First up, I must apologize for how late this week’s entry is. I’ve managed to post every Thursday for quite a while now, and intend to keep posting these translations on Thursdays. This week, though, work got in the way. So, I just want to say thanks for your understanding, and for reading.

Here’s the post!

Recap
Synopsis
The Original Old English
My Translation
A Quick Interpretation
Closing

The thief has snuck up to the dragon and reaches for the fateful treasure cup. Image from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stories_of_Beowulf_slave_stealing_golden_cup.jpg

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Recap

Last week, the poet completed his explanation of how Beowulf became king of the Geats.

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Synopsis

Beowulf gathers together a group of twelve to face the dragon. And he happens to get a thirteenth member when the thief who woke the dragon presents the cup to Beowulf.

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The Original Old English

“Swa he niða gehwane genesen hæfde,
sliðra geslyhta, sunu Ecgðiowes,
ellenweorca, oð ðone anne dæg
þe he wið þam wyrme gewegan sceolde.
Gewat þa XIIa sum torne gebolgen
dryhten Geata dracan sceawian.
Hæfde þa gefrunen hwanan sio fæhð aras,
bealonið biorna; him to bearme cwom
maðþumfæt mære þurh ðæs meldan hond.
Se wæs on ðam ðreate þreotteoða secg,
se ðæs orleges or onstealde,
hæft hygegiomor, sceolde hean ðonon
wong wisian. He ofer willan giong
to ðæs ðe he eorðsele anne wisse,
hlæw under hrusan holmwylme neh,
yðgewinne; se wæs innan full
wrætta ond wira. Weard unhiore,
gearo guðfreca, goldmaðmas heold,
eald under eorðan. Næs þæt yðe ceap
to gegangenne gumena ænigum!”
(Beowulf ll.2397-2416)

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My Translation

“Thus Beowulf survived strife from all quarters,
savage battles and slaughter, that son of Ecgtheow,
brave doer of good deeds, until that day.
That day on which Beowulf was fated to war with the dragon.
Then it was that the scaled one, maddened with rage, knew the twelve;
the dragon recognized the Geatish lord.
Beowulf soon discovered the reason why that fiend arose,
brought adversity to his people. Into his lap fell the famed cup,
wrought of gold and set with stones, fresh from the finder’s hand.
That man made their party’s number thirteen,
he who had created this dire fate,
a captive of sorrowful heart. He agreed to serve
as guide for Beowulf and his men through the dragon’s place.
Against his will he went to the earthen hall which he alone knew.
The barrow beneath the earth, out by the sea billows,
where wave strove with wave, within, it was full of treasures,
both wrought and wound. The horrible warden,
that eager ancient warrior, was bent on guarding his gold-treasures,
both as old as stones beneath the earth. It would not be easy
for Beowulf to bargain with that dragon for his people’s lives!”
(Beowulf ll.2397-2416)

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A Quick Interpretation

How did Beowulf plan to find the dragon before the thief came to him?

Maybe he was just going to go around with his twelve Geats until the dragon swooped down on them.

Or maybe they would’ve gone on a stake out. Sat behind some rocks until the dragon showed up.

As convenient as this meeting is, I think it’s a little shot of realism in this poem.

If you think back to the celebration of Beowulf’s victory over Grendel, you might remember the story of Sigemund the Dragon Slayer. Those events are related as a story even within the world of this story. I would go so far as to argue that the poet’s saying the story was from some far off land is just a fancy way to say “I made this up”.

Anyway, in that story, Sigemund just knew where to go to find the dragon. Why? Because he’s a dragon slayer, I guess. He just has that extra sense built in.

But Beowulf, as something written by an Anglo-Saxon (a person from “Angland” perhaps), has much more immediacy. And the poet must have known that any new, grand story of monsters and mighty heroes needed to have an element of realism to it. So, who could know the way to a treasure hoard that a dragon happens to be guarding? A thief, of course. And so, there’s a thief that joins Beowulf’s party. A thief who is really a guide.

Though maybe Beowulf should strategize to maximize the thief’s “Backstab” ability when fighting the dragon.

Dungeons & Dragons jokes aside, I think that the introduction of the thief as a character of any stature is a way to add complexity to a story that was pretty common. It’s a new twist on the old story of dragon slayers.

What do you think of the inclusion of the thief in Beowulf’s dragon hunting party? What do you think caused the thief to come to Beowulf with the cup? Guilt? The death of his own lord? A desire for glory?

Let me know in the comments!

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Closing

Next week, Beowulf sits down on a cliff and tells his group memories of his youth.

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You can find the next part of Beowulf here.

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