What happened upon Beowulf's return to his homeland? [36] Conversely, Kemp Malone writes in "The Kenning in Beowulf" that Beowulf's fight with the dragon receives much critical attention, but that commentators fail to note that "the dragon was no fighter. Nitzsche, Jane C. "The Structural Unity of Beowulf: The Problem of Grendel's Mother". When the angry dragon mercilessly burns the Geats' homes and lands, Beowulf decides to fight and kill the monster personally. Quiz & Worksheet - Beowulf Fighting the Dragon, Over 83,000 lessons in all major subjects, {{courseNav.course.mDynamicIntFields.lessonCount}}, Biological and Biomedical They are 'inmates of hell', 'adversaries of God', 'offspring of Cain', 'enemies of mankind'....And so Beowulf, for all that he moves in the world of the primitive Heroic Age of the Germans, nevertheless is almost a Christian knight". 10.What does Beowulf do when he realizes he’s losing the battle with the dragon? Immediately, the dragon breathes fire over Beowulf. But the wound in Beowulf's neck begins to burn, and the old king knows he's not long for the world. Before heading into the dragon's lair, Beowulf tells his thanes that this is his last battle. The creature attacks the neighboring towns in revenge. Study.com has thousands of articles about every He knows that he will lose the fight, but does battle anyway, as that is what the code of the hero demands. [32] Moreover, the dragon is vanquished through Wiglaf's actions: although Beowulf dies fighting the dragon, the dragon dies at the hand of the companion. Wiglaf stabs the dragon but is burned in the process. Beowulf's strong character combined with his ability to understand the culture and follow the code of his country makes him a successful warrior and king. [2] Nonetheless, comparative contemporary narratives did not have the complexity and distinctive elements written into Beowulf's dragon scene. Answered by jill d #170087 on 10/10/2012 10:13 PM Dickerson and O'Hara further elaborated that through its dragon, Beowulf turned the "notion of having a monstrous evil (and not mere human foes) as the enemy" into "a hallmark of modern fantasy" present in C. S. Lewis' Narnia books, Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea books, and the Thomas Covenant series by Stephen Donaldson. "[8] Furthermore, Tolkien believes the Beowulf poet emphasizes the monsters Beowulf fights in the poem and claims the dragon is as much of a plot device as anything. Beowulf decides to fight the dragon just as he once fought Grendel. [39] W. P. Ker criticized the inclusion of Beowulf's fight with the dragon and his subsequent death in the poem, writing "It is as if to the end of the Odyssey there had been added some later books telling in full of the old age of Odysseus, far from the sea, and his death at the hands of Telegonus". Briefly describe the dragon in Beowulf. It bursts out of its hole in a deluge of fire, desperate to find the slave and its cup. Let's see how the story unfolds. Though scared, he snatches a cup as he runs out of the dragon's lair. There are two main reasons Beowulf feels he must fight the dragon. [29], Wiglaf remains loyal to his king and stays to confront the dragon. | 3 Beowulf believes he must have offended God and prepares to fight the dragon. Create an account to start this course today. In fact, it's been so peaceful that most of the young warriors have never had to fight at all, and this proves disastrous. … 15. courses that prepare you to earn They run off, leaving Beowulf behind. and career path that can help you find the school that's right for you. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Asked by john b #274187 on 10/10/2012 10:08 PM Last updated by jill d #170087 on 10/10/2012 10:13 PM Answers 1 Add Yours. Log in or sign up to add this lesson to a Custom Course. Did you know… We have over 220 college Wiglaf helps Beowulf slay the dragon. What does Beowulf’s followers do when they realize Beowulf is losing the fight? Beowulf scholar Alexander writes that the dragon fight likely signifies Beowulf's (and by extension, society's) battle against evil. [5], The dragon with his hoard is a common motif in early Germanic literature with the story existing to varying extents in the Norse sagas, but it is most notable in the Völsunga saga and in Beowulf. Beowulf is much older now. A slave, who is fleeing a beating from his evil master, stumbles upon a dragon and its treasure. The fight between Beowulf and the dragon takes place towards the end of the poem. flashcard set{{course.flashcardSetCoun > 1 ? The fight with the dragon symbolizes Beowulf's stand against evil and destruction, and, as the hero, he knows that failure will bring destruction to his people after many years of peace. His imagined elegy foreshadows Beowulf's death and elegy to come. The parallel in the story lies with the similarity to Beowulf's hero Sigemund and his companion: Wiglaf is a younger companion to Beowulf and, in his courage, shows himself to be Beowulf's successor. When the angry dragon mercilessly burns the Geats' homes and lands, Beowulf decides to fight and kill the monster personally. But Beowulf is no longer just a warrior; he's a king. The dragon wakes up and realizes a cup is gone. [25] An embattled society without "social cohesion" is represented by the avarice of the "dragon jealously guarding its gold hoard",[26] and the elegy for Beowulf becomes an elegy for the entire culture. Although Beowulf had previously defeated two other foes, he stands fast and fights his most formidable foe yet, the dragon. The first is revenge, the dragon burned his home and throne down even though Beowulf had done nothing to the dragon. The 17th act of the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf includes Beowulf's fight with a dragon, the third