Beowulf is the name of the hero and the poem tells of his brave deeds.

The poem is in two parts and here in short is the first part. Beowulf is a young knight of the Geats who lived in what is now southern Sweden. He is as strong as thirty men and his only wish is to defend his people. But he is also ready to help his neighbours when they are too weak to fight for themselves. In Denmark the people are terrified by the man-eating monster Grendel. Every night this monster comes to the king's palace, kills some of his soldiers and then returns to the marshes. One night Grendel carries off thirty men and eats them up. The King of Denmark named Hrothgar knows not what to do. His beautiful palace stands empty and useless because all are afraid of Grendel. The news of the horrible deeds of the monster reaches Beowulf. He chooses fourteen companions and sails to Denmark. A coast guard meets Beowulf's ship and leads him and his men to the king's palace. Here they wait for the monster. Beowulf, who has learnt that Grendel always comes unarmed, tells his men that he is going to meet the monster, also unarmed. In the evening all go to sleep except one. It is Beowulf who remains on watch. In the middle of the night the monster breaks into the palace. He seizes one of the sleeping soldiers and eats him up before Beowulf can do anything. Beowulf fights Grendel. The struggle is so furious that the walls of the palace shake. Soon Grendel feels Beowulf's strong hands at his throat and, terrified, tries to get free. But Beowulf manages to tear off the monster's arm and Grendel crawls away to the marshes to die. In the morning Beowulf hangs the arm in a hall of the palace and all the people wonder how he could do it. The arm is so large that it almost fills the hall. Hrothgar pours treasures into Beowulf's hands and a feast is given in honour of this great victory. However, the night after the feast, another monster rises from the marshes. This is GrendePs mother who wants to avenge her son's death. She kills one of the king's friends and carries his body off to her home. Once again Beowulf prepares for fight though he learns that the home of the monsters is a deep lake whose black waters are so terrible that even wild beasts