What a quiet moment in Beowulf means (ll.1785-1798)

Posted on 2017/02/23 by NSCZach

Introduction
Synopsis
The Original Old English
My Translation
A Quick Question
Closing

A scop sings his boasts, just like Beowulf does before Hrothgar.

I know that February is almost done, and so 2017 is already started. But, one of the things that I want to do over the course of this year is to trim back on the padding that I’ve built into my work in the past. I want to make 2017 Twenty-Seven-Lean. Both in that I trim the fat from what I do and in that I use the time I’m left with to lean more into the core of what I do.

I can’t say for sure yet, but I’m starting to consider using these shorter translation post formats from here forward. If you want to share your thoughts on this potential change, let me know in the comments.

Beowulf parties before hitting the hay.

“Geat wæs glædmod, geong sona to
setles neosan, swa se snottra heht.
þa wæs eft swa ær ellenrofum
fletsittendum fægere gereorded
niowan stefne. Nihthelm geswearc
deorc ofer dryhtgumum. Duguð eal aras.
Wolde blondenfeax beddes neosan,
gamela Scylding. Geat unigmetes wel,
rofne randwigan, restan lyste;
sona him seleþegn siðes wergum,
feorrancundum, forð wisade,
se for andrysnum ealle beweotede
þegnes þearfe, swylce þy dogore
heaþoliðende habban scoldon.”
(Beowulf ll.1785-1798)

“The Geat was glad-hearted at that, he descended the dais,
sought out a seat, as the wise one had commanded.
Then was it as it had been before for the bold,
the sitters in the hall spoke fairly with voices renewed.
The mantle of night fell to darken the world
outside the warriors’ hall. All that company arose;
the grey-haired one then sought his bed,
leader of the Scyldings, the Geat, renowned shield warrior
was also eager for such rest. Soon to him,
the one wearied along the warrior’s way, a hall thane came,
one to guide the far-flung one on his way,
he who for etiquette’s sake waited on all
thane’s needs, such as should be had in those days
for far-flung seafaring warriors.”
(Beowulf ll.1785-1798)

The core of this passage is that Beowulf is shown as a warrior who observes good manners in waiting for his host to go to bed before heading there himself. Other than that, there’s not much here.

Although, the absence of action or conflict or major dramatic events speaks to how quiet this moment in the poem is. This isn’t just a break between beating up monsters, but for Beowulf the character this is the end of his labours in Daneland. He has slept in Heorot before, but this is the first night where he can sleep without worrying about staying awake for Grendel or without the shadow of Grendel’s mother looming over him. Daneland has been saved from monsters, and so his work is done.

But this moment also fits in between the major events in the social drama of Beowulf. Hrothgar has said his piece about kingship, and the big ceremonial giving of gifts happens in the morning. Right now the poet is singing where normally he’d be taking a break. And that’s what makes this part of the poem significant in my mind.

In particular, since it’s about the need for rest, I see this part of the poem as a very human moment in a poem that is otherwise all about the supernatural and non-human.

But what do you think? Should the poet have just said “And after Hrothgar spoke, they all went to bed to rest up for the gift-giving. And what a gift giving!” to get on with it? Or is there some reason for this curious quiet moment? Let me know in the comments!

Next week, Beowulf’s thoughts turn to home, and Unferth’s sword returns to him.

You can find the next part of Beowulf here.

Hrothgar starts to step out of the story (ll.1769-1784)

Posted on 2017/02/16 by NSCZach

Introduction
Synopsis
The Original Old English
My Translation
A Quick Question
Closing

Image found at http://bit.ly/2jumA3j

It’s been a busy week, so here’s a short translation post.

Hrothgar sums up his rule, and promises Beowulf great gifts.

“‘Swa ic Hringdena hund missera
weold under wolcnum ond hig wigge beleac
manigum mægþa geond þysne middangeard,
æscum ond ecgum, þæt ic me ænigne
under swegles begong gesacan ne tealde.
Hwæt, me þæs on eþle edwenden cwom,
gyrn æfter gomene, seoþðan Grendel wearð,
ealdgewinna, ingenga min;
ic þære socne singales wæg
modceare micle. þæs sig metode þanc,
ecean dryhtne, þæs ðe ic on aldre gebad
þæt ic on þone hafelan heorodreorigne
ofer ealdgewin eagum starige!
Ga nu to setle, symbelwynne dreoh
wigge weorþad; unc sceal worn fela
maþma gemænra, siþðan morgen bið.'”
(Beowulf ll.1769-1784)

