Dragon Slayer: The Story of Beowulf

Rosemary Sutcliff excels at bringing the classics to children in a fantastic way, and Dragon Slayer is no exception. The retelling of Beowulf in Sutcliff's words adds to the story. The narrated version is very well done. Sean Barrett's smooth British accent is perfect for this story. Beowulf, long ago, was always recounted aloud and so this taped version makes the whole experience that much more authentic.

I once made the joke that Grendel was the first beo-degradable monster in history... GROAN! When I gave this joke to an English professor, he used it in class, and promptly returned it to me. Okay. I'll accept that. But, Beowulf deserves the kind of serious attention that would prompt people to want to make bad jokes about it (unimportant things are ignored; only important things are held up in jest). Beowulf is an old poem--often considered the first in English. This is technically not true, for linguistic and other reasons (where the demarcations of English beginnings fall are debatable; also there is the fact that there are older poems, just not epic poems). An epic is a long, narrative poem, a literary form undervalued today, but which was probably the equivalent of a Cecil B. DeMille production in more ancient times. The Illiad, the Odyssey, the Aeneid, Gilgamesh--all these are epic poems. Generally, they recount heroic deeds, and most often were composed and intended as oral history. Beowulf consists of 3182 existing lines. Scholars also disagree on the 'British heritage' of the poem, many believing it more likely to be an import from Anglo-Saxon European homelands than a composition original to the Britain. The tale does portray two leaders, Hrothgar, leader of the Danes, and Beowulf, leader of the Geats, a Swedish tribe. These are interconnected through generations of family intermarriages, and Beowulf because of this loyalty takes his men to help defend Hrothgar's home against the monster Grendel. The tale of Beowulf involves heroism, sacrifice, loyalty, warfare, conflict and resolution--all the elements that go into a good action feature. It also has moral overtones (so it was meant to educate and inspire as well as entertain). It carries the strong message that a fighting man's allegiance to the overlord and to God should be absolute (something that is often instilled in soldiers of today). It is almost decidedly Klingon in the glorification of battle (in fact, I've often wondered if the Star Trek universe took a leaf out of this epic to create the Klingon idea)--Beowulf fights three battles (a holy trinity of battles, almost), dying gloriously in the final battle with a great dragon, after having lived an honourable and courageous life. This story contains elements of both early Christianity and late paganism, however in some cases the Christian aspects may be later additions by monks who transcribed the manuscripts (monks were noted for doing that in many circumstances, including Biblical texts). The oldest existing manuscript dates from about the tenth century and is preserved in the British Museum. This particular translation by Rosemary Sutcliff is geared toward the youth, who would look to Beowulf as an epic, old poem (read - boring!), but can come to find fantastic elements that might hearken to fantasy tales popular in today's literature and cinema. A great poem, and good translation in prose form, bridging the

One worthwhile feature of this edition is that it includes the untranslated original Anglo-Saxon text on the left-hand pages and Heaney's translation on right-hand pages.I enjoy reading over the Anglo-Saxon text and picking out words that I can recognize, for instance "medo" for mead (beer). Seeing the original words provides an additional sense of how ancient and otherworldly the kingdoms of the Geats and Spear-Danes were.In addition, the original text permits one to understand better the format of the original poem. The verses did not rhyme but they relied heavily on internal alliteration. The English of the translation is modern and as readable as most others. One aspect which I liked is that the name of the first Beowulf in the book is given as Beow in order to avoid confusing the reader with the hero of the book who only appears later.

Ms. Sutcliff has again blowen the dust from the stories which have lain dormant on library shelves for so long and made them come alive. Beowulf has never been so exciting. His epic battles with three of the most horrifing creature in British liturature are amazingly terrifying and suspenseful but they are also profoundly human. Ms. Sutcliff allows feelings of sadness, trust, and loyalty to seep through the pages of the old story and into her hero's heart. She makes Beowulf not only into a great king and hero but into a great man as well.

The epic poem Beowulf describes the most heroic man of the Anglo-Saxon times. The hero, Beowulf, is a seemingly invincible person with all the extraordinary traits required of a hero. He is able to use his super-human physical strength and courage to put his people before himself. He encounters hideous monsters and the most erocious of beasts but he never fears the threat of death. His leadership skills are superb and he is even able to boast about all his achievements. Beowulf is the ultimate epic hero who risks his life countless times for immortal glory and for the good of others. Beowulf is a hero in the eyes of his fellow men through his amazing physical strength. He fought in numerous battles and returned victorious from all but his last. In his argument with Unferth, Beowulf explains the reason he "lost" a simple swimming match with his youthful opponent Brecca. Not only had Beowulf been swimming for seven nights, he had also stopped to kill nine sea creatures in the depths of the ocean. Beowulf is also strong enough to kill the monster Grendel, who has been terrorizing the Danes for twelve years, with his bare hands by ripping off his arm. When Beowulf is fighting Grendel's mother, who is seeking revenge on her son's death, he is able to slay her by slashing the monster's neck with a Giant's sword that can only be lifted by a person as strong as Beowulf. When he chops off her head, he carries it from the ocean with ease, but it takes four men to lift and carry it back to Herot mead-hall. This strength is a key trait of Beowulf's heroism. Another heroic trait of Beowulf is his ability to put his peoples welfare before his own. Beowulf's uncle is king of the Geats so he is sent as an emissary to help rid the Danes of the evil Grendel. Beowulf risks his own life for the Danes, asking help from no one. He realizes the dangers but fears nothing for his own life. After Beowulf had served his people as King of the Geats for fifty years, he goes to battle one last time to fight a horrible dragon who is frightening all of his people. Beowulf is old and tired but he defeats the dragon in order to protect his people. Even in death he wished so secure safety for the Geats so a tall lighthouse is built in order to help the people find there way back from sea. The most heroic of traits within Beowulf is that he is not afraid to die. He always explains his death wishes before going into battle and requests to have any assets delivered to his people. "And if death does take me, send the hammered mail of my armor to Higlac, return the inheritance I had from Hrehtel, and from Wayland. Fate will unwind as it must! (18)" He is aware of the heroic paradox; he will be glorified in life or death for his actions. He knows that when he fights an enemy like Grendel or Grendel's mother he will achieve immortality as the victor or the loser. "When we crossed the sea, my comrades and I, I already knew that all m