Brecca- Raced Beowuld across the sea

Dragon- Terrorized the Geats by burning down villages. Beowulf and Wiglaf killed him, but he killed Beowulf.

Edgetho- Beowulf's father

Esher- Hrothgar's best friend. He was killed by Grendel's mother.

Grendel- Descendent of Cain. He terrorized the Danes in Herot for 12 winters until Beowulf cam and killed him.

Grendel's Mother- Killed Esher after she mourned her son's death. Beowulf killed her with the giant's sword, the bloody icicle.

Herot- The beautiful mead hall built by Hrothgar for the Danes.

Higlac- King of the Danes. The on Beowulf was loyal to.

Hrothgar- King of the Danes. He built Herot for his people and bestowed gifts upon Beowulf when he killed Grendel and Grendel's mother.

Hrunting- Mightiest sword in all the land. HAd never known defeat but was useless against Grendel's mother.

Unferth- Tried to disname Beowulf but later gave him Hrunting.

Welthow- Gave Beowulf the necklace was Hrothgar's queen.

Wiglaf- The only person to stay and help Beowulf when he was trying to kill the Dragon.

Battle with Grendel's Mother- After she took Esher as revenge for Grendel's death, Beowulf went after her in the lake. Unferth had given Beowulf the great sword Hrunting, but the sword could not pierce her hide. Beowulf tripped and Grendel's Mother was on top of him, crushing his helment. However, his chain mail protected his body. Beowulf saw a great sword made by giants on the wall. He cut off her head then went to Grendel's body and cut off his head too. The sword melted and was called "the bloody icicle."

Battle with the Dragon- A dragon was awoken by a thief that stole a cup. The dragon burned down homes. Beowulf went to stop the dragon with followers. When Beowulf was overpowered, only Wiglaf stayed. Wiglaf stabbed the Dragon in the stomach and Beowulf killed it with his dagger. However, Beowulf had been bitten in the neck and was dying. Wiglaf went inside the tower and brought out gold for Beowulf to see. Beowulf gave Wiglaf his collar.

Kennings- Bright sweetness=mead: "... And poured that bright sweetness." p. 2

Alliteration- Repeating of a letter or syllable in words in a sentence- "Leaving Life and this people I've ruled so Long, if I Look at the Last of aLL prizes." p. 111

Christianity- It is thought that a monk translated the tale into english and added his own beliefs. There are many mentions of a God. "And holy God, who sent him victory, gave judgment." p.71

Hands/claws- The epic is always referencing hands or, in Grendel's case, claws. "Then the king ordered Herot cleaned and hung with decorations: hundreds of HANDS, men and women..." p.54

Light vs. Dark- In the poem, Grendel and all the monsters are thought of as the embodiment of evil while Beowulf is good. Grendel is a decendent of Cain who murdered his only brother and was forsaken. "Human eyes were watching his (Grendel's) evil steps." p. 46

Comitatus- This is loyalty to a king or leader. It is very important to the Anglo-Saxtons, so it shows up many times. "...Stood there, miserable, rememnering , as a good man must, what kinship should mean." p. 103

Fame/Glory- There is much fame because that is all that they lived for. They were judged based on their glory. "I've heard no tales of you, Unferth, telling of such clashing terror." p.

Werguild- This means that a family deserves payment for the loss of a loved one. If they do not get payment, they can seek revenge.

Wryd- This is fate. It is closely associated with paganism. "But fate, that night, intended Grendel to gnaw the broken bones of his last human supper." p.46

Weapons- There are two main swords in Beowulf. Hrunting is the sword Unferth gave Beowulf. The Gory Icicle is the sword that killed Grendel's Mother.

Gold/Treasure- Gold is associated with wealth and acheivement. Beowulf asked Wiglaf to grab the treasure for him from the dragon's tower.

Caesura- A pause in the poem. "Where its visitor had come and gone. He'd survived, had come close enough to touch its scaly head..." p. 95

Role of Women- They didn't have much power or say in major decisions, but their words could influence their husbands votes/decisions. They were also peace weavers to make peace between to nations by intermarrying. "... half wiping out that Danish tribe, and killing its King. Finn's wife, Hnaf's sister, learned what good faith..." p. 47