She drags him to her
cave. Once they reach the dry cavern, Beowulf fights back, but Hrunting cannot penetrate the
ogre hide of Grendel’s mother. She moves to cut him down with her knife, but Beowulf’s armor
was forged by the legendary smith Weland and it protects him. Beowulf then sees a giant magic
sword, too heavy for an ordinary man, but not for Beowulf, and swings it at Grendel’s mother.

This cuts into her spine at her neck and kills her. At this, a magical light illuminates the cave and
Beowulf discovers the body of Grendel and a great treasure. Beowulf cuts the head off the corpse
and the magic sword melts down to the hilt. Beowulf returns to the surface with the head and the
hilt, but he leaves the treasure.

Another great celebration is held in Heorot. Hrothgar delivers a sermon on the perils of pride and
the mutability of time. After this, Beowulf and his men return to their homeland. He serves his
own king, Hygelac, with honor until Hygelac is killed in battle and his son dies in a feud. After
this, Beowulf is crowned king. He reigns for 50 years. But, like Hrothgar, his peaceful reign is
interrupted as he must face one more demon.

It turns out that a rogue fugitive accidentally disturbed the treasure and stole a valuable cup that
belonged to a dragon. The dragon terrorizes the countryside at night, burning houses in its rage,
and it burns the house of Beowulf. As they are led by the fugitive, Beowulf and his men set out
to find the dragon in his barrow. As Beowulf fights the dragon, his sword, Naegling, is not strong
enough to slay it. One of his men, Wiglaf, comes to his side.

The two men fight and kill the dragon but not before Beowulf is mortally wounded. As Beowulf
is dying, he leaves his kingdom to Wiglaf. His dying request is to be cremated in a funeral pyre
and buried on a cliff by the sea where passing sailors may see his barrow. The dragon’s treasure
is buried with him, and it is thought that the treasure is still there to this day.
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Beowulf Characters Analysis: Literature

Guides - A Research Guide
3 minutes

Beowulf

The epic hero or protagonist. He is hero of the Geats who defeats Grendel and his Ogress
mother. He later slays the great dragon. Beowulf’s feats of heroism and tales of his adventures
prove him to be a true warrior rather than one who boasts. He is the epitome of a Great Anglo-
Saxon hero: fearless in battle, true to his words, and a great leader during times of peace. Even in
old age, his experiences are transformed into wisdom and he becomes a great king.

King Hrothgar

The King of the Danes, or Scylds. He has lived with military victory and led his people to a time
of peace. This is interrupted by Grendel and his terrifying raids. Hrothgar represents the wise old
warrior-king that Beowulf will one day become.

Grendel

An ogre or demon, Grendel is a descendant of the biblical murderer Cain. He terrorizes Heorot,
Hrothgar’s mead-hall and kills the Danes. As a demon who bears the mark of God’s vengeance,
Grendel embodies the principle of vengeance in the culture of the poem.

Grendel’s Mother

An ogress, or female demon, she is never named in the poem. She seems to embody pure evil
and vengeance. Her only human quality is the desire to avenge the death of her son.

The Dragon

Another evil principle. The dragon marks the third and final test of Beowulf. The final battle
which completes the epic cycle of the hero from his early rise, his time of triumph and rule, to
his final fall and death.

Scyld Scefing

This is the ancient mythic ancestor of the Danes. As with all epic poems, the time of the poem
exists in an epic past. It is disconnected from real history. Scyld Scefing is the figure who ushers
in the epic time of Danish culture and the action of the poem.
Unferth

A Danish warrior who would have the legitimate duty to fight Grendel on behalf of his kind. He
lacks the courage. He also challenges the legitimacy of Beowulf and loses. Unferth operates as a
counter to Beowulf. As Beowulf is the embodiment of warrior virtue, Unferth is the embodiment
of one who lacks these virtues.

Wiglaf

A kinsman and knight under Beowulf. He comes to Beowulf’s aid in the fight against the dragon,
thus proving his worth as next in succession to Beowulf the king. His place in the poem is to
dramatize the cycle of the hero’s deeds that continues beyond the poem. Wiglaf becomes king
after the death of Beowulf.

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Symbolism of Beowulf: Literature - A

Research Guide for Students
1 minute

Heorot

The mead hall of Hrothgar is much more than a place to live, eat, and sleep. The expanse and
safety of the mead-hall represent the power and wisdom of the king. That the Danes are able to
find a place of solace and comfort under the roof of Hrothgar’s mead-hall is a symbol of the
successful leadership of a great king. The mead-hall is also the place of counsel and government.
The mead-hall is a symbolic extension of Hrothgar’s powerful and benevolent rule over the
Danes and his mastery of the world around them.

The Cave, or lair of Grendel’s Mother

As the counter-symbol to the mead-hall, the cave is a symbol of the chaos and untamed nature
that threatens the civilization of the Danes. It is cold, wet and in every way forbidding. As
Hrothgar’s mead-hall is the symbol of civilization, the cave is the symbol of a threatening and
hostile nature.

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Themes of Beowulf: Literature - A Research

Guide for Students
3 minutes

Loyalty

Beowulf celebrates a warrior culture. For this reason, loyalty is of paramount importance. One of
the central points, which demonstrates this, is the conflict between Beowulf and Unferth.
Beowulf is from another place and another tribe. His allegiance to Hrothgar is through a family
debt, yet he proves himself more loyal to Hrothgar than Unferth who is one of Hrothgar’s own
men. As Beowulf distinguishes his loyalty to the king, Unferth fails. The real test of the hero is
his loyalty to the king, to knightly virtue, and to his honesty.

Bravery and Valor

Beowulf is the perfect embodiment of bravery and valor. He shows no fear and never wavers
from his quests throughout the poem. Unferth, on the other hand, lets his bravery waver and
proves himself to be an unworthy knight. We never see any deliberation on the part of Beowulf.
As a warrior knight, his only choice is to act and to never show fear in the face of adversity.

Grendel and his mother demonstrate nothing but malice, on the other hand. They do not act out
of valor, but only out of a malicious desire to destroy. Even Grendel’s mother, who seeks
vengeance for the death of Grendel, acts on blind revenge and never a duty to her son.

Vengeance

Again, the Danes and Geats are part of a warrior culture. While engaging in battle is a necessary
feature of life, blind vengeance seems to be both understood and a something which lacks virtue.
As much as Beowulf owes his allegiance to Hrothgar, Grendel’s mother shows no allegiance to
anyone or anything other than her thirst for revenge. Grendel is also a figure of blind vengeance.
He kills and terrorizes simply for the thirst for blood. For this reason, the violence of the
monsters is evil.

Generosity and Hospitality

Even as the poem draws our attention to feats of valor and strength, there is almost as much
emphasis on the generous hospitality offered by King Hrothgar and his wife. The feasts and
celebrations are as detailed as the battles. After his victories, Beowulf is treated with songs about
his strength and bravery. As a virtuous king, Hrothgar shows his virtue through generosity.
Beowulf in his turn provides the same openheartedness during his peaceful reign, and he
generously rewards his own hero with the throne.