Beowulf LRJ#1

During Beowulf's confrontation with the great beast Grendel, many Anglo Saxon values are expressed. One such value is loyalty to your superiors. As Beowulf fights with Grendel, all the warriors that he commands assemble in order to protect their leader, "Beowulf's warriors brandished many a sword, inheritances from the ancient days, trying to protect their chief" (Breeden, 132)*. This shows that as soldiers under Beowulf, they are responsible for doing everything in their power to protect him, even at a risk of their own mortality. This value is also shown when the narrator makes a keen effort not to give an unfair representation to the king Hrothgar, "They, however, never found fault with the gracious Hrothgar--he was a good king."(208). This shows that even though Hrothgar did not fulfill his duties and protect his people, he is still considered a good leader.

One of the most common literary devices used in Beowulf is alliteration. It is found in practically every line of the epic, but it's purposes are often different. There are many examples of this in the fight with Grendel. "the wine-hall withstood the battle, that the beautiful building did not fall to the ground." (98). In this passage, the sound of the letter 'B' is used to express to magnitude and importance of the battle, and also the strength of the mead hall. Another example of alliteration is found after Grendel cries oust in pain. "The din rose louder, the Danes stood in dreadful terror" (115). Here, the repetition of the letter 'D' is used to express the fear of the townsfolk.

Kennings are small, metaphorical phrases that can be used in place of nouns. They appear very often in Beowulf, such as when the narrator refers to a warrior's breaking joints as "bone-locks" (60). By doing this, the author gives us a more literal interpretation of Grendel's body, which makes his demise much more graphic. Also, the narrator refers to fog as "cloud murk" (22). By doing this, the author expresses the tone of the passage in a noun, without having to add any more adjectives or adverbs.

*All line numbers are from online translation from the Wiki.