Part XLI
THEN fashioned for him the folk of Geatsfirm on the earth a funeral-pile,and hung it with helmets and harness of warand breastplates bright, as the boon he asked;and they laid amid it the mighty chieftain,heroes mourning their master dear.Then on the hill that hugest of balefiresthe warriors wakened. Wood-smoke roseblack over blaze, and blent was the roarof flame with weeping (the wind was still),till the fire had broken the frame of bones,hot at the heart. In heavy moodtheir misery moaned they, their master's death.Wailing her woe, the widow old,her hair upbound, for Beowulf's deathsung in her sorrow, and said full oftshe dreaded the doleful days to come,deaths enow, and doom of battle,and shame. -- The smoke by the sky was devoured.The folk of the Weders fashioned thereon the headland a barrow broad and high,by ocean-farers far descried:in ten days' time their toil had raised it,the battle-brave's beacon. Round brands of the pyrea wall they built, the worthiest everthat wit could prompt in their wisest men.They placed in the barrow that precious booty,the rounds and the rings they had reft erewhile,hardy heroes, from hoard in cave, --trusting the ground with treasure of earls,gold in the earth, where ever it liesuseless to men as of yore it was.Then about that barrow the battle-keen rode,atheling-born, a band of twelve,lament to make, to mourn their king,chant their dirge, and their chieftain honor.They praised his earlship, his acts of prowessworthily witnessed: and well it isthat men their master-friend mightily laud,heartily love, when hence he goesfrom life in the body forlorn away.
Thus made their mourning the men of Geatland,for their hero's passing his hearth-companions:quoth that of all the kings of earth,of men he was mildest and most beloved,to his kin the kindest, keenest for praise.
The nicor, says Bugge, is a hippopotamus; a walrus, says TenBrink. But that water-goblin who covers the space from Old Nick ofjest to the Neckan and Nix of poetry and tale, is all one needs, andNicor is a good name for him.
That is, these two Danes, escaping home, had told the story ofthe attack on Hnaef, the slaying of Hengest, and all the Danishwoes. Collecting a force, they return to Frisia and kill Finn in hishome.
That is, "whoever has as wide authority as I have and canremember so far back so many instances of heroism, may well say, asI say, that no better hero ever lived than Beowulf."
Kenning for the sun. -- This is a strange role for the raven.He is the warrior's bird of battle, exults in slaughter and carnage;his joy here is a compliment to the sunrise.
That is, he might or might not see Beowulf again. Old as hewas, the latter chance was likely; but he clung to the former,hoping to see his young friend again "and exchange brave words inthe hall."
Queen to Hygelac. She is praised by contrast with theantitype, Thryth, just as Beowulf was praised by contrast withHeremod.
Beowulf gives his uncle the king not mere gossip of hisjourney, but a statesmanlike forecast of the outcome of certainpolicies at the Danish court. Talk of interpolation here is absurd.As both Beowulf and Hygelac know, -- and the folk for whom theBeowulf was put together also knew, -- Froda was king of theHeathobards (probably the Langobards, once near neighbors of Angleand Saxon tribes on the continent), and had fallen in fight with theDanes. Hrothgar will set aside this feud by giving his daughter as"peace-weaver" and wife to the young king Ingeld, son of the slainFroda. But Beowulf, on general principles and from his observationof the particular case, foretells trouble. Note:
The line may mean: till Hrethelings stormed on the hedgedshields, -- i.e. the shield-wall or hedge of defensive war --Hrethelings, of course, are Geats.
Probably the fugitive is meant who discovered the hoard. TenBrink and Gering assume that the dragon is meant. "Hid" may wellmean here "took while in hiding."
Words in this poem 34
- folk n.
- In Anglo-Saxon times, the people of a group of townships or villages; a community; a tribe. [AS. folc; akin to D. volk, OS. & OHG. folk, G. volk, Icel. f, Sw. & Dan. folk, Lith. pulkas crowd, and perh. to E. follow.]
- boon n.
- A prayer or petition. [OE. bone, boin, a petition, fr. Icel. b; akin to Sw. & Dan. b, AS. b, and perh. to E. ban; but influenced by F. bon good, fr. L. bonus. Ban, Bounty.]
