Beowulf Part Dos

1. Themes:

• Role of a King: Beowulf is compared with both Heremod and Hrothgar in part two. Hrothgar is a good king because he does whatever is necessary to save his kingdom. Then he gives Beowulf treasures for all his work. He keeps his promises and does what he's supposed to. There is a digression which tells the story of Heremod. He was a horrible king and caused the downfall of his nation. It is foreshadowed that this is what will happen to Beowulf. There are also parallels drawn between Beowulf and Shield, who was an amazing king.
• Role of Women: In this story, whenever women stray from their traditional role as a peace pledge, they are seen as evil. Grendel's mother is seen as a monster because she exacts wergild for her son (a man's job) when all she was trying to do was get even. She was overcome with grief and this was the only way she knew how to handle it. Also, Modthryth was considered a bad queen because she had a killer instinct. In the eyes of society, all it took was a marriage to Offa to make her a good woman and be 'tamed'.
• Hospitality: After Beowulf killed Grendel's mother, he was given a place to stay and shown the best of hospitality. Hrothgar also fulfills his promise by giving Beowulf treasure and other goods for his services. Peace pledges are also a symbol of hospitality.
• Paganism vs. Christianity: This is shown through the monk's interjections in the story. He is consistently saying that only God will be the judge of who lives or dies. If Beowulf is victorious, it's thanks to God. However, there are also blatantly Pagan parts in the story, as Beowulf lives in a Pagan culture.

1. Allusion: The lake where Grendel's mother lives is an allusion to hell. This is because it's burning and because animals (which represent innocence) won't go near there. Also because evil resides there. There is also an allusion to the flood which wiped the earth clean. This was probably put in by the monk, considering it's a Christian story. This shows how Beowulf is trying to wipe the earth of evil by killing all the monsters.
2. Parallelism: Beowulf is paralleled with Shield. This shows that he will be a good king, at least to begin with. he will rule with peace during his lifetime. Beowulf is also shown to be like Heremod, who stupidly caused the downfall of an entire nation.
3. Appositive: A good example is lines 1749-1752. "He covets and resents; dishonours custom and bestows no gold; and because of good things that the Heavenly Powers gave him in the past he ignores the shape of things to come.
   
4. Litotes: In line 1372, the author says "that is no good place" in reference to the home of Grendel and his mother. It is supposed to represent hell, so this is an understatement.
   
5. Wyrd: This is contrasted with the idea that God chooses who lives and dies. When victorious, the characters claim that God played a part. However, before they go into battle, they always say that fate will do as it pleases and decide the outcome.
   
6. Wergild: This is shown when Grendel's mother comes and kills Aeschere. She is a woman, so she's not supposed to exact wergild for her son's death. However, Grendel has no male relatives. It is also the only thing that Grendel's mother knows how to do in her period of grief and suffering. Grendel's mother is attacked as a sort of wergild for the death of Aeschere, and this is why she dies.
   
7. Symbols: Peace brides, such as Modthryth, represent hospitality as they are supposed to be welcoming and pour the mead.
   
8. Foreshadowing: In the digression that describes Heremod, it is foreshadowed that Beowulf will become like him and end up causing the downfall of his nation.
   
9. Alliteration: Line 1335. "wrestled and racked him in ruinous combat.