Dragons -- Poetry; Epic poetry, English (Old); Monsters -- Poetry
Oppressed him too long, to his people he became then,
To all the athelings, an ever-great burden;
70 And the daring one's journey in days of yore
Many wise men were wont to deplore,
Such as hoped he would bring them help in their sorrow,
That the son of their ruler should rise into power,
Holding the headship held by his fathers,
75 Should govern the people, the gold-hoard and borough,
The kingdom of heroes, the realm of the Scyldings.
{Beowulf is an honor to his race.}
He to all men became then far more beloved,
Higelac's kinsman, to kindreds and races,
To his friends much dearer; him malice assaulted.--
{The story is resumed.}
80 Oft running and racing on roadsters they measured
The dun-colored highways. Then the light of the morning
Was hurried and hastened. Went henchmen in numbers
To the beautiful building, bold ones in spirit,
To look at the wonder; the liegelord himself then
85 From his wife-bower wending, warden of treasures,
Glorious trod with troopers unnumbered,
Famed for his virtues, and with him the queen-wife
Measured the mead-ways, with maidens attending.
[1] S. emends, suggesting 'déop' for 'déog,' and removing semicolon
after 'wéol.' The two half-lines 'welling ... hid him' would then
read: _The bloody deep welled with sword-gore_. B. accepts 'déop' for
'déog,' but reads 'déað-fæges': _The deep boiled with the sword-gore
of the death-doomed one_.
[2] Another and quite different rendering of this passage is as
follows: _Oft a liegeman of the king, a fame-covered man mindful of
songs, who very many ancient traditions remembered (he found other
word-groups accurately bound together) began afterward to tell of
Beowulf's adventure, skilfully to narrate it, etc_.
[3] Might 'guma gilp-hladen' mean 'a man laden with boasts of the
deeds of others'?
[4] t.B. accepts B.'s 'hé þæs áron þáh' as given by H.-So., but puts a
comma after 'þáh,' and takes 'siððan' as introducing a dependent
clause: _He throve in honor since Heremod's strength ... had
decreased_.
[33]
XV.
HROTHGAR'S GRATITUDE.
Hrothgar discoursed (to the hall-building went he,
He stood by the pillar,[1] saw the steep-rising hall-roof
Gleaming with gold-gems, and Grendel his hand there):
{Hrothgar gives thanks for the overthrow of the monster.}
"For the sight we behold now, thanks to the Wielder
5 Early be offered! Much evil I bided,
Snaring from Grendel:[2] God can e'er 'complish
Wonder on wonder, Wielder of Glory!
{I had given up all hope, when this brave liegeman came to our aid.}
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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