Reference no: EM13479327

Please write a 300 words response to the described below:

The poet takes so long from the introduction of Beowulf to the battle with Grendel because Beowulf has to undergo a series of people to impress before he is allowed to go into battle with Grendel. Beowulf has to impress all of these people of the Danes because Hrothgar and his kingdom usually assist others in times of need, and does not need any help of his own. Therefore, if Hrothgar is getting help from someone else, he needs to know that the strongest man around is coming, so Beowulf needs to impress the coast guard, Wulfgar, Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wealhtheow.The coast guard first confronts Beowulf after crossing the sea, and the coast guard sees that Beowulf is dressed like a warrior, but is not yet convinced. Beowulf then tells the coast guard that he is there to assist Hrothgar in defeating an enemy. In doing so, Beowulf speaks highly of Hrothgar and the Danes, and explains that he will give loyalty and guidance to Hrothgar and his people while fighting the enemy in question. The coast guard believes that Beowulf speaks wisely, and allows him to go through.

Beowulf then meets with Wulfgar, who finds a great spirit in Beowulf. Wulfgar sees that Beowulf is not in exile, but is a warrior that is seeking out Hrothgar is assistance. Wulfgar presents Beowulf to Hrothgar as an elite warrior of the Geats that could help the Danes kill Grendel. However, Hrothgar already knows who Beowulf is because Hrothgar helped Beowulf's father many years ago. Hrothgar has herd of Beowulf's good reputation, and sees that Beowulf has the strength of thirty men. However, since Hrothgar is not accustomed in asking others for assistance, he tells Beowulf that in helping the Danes is a favor returned for the Hrothgar's previous deed, and to end the humiliations that Grendel has caused in Herot. We then meet Unferth, who is even more important than Hrothgar, and is quite unsure of Beowulf's capabilities. Unferth questions Beowulf's "foolish" contest with Breca out on the sea. However, Beowulf explains his defeats not only against Breca, but also of other monsters in the sea, and was one of the greatest battles of his life. Beowulf's rebuttal against Unferth made Unferth feel that Beowulf was worth enough to fight Grendal.

Beowulf's last person to impress is Wealhtheow, Hrothgar's queen. Beowulf simply tells Wealhtheow that he will either defeat Grendel, or die without using any weapons because it would be an unfair fight. This lengthy build up of Beowulf shows the reader how important the kingdom is to Danes, and gives the reader an idea of the type of person Beowulf is. We are able to see that Beowulf is a dedicated character that is also good with persuasion. Without the build up, we would not be able to understand how Beowulf interacts with others; we are now able to see a persona in this character.