- amid prep.
- In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among. [OE. amidde, amiddes, on midden, AS. on middan, in the middle, fr. midde the middle. The s is an adverbial ending, originally marking the genitive; the t is a la]
- blent p. p.
- Blinded. Also (Chaucer), 3d sing. pres. Blindeth.
- enow
- A form of Enough.
- pyre n.
- A funeral pile; a combustible heap on which the dead are burned; hence, any pile to be burnt. [L. pure, Gr. Fire.]
- reft n.
- A chink; a rift. See Rift. Rom. of R.
- erewhile adv.
- Some time ago; a little while before; heretofore.
- yore adv.
- In time long past; in old time; long since. [OE. , yare, , AS. geára;akin to geár a year, E. year. Year.]
- rode n.
- Redness; complexion. [See Rud.]
- atheling n.
- An Anglo-Saxon prince or nobleman; esp., the heir apparent or a prince of the royal family. [Written also Adeling and Ætheling.] [AS. æ noble, fr. æ noble, akin to G. adel nobility, edel noble. The word æ, E. ethel, is in many AS. proper names, as Ethelwolf, noble wolf; Ethelbald, noble bo]
- dirge n.
- A piece of music of a mournful character, to accompany funeral rites; a funeral hymn. [Contraction of Lat. dirige, direct thou (imperative of dirigere), the first word of a funeral hymn (Lat. transl. of Psalm v. 8) beginning, "Dirige, Domine, in c]
- prowess n.
- Distinguished bravery; valor; especially, military bravery and skill; gallantry; intrepidity; fearlessness. Chaucer. Sir P. Sidney. [OF. proece, proesce, F. prouesse. See Prow, a.]
- worthily adv.
- In a worthy manner; excellently; deservedly; according to merit; justly; suitably; becomingly.
- mightily adv.
- In a mighty manner; with might; with great earnestness; vigorously; powerfully. [From Mighty.]
- forlorn a.
- Deserted abandoned; lost. [OE., p.p. of forlesen to lose utterly, AS. forleósan (p.p. forloren); pref. for- + leósan (in comp.) to lose; cf. D. verliezen to lose, G. verlieren, Sw. förlor]
- quoth v. t.
- Said; spoke; uttered; -- used only in the first and third persons in the past tenses, and always followed by its nominative, the word or words said being the object; as, quoth I. quoth he. [AS.cweedhan, imp cwæedh, pl. cwædon; akin to OS. queedhan, OHG. quethan, quedan, Icel. kveedha, Goth. qiþan. sq. root22. Cf. Bequeath.]
- bugge n.
- A bugbear; anything which terrifies. [OE. bugge, fr. W. bwg, bwgan, hobgoblin, scarecrow, bugbear. Cf. Bogey, Boggle.]
- brink n.
- The edge, margin, or border of a steep place, as of a precipice; a bank or edge, as of a river or pit; a verge; a border; as, the brink of a chasm. Also Fig. [Dan. brink edge, verge; akin to Sw. brink declivity, hill, Icel. brekka; cf. LG. brink a grassy hill, W. bryn hill, bryncyn hillock.]
- nick n.
- A notch cut into something; as: (a) A score for keeping an account; a reckoning. [Akin to Nock.]
- jest n.
- A deed; an action; a gest. [OE. jeste, geste, deed, action, story, tale, OF. geste, LL. gesta, orig., exploits, neut. pl. from L. gestus, p. p. of gerere to bear, carry, accomplish, perfor]
- needs adv.
- Of necessity; necessarily; indispensably; -- often with must, and equivalent to of need. [Orig. gen. of need, used as an adverb. Cf. - wards.]
- finn a.
- A native of Finland; one of the FinnFinns.
- whoever pron.
- Whatever person; any person who; be or she who; any one who; as, he shall be punished, whoever he may be.
- heroism n.
- The qualities characteristic of a hero, as courage, bravery, fortitude, unselfishness, etc.; the display of such qualities. [F. héroïsme.]
- kenning n.
- Range of sight. [See Ken, v. t.]
- carnage n.
- Flesh of slain animals or men. [F. carnage, LL. carnaticum tribute of animals, flesh of animals, fr. L. caro, carnis, flesh. See Carnal.]