‘”Just so I have ruled the Ring-Danes under the sky
for one hundred half-years, and have protected
them against war with many nations from across this world,
from both spears and swords, such that I have not considered any other beneath the sky’s expanse as an adversary.
But lo! A hard reversal came to my native land,
grief following joy, once Grendel appeared,
that ancient adversary, that invader of my peace;
at that arrival I continually bore persecution
and great sorrow of mind. Thus I now thank God,
the eternal Lord, that I might experience in my life,
after the struggle, the chance to gaze upon with my eyes
the beast’s head blood-stained from battle.
Go now to the bench, joyously join the
mirth of feasting; we two shall share
a great many treasures when the morning comes.'”
(Beowulf ll.1769-1784)

Hrothgar’s quick summary of the poem leads into a section where Beowulf’s adventures in Daneland come to an end. And there’s a lot of talk of celebration, but it seems very under-hyped to me. Hrothgar mentions that Beowulf will get “a great many treasures” (“maþma gemænra” (l.1784)) for all of his work here, but that’s about it.

Instead, most of the end of Hrothgar’s speech is about his rule. I guess the implication here is that happiness has returned to Heorot, and Hrothgar’s rule will continue as it did before. There’s definitely a strong sense that not only are things returning to normal in Daneland, but all of the characters living there are stepping out of the mythic realm that Beowulf brings with him and returning to history.

What do you get out of Hrothgar’s talking about his rule in Daneland? Let me know in the comments!

Next week, Beowulf and Hrothgar party on.

You can find the next part of Beowulf here.

Is Hrothgar motivating Beowulf with death? (ll.1758-1768)

Posted on 2017/02/09 by NSCZach

Introduction
Synopsis
The Original Old English
My Translation
A Quick Question
Closing

Image found at http://bit.ly/2jumA3j

Unfortunately this week’s been a little too hectic for me to make time for a full translation post. Instead of skipping a week though, here is my translation of the next part of Beowulf.

Hrothgar makes the moral of his story loud and clear for Beowulf.

“‘Bebeorh þe ðone bealonið, Beowulf leofa,
secg betsta, ond þe þæt selre geceos,
ece rædas; oferhyda ne gym,
mære cempa. Nu is þines mægnes blæd
ane hwile. Eft sona bið
þæt þec adl oððe ecg eafoþes getwæfeð,
oððe fyres feng, oððe flodes wylm,
oððe gripe meces, oððe gares fliht,
oððe atol yldo; oððe eagena bearhtm
forsiteð ond forsworceð; semninga bið
þæt ðec, dryhtguma, deað oferswyðeð.'”
(Beowulf ll.1758-1768)

“‘Guard against such evil hostility, dear Beowulf,
best of men, and be sure to make the better choice:
eternal gain; be not intent on pride,
oh renowned warrior! Now is your power prospering
for but a short while; soon will either
illness or the blade deprive you of that strength,
or the grip of flames, or the surging waters,
or an attack by sword, or the flight of spears,
or terrible old age, or the light of your eyes
will fail and grow dim; presently such will come
upon you, oh lord of battle, and death will overpower you.'”
(Beowulf ll.1758-1768)

A lot of people take the inevitability of their own death as a major inspiration to get on with what they want to do with their lives. Steve Jobs, for example, used his mortality as a way to figure out if what he was doing was what he truly wanted to (he suggests was “meant” to do) on what sounds like a daily basis. At least that’s the impression I get from the speech quoted in this article.

Although Hrothgar’s list of all the ways Beowulf could eventually die is a little gloomy and seems very melancholic do you think he’s doing the same thing here? Is he trying to motivate Beowulf to live each day to the fullest? Or is he just trying to remind Beowulf that he won’t live forever?

Let me know in the comments!

Next week Hrothgar gives a recap of the whole poem so far — from his perspective.

You can find the next part of Beowulf here.

Further adventures in philosophy via Beowulf: The best use of wealth (ll.1745-1757)

Posted on 2017/02/02 by NSCZach

Synopsis
Original
Translation
Recordings
Hrothgar’s Thoughts on Wealth and Sharing It
The Way to Our Best Futures
Closing

Image found at http://bit.ly/2jumA3j

Hrothgar’s hypothetical ruler meets his tragic end.

