Polo

12 Pages 3064 Words

stined to be destroyed, Beowulf will provide the record of this civilization's works and ideals.

But civilization is not a stable thing for Hrothgar, and soon Heorot, the very symbol of his civilization, is under attack by Grendel, a monstrous descendant of Cain who comes out of the marshes. What's more, Grendel could not be harmed by weapons; their technology - another symbol of civilization - gave them no advantage:

...Then, time and again,
Beowulf's band brandished their ancestral swords,
they longed to save the life, if they
so could, of their lord, the mighty leader.
When they did battle on Beowulf's behalf,
struck at the monster from every side,
eager for his end, those courageous warriors
were unaware that no war-sword
not even the finest iron on earth,
could wound their evil enemy,
for he had woven a secret spell
against every kind of weapon, every battle blade. (Beowulf 783-794)
Their technology would not help in some struggles, so there was still the necessity of a great heroic warrior like Beowulf to defeat the mo...