1
Correia
Dr. McClintock
25 September 2014
ENGL-223: Survey of British Literature to 1800
Close Reading 1: Beowulf
Paraphrase
The passage starts off with Grendel walking from his home towards the mead-hall. It articulates how he is an evil monster who hates joy and murders people. The passage ends with Grendel opening the doors of the hall and entering (710-727).
Observe
"Then from the moor, in a blanket of mist Grendel came stalking" (710-711) is a good example of visualization and descriptive detail.
"⦠he swung open the hall's mouth" (723-724) exemplifies the element of personification in the text.
Good imagery and descriptive details can be seen in line 723 "bloody minded, swollen with rage."
" Under the clouds he came until he clearly knew,"(714) is a good example of word choice, alliteration, and stylistic pattern.
Contextualize
Written between 700-1000, during a time when at any day your country could be conquered by another (i.e.
Rome) and you could be enslaved to that new ruler (63).
During a time when many different religions were accepted, (Christianity, pagan, Anglo-Saxon) often having conflicting ideas, influences, and attitudes. (63)
Analyze
"Bloody minded, swollen with rage." I think this line has really good imagery. As one reads the words, the reader can picture Grendel, large and pulsing in fury, ready to devour whatever men he should find.
"⦠He swung open the hall's mouth." I think that the personification shown in this line is important because it shows that the mead hall is not simply a building but has a deeper meaning. The hall represents the community and it carries a great deal of symbolic weight. By attacking them here Grendel attacks the symbol of their country.
The idea that people could be conquered at anytime. I think this historical fact...