“þonne bið on hreþre under helm drepen
biteran stræle (him bebeorgan ne con),
wom wundor-bebodum wergan gastes;
þinceð him to lytel þæt he lange heold,
gytsað grom-hydig, nallas on gylp seleð
fædde beagas, ond he þa forð-gesceaft
forgyteð ond forgymeð, þæs þe him ær god sealde,
wuldres waldend, weorð-mynda dæl.
Hit on ende-stæf eft gelimpeð
þæt se lic-homa læne gedreoseð,
fæge gefealleð; fehð oþer to,
se þe unmurnlice madmas dæleþ,
eorles ær-gestreon, egesan ne gymeð.”
(Beowulf ll.1745-1757)

“Then that sharp arrow slides beneath his defenses,
it bites into his heart — he knows not to guard himself —
the perverse strange command of the evil spirit then has hold.
He begins to think little of what he had long held;
going forth angry-minded he only covets, for pride he never gives
rings of hammered gold; and what he had been destined for
is forgotten and neglected, what was shown in the Almighty’s past gifts,
God’s glory, all that was made clear in his share of honour.
Afterwards the common end comes to him,
that prince’s transitory body declines,
what is fated to die falls; then another takes what had been his,
one who ungrudgingly shares that former prince’s ancient treasures
among their earls, fearing no retribution.”
(Beowulf ll.1745-1757)

Old English:

{Forthcoming}

Modern English:

{Forthcoming}

In my reading of this passage the thing that Hrothgar is getting at is that the best use of wealth is to share it.

His hypothetical ruler who had it all gets greedy after their soul (their humanity) is killed by feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. After this murder the ruler turns to the world of things rather than to the world of their fellow people to soothe themselves. However, this leads to a miserly and covetous existence in which the ruler surrounds themselves with things, and then passes away with no fanfare whatever. And, after they’re gone another comes along and doles out what their predecessor had so closely guarded with an open hand, proving that such miserliness only causes pointless suffering.

Ultimately, then, this passage reinforces the Anglo-Saxon value of the wealthy class sharing their wealth. A lesson that’s just as important then as it is today.

And the past, which so many people are quick to call only brutish and cruel, is littered with such sentiments. Just look at Hammurabi’s Code, one of the earliest sets of laws, which stipulated that payment for medical care be related to a person’s wealth. If someone like a king needed a doctor, they would pay full price, but if a non-land owning plebeian needed a doctor, they would get a deep discount.

The values put forth in Beowulf are similar. In practice, they may not lead to a utopia (too many rulers are like Hrothgar’s hypothetical prince), but in theory they are far more progressive than most people would ever credit for something coming out of the middle ages.

After all, the whole driving force behind the Anglo-Saxon ideal of a king who shares out wealth to those who have earned it is merit. It’s a system designed to make wealth more even while also being a system through which there could be some mobility. Though, it does concentrate the power over wealth into a single person, which comes with a host of problems.

I mean, despite Hrothgar’s historical connection, Beowulf is still a piece of fiction, and so this ideal of a magnanimous king, doling out wealth to those who have proven themselves is equally fictitious. Some historical rulers may have come close to doing so, but centralizing power in a single figure all too often results in what happened to Hrothgar’s ideally set up ruler. They are corrupted; if not by power, then they’re corrupted by paranoid ideas or selfishness. The shininess of gold grabs our attention, but sometimes it grabs so much of it that we have none left to share with other people, no matter how those others might strive to get it.

Though, along with poetry, there’s another antidote for power’s corrupting force. And that antidote is in this extract, on line 1753: “common end” (“ende-stæf”). Everyone dies and no one can take their physical wealth with them. But the friendships and connections that people make over their lifetime conquer death and help people’s memory live on long after their bodies have passed away, whether they were finely attired in the smoothest silk or wore the same cotton shirt and blue jeans day after day.

On a related note, in Carl Sagan’s The Demon Haunted World he wrote about the idea that humanity progresses, but is always able to slide back into darkness. History is the story of people, after all.

What do you think about the idea that wealth poses a danger to people’s sense of humanity and compassion? Is it as necessary as Hrothgar’s story suggests to be ever-vigilant when you come into wealth?

Love should not be a “wundor-bebod”¹,
Something that our greed or selfishness make us “grom-hydig”² toward,
like a dog beaten into brutally barking at each passerby.
Hatred burns the bridges to our best “forð-gesceaft”³,
brings us to our “ende-staef”⁴ before our “lic-homa”⁵ runs down, is put in ground.
Love and “weorð-mynd”⁶ are the best of “aer-gestreon”⁷ we can wear, then and now.

¹wundor-bebod: strange command. wundor (wonder, miracle, marvel, portent, horror, wondrous thing, monster) + bebod (command, injunction, order, decree) [A word that is exclusive to Beowulf.]