- clung a.
- Wasted away; shrunken. [Prop. p. p. fr. OE. clingen to wither. See Cling, v. i.]
- antitype n.
- That of which the type pattern or representation; that which is represented by the type or symbol. [Gr. Type.]
- statesmanlike a.
- Having the manner or wisdom of statesmen; becoming a statesman.
- forecast v. t.
- To plan beforehand; to scheme; to project.
- outcome n.
- That which comes out of, or follows from, something else; issue; result; consequence; upshot.
- interpolation n.
- The act of introducing or inserting anything, especially that which is spurious or foreign. [L. interpolatio an alteration made here and there: cf. F. interpolation.]
- continent a.
- Serving to restrain or limit; restraining; opposing. [L. continens, -entis, prop., p. pr. of continere to hold together, to repress: cf. F. continent. See Contain.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Part XLI is in the public domain. This text is taken from Beowulf, Project Gutenberg ebook #981, the Francis B. Gummere translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anonymous, Part XLI, in Beowulf (1910), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #981, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/beowulf/part-xli.html, id L14229.
Form and metre
Part XLI is 84 lines in 11 verse paragraphs. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. 81% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 11.5 syllables. 17 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 46% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 9 ---AA-A-BB- his · certain · absurd · theA · theA · angle · theA · as · slainB · observationB · note
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| THEN fashioned for him the folk of Geats | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| firm on the earth a funeral-pile, | 9 | ·····/˘˘· |
| and hung it with helmets and harness of war | 11 | ····/˘·/˘·· |
| and breastplates bright, as the boon he asked; | 9 | ·/······· |
| and they laid amid it the mighty chieftain, | 11 | ···˘/··/˘/˘ |
| heroes mourning their master dear. | 8 | /˘/˘·/˘· |
| Then on the hill that hugest of balefires | 11 | ·····/˘···· |
| the warriors wakened. Wood-smoke rose | 9 | ·/˘˘/˘··· |
| black over blaze, and blent was the roar | 9 | ········· |
| of flame with weeping (the wind was still), | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| till the fire had broken the frame of bones, | 11 | ··/˘·/˘···· |
| hot at the heart. In heavy mood | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| their misery moaned they, their master's death. | 10 | ·/˘˘···/˘· |
| Wailing her woe, the widow old, | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| her hair upbound, for Beowulf's death | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| sung in her sorrow, and said full oft | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| she dreaded the doleful days to come, | 9 | ·/˘·/˘··· |
| deaths enow, and doom of battle, | 8 | ·˘/···/˘ |
| and shame. -- The smoke by the sky was devoured. | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| The folk of the Weders fashioned there | 9 | ······/˘· |
| on the headland a barrow broad and high, | 10 | ··/˘·/˘··· |
| by ocean-farers far descried: | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| in ten days' time their toil had raised it, | 9 | ········· |
| the battle-brave's beacon. Round brands of the pyre | 12 | ·/˘·/˘····/˘ |
| a wall they built, the worthiest ever | 10 | ·····/˘˘/˘ |
| that wit could prompt in their wisest men. | 9 | ······/˘· |
| They placed in the barrow that precious booty, | 11 | ····/˘·/˘/˘ |
| the rounds and the rings they had reft erewhile, | 12 | ············ |
| hardy heroes, from hoard in cave, -- | 8 | /˘/˘···· |
| trusting the ground with treasure of earls, | 9 | /˘···/˘·· |
| gold in the earth, where ever it lies | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| useless to men as of yore it was. | 9 | /˘······· |
| Then about that barrow the battle-keen rode, | 11 | ····/˘·/˘·· |