monster he encounters in the epic. Beowulf wounds the dragon, but the dragon stabs his neck with his poisoned tusk. Seeing his liege lord in trouble, Wiglaf, unlike Beowulf's other companions, rushes in to help. [28] As king of his people, Beowulf defends them against the dragon, and when his thanes desert him, the poem shows the disintegration of a "heroic society" which "depends upon the honouring of mutual obligations between lord and thane". just create an account. Not sure what college you want to attend yet? How is Beowulf killed? The dragon, therefore, is a stark contrast to the other two antagonists. Why does Beowulf want to fight the dragon alone? [41], Peter Gainsford noted in the article "The Deaths of Beowulf and Odysseus: Narrative Time and Mythological Tale Types" that "In the twenty-first century Beowulf does not lack for commentators to defend the literary merit of the dragon episode". 1709-1768) after Beowulf has killed Grendel’s mother. Why does Beowulf believe it is still honorable to fight the dragon using a sword? He shouts a challenge to his opponent, who emerges from the earth. | {{course.flashcardSetCount}} He goes in with a shield and a sword and other warriors to help him. - Character Traits & Analysis, Beowulf Strength Quotes: Examples & Analysis, College English Literature: Help and Review, 10th Grade English: Homework Help Resource, Praxis English Language Arts - Content & Analysis (5039): Practice & Study Guide, Holt McDougal Literature Grade 9 Common Core Edition: Online Textbook Help. What does he do? first two years of college and save thousands off your degree. This depiction indicates the growing importance and stabilization of the modern concept of the dragon within European mythology. A slave stumbled into the dragon's lair and has stolen a cup from the dragon's treasure. The dragon fight ends Beowulf, while Tolkien uses the dragon motif (and the dragon's love for treasure) to trigger a chain of events in The Hobbit. Then, he gives Wiglaf a gold necklace and asks him to be the king of the Geat. Beowulf tells his men to stay outside, that this fight is his alone, but the dragon proves too strong and mortally wounds Beowulf. [46] J. R. R. Tolkien used the dragon story of Beowulf as a template for Smaug of The Hobbit; in each case, the dragon awakens upon the hoard being disturbed by one stealing a chalice and goes into a wrathful rampage until slain by another person. Beowulf is the first piece of English literature to present a dragon-slayer. The treasure lies in the dark and rots rather than helping the thanes and the kingdom. The desertion of the thanes is indicative of the crumbling of the Anglo-Saxon way of life. On his return from Heorot, where he killed Grendel and Grendel's mother, Beowulf becomes king of the Geats and rules wisely for fifty years until a slave awakens and angers a dragon by stealing a jeweled cup from its lair. [2] Beowulf is the earliest surviving piece of Anglo-Saxon literature to feature a dragon, and it is possible that the poet had access to similar stories from Germanic legend. Wiglaf kills the dragon halfway through the scene, Beowulf's death occurs "after two-thirds" of the scene,[33] and the dragon attacks Beowulf three times. He and his thanes climb to the dragon's lair where, upon seeing the beast, the thanes flee in terror, leaving only Wiglaf to battle at Beowulf's side. The stories, moreover, are often attached to real persons and localized precisely in time and place. Working Scholars® Bringing Tuition-Free College to the Community. … 13. Only Wiglaf stays. Beowulf manages to pull out a knife tucked in his belt and stabs the dragon. The dragon never finds the cup. Why can't the other warriors come to Beowulf's aid? The death of the dragon and Beowulf close the epic hero cycle that started when Grendel began his ravishment of the great hall Heorot. credit by exam that is accepted by over 1,500 colleges and universities. How does Beowulf's decision to take on the dragon alone reflect a critique of the ethos of heroism? 9. Beowulf: Beowulf is an epic poem about a warrior named Beowulf who fights to protect the innocent. Beowulf and a troop of men leave to find the dragon's lair. He shouts as he walks in, and the dragon awakes. [20] In contrast with the previous battles, the fight with the dragon occurs in Beowulf's kingdom and ends in defeat, whereas Beowulf fought the other monsters victoriously in a land distant from his home. He burns vast amounts of territory and the homes of the Geats: "the dragon began to belch out flames / and burn bright homesteads". [17][18], Beowulf's fight with the dragon has been described variously as an act of either altruism[19] or recklessness. He believes he can fight the dragon with just a few men and does not raise an army. He cuts the dragon in the belly to reduce the flames, and Beowulf deals the fatal blow. Meanwhile, his kinsman Wiglaf scolds the other members of the troop for not going in to help, before coming to Beowulf's aid. Perhaps the dragon fighting should have been left to a younger hero. [9], The Beowulf dragon is the earliest example in literature of the typical European dragon and first incidence of a fire-breathing dragon. He rushes to fight the dragon that has been harming his people. {{courseNav.course.mDynamicIntFields.lessonCount}} lessons Lines 2845-2851: As the fight with the dragon comes, the Gear warriors are as brave as they say they are. In Beowulf's two earlier battles, Grendel and Grendel's mother are characterized as descendants of Cain: "[Grendel] had long lived in the land of monsters / since the creator cast them out / as the kindred of Cain"[15] and seem to be humanoid: in the poet's rendition they can be seen as giants, trolls, or monsters.
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