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Wiglaf kills the dragon halfway through the scene, Beowulf's death occurs "after two-thirds" of the scene, [32] and the dragon attacks Beowulf three times. [33] Ultimately, as Tolkien writes in Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics (1936), the death by dragon "is the right end for Beowulf," for he claims, "a man can but die upon his death-day".
Wiglaf first appears in Beowulf at line 2602, as a member of the band of thanes who go with Beowulf to seek out the dragon that has attacked Geat-Land. This is the first time Wiglaf has gone to war at Beowulf's side. [B 3] He is called a "praise-worthy shield-warrior", a "prince of the Scylfings", and mæg ælfheres, "kinsman of Ælfhere." [B 4]
Scholars call the anonymous author the "Beowulf poet". [3] The story is set in pagan Scandinavia in the 5th and 6th centuries. Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead hall Heorot has been under attack by the monster Grendel for twelve years.
Map of the Beowulf region, showing the protagonist's voyage to Heorot. The anonymous author of Beowulf praises Heorot as large enough to allow Hrothgar to present Beowulf with a gift of eight horses, each with gold-plate headgear. [5] It functions both as a seat of government and as a residence for the king's thanes (warriors).
In the epic we learn that Wiglaf was a Scylfing which literally refers to the ruling family of Sweden, and defines Wiglaf as a Swede. We also learn that Wiglaf's father, Weohstan, was a Wægmunding and fought on the Swedish side. Concerning Beowulf's father the text tells us that he was a Wægmunding and that he was banished for killing the man ...
A mention of Weohstan in the Beowulf. Weohstan, Wēohstān or Wīhstān (Proto-Norse *Wīha stainaz, meaning "sacred stone", [1] Old Norse: Vésteinn [ˈweːˌstɛinː] and Wǣstēn [2]) is a legendary character who appears in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, and scholars have pointed out that he also appears to be present in the Norse Kálfsvísa.
The name is attested to a monk from Durham and means bee wolf in the Old Northumbrian dialect. [4] The 11th century English Domesday Book contains a recorded instance of the name Beulf. [4] The scholar Gregor Sarrazin suggested that the name Beowulf derived from a mistranslation of Böðvarr with -varr interpreted as vargr meaning "wolf". [5]
Ælfhere – a kinsman of Wiglaf and Beowulf. Æschere – Hroðgar's closest counselor and comrade, killed by Grendel's mother. Banstan – the father of Breca. Beow or Beowulf – an early Danish king and the son of Scyld, but not the same character as the hero of the poem; Beowulf – son of Ecgtheow, and the eponymous hero of the Anglo ...