| atheling-born, a band of twelve, | 8 | /˘˘····· |
| lament to make, to mourn their king, | 8 | ˘/······ |
| chant their dirge, and their chieftain honor. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| They praised his earlship, his acts of prowess | 10 | ········/˘ |
| worthily witnessed: and well it is | 9 | /˘˘/˘···· |
| that men their master-friend mightily laud, | 10 | ···/˘·/˘˘· |
| heartily love, when hence he goes | 8 | /˘˘····· |
| from life in the body forlorn away. | 10 | ····/˘˘/˘/ |
| Thus made their mourning the men of Geatland, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| for their hero's passing his hearth-companions: | 11 | ··/˘/˘··˘/˘ |
| quoth that of all the kings of earth, | 8 | ········ |
| of men he was mildest and most beloved, | 10 | ····/˘··˘/ |
| to his kin the kindest, keenest for praise. | 10 | ····/˘/˘·· |
| The nicor, says Bugge, is a hippopotamus; a walrus, says Ten | 17 | ·/······˘/˘˘·/˘·· |
| Brink. But that water-goblin who covers the space from Old Nick of | 16 | ···/˘/˘·/˘······ |
| jest to the Neckan and Nix of poetry and tale, is all one needs, and | 18 | ········/˘˘······· |
| Nicor is a good name for him. | 8 | /······· |
| That is, these two Danes, escaping home, had told the story of | 15 | ·····˘/˘····/˘· |
| the attack on Hnaef, the slaying of Hengest, and all the Danish | 16 | ·˘/···/˘·/˘···/˘ |
| woes. Collecting a force, they return to Frisia and kill Finn in his | 17 | ·˘/˘···˘/········ |
| home. | 1 | · |
| That is, "whoever has as wide authority as I have and can | 17 | ··˘/˘···˘/˘˘····· |
| remember so far back so many instances of heroism, may well say, as | 21 | ˘/˘····/˘/˘˘·/˘·˘···· |
| I say, that no better hero ever lived than Beowulf." | 15 | ····/˘/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Kenning for the sun. -- This is a strange role for the raven. | 14 | /˘··········/˘ |
| He is the warrior's bird of battle, exults in slaughter and carnage; | 18 | ···/˘˘··/˘˘/·/˘·/˘ |
| his joy here is a compliment to the sunrise. | 12 | ·····/˘˘··/· |
| That is, he might or might not see Beowulf again. Old as he | 16 | ········/˘·˘/··· |
| was, the latter chance was likely; but he clung to the former, | 15 | ··/˘··/˘·····/˘ |
| hoping to see his young friend again "and exchange brave words in | 15 | /˘·····˘/·˘/··· |
| the hall." | 2 | ·· |
| Queen to Hygelac. She is praised by contrast with the | 13 | ·········/˘·· |
| antitype, Thryth, just as Beowulf was praised by contrast with | 15 | /˘˘···/˘····/˘· |
| Heremod. | 3 | ··· |
| Beowulf gives his uncle the king not mere gossip of his | 15 | /˘···/˘····/˘·· |
| journey, but a statesmanlike forecast of the outcome of certain | 17 | /˘··˘/˘·/···/··/˘ |
| policies at the Danish court. Talk of interpolation here is absurd. | 16 | /˘˘··/˘·······˘/ |
| As both Beowulf and Hygelac know, -- and the folk for whom the | 16 | ··/˘············ |
| Beowulf was put together also knew, -- Froda was king of the | 17 | /˘···˘/˘/˘······· |
| Heathobards (probably the Langobards, once near neighbors of Angle | 17 | ···/˘˘······/˘·/˘ |
| and Saxon tribes on the continent), and had fallen in fight with the | 17 | ·/˘···/˘˘··/˘···· |
| Danes. Hrothgar will set aside this feud by giving his daughter as | 16 | ·····˘/···/˘·/˘· |
| "peace-weaver" and wife to the young king Ingeld, son of the slain | 15 | ·/˘············ |
| Froda. But Beowulf, on general principles and from his observation | 20 | ···/˘··/˘˘/˘˘····˘/˘ |
| of the particular case, foretells trouble. Note: | 12 | ··˘/˘˘·˘//˘· |
| The line may mean: till Hrethelings stormed on the hedged | 12 | ············ |
| shields, -- i.e. the shield-wall or hedge of defensive war -- | 13 | ·········˘/˘· |
| Hrethelings, of course, are Geats. | 7 | ······· |
| Probably the fugitive is meant who discovered the hoard. Ten | 16 | /˘˘·/˘˘···˘/˘··· |
| Brink and Gering assume that the dragon is meant. "Hid" may well | 15 | ··/˘˘/··/˘····· |
| mean here "took while in hiding." | 7 | ·····/˘ |
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