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Greenfield argues the foot is used for the opposite effect, only appearing four times in the poem. It is used in conjunction with Unferð (a man described by Beowulf as weak, traitorous, and cowardly). Greenfield notes that Unferð is described as "at the king's feet" (line 499).
Having returned to Geatland, Beowulf is described as taking part in a raid (a genuine historic event) against the Franks with his king Higlac. Higlac died during the raid, and Beowulf swam home in full armour. Back in Geatland, queen Hygd offered Beowulf the throne but Beowulf declined in favour of the young prince Heardred.
The Beowulf dragon is the earliest example in literature of the typical European dragon and first incidence of a fire-breathing dragon. [10] The Beowulf dragon is described with Old English terms such as draca (dragon), and wyrm (reptile, or serpent), and as a creature with a venomous bite. [11]
Beowulf – son of Ecgtheow, and the eponymous hero of the Anglo-Saxon poem. Breca – Beowulf's childhood friend who competed with him in a swimming match. Cain – biblical character described as an ancestor of Grendel who is infamous for killing his brother Abel, the first murder. Killing one's kin was the greatest sin in Anglo-Saxon culture.
An illustration of Grendel by J. R. Skelton from the 1908 Stories of Beowulf. Grendel is described as "Very terrible to look upon." Grendel is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf (700–1000 CE). He is one of the poem's three antagonists (along with his mother and the dragon), all aligned in opposition against the protagonist Beowulf.
Michael J. Alexander described it as close to the original in both meaning and clause-ordering, and like the original was intentionally archaic. Michael Drout, who had begun the task of editing Tolkien's Beowulf, was disappointed by the absence of Tolkien's alliterative verse translation of part of the poem.
The royal palace of Rohan, Meduseld, is a Viking-style mead hall, like Hrothgar's hall, Heorot, described in Beowulf. Depicted is a reconstructed Viking longhouse in Denmark. Théoden's hall, Meduseld, [ b ] is modelled on Beowulf's Heorot, as is the way it is guarded, with visitors challenged repeatedly but courteously.
Unferth only speaks once (an insult aimed at Beowulf), is described as intelligent and a kin-slayer, and is responsible for lending Beowulf his legendary, yet ill-fated sword, Hrunting. Kenneth Sisam argues that readers would be advised not to speculate beyond these basic facts as laid out by the poet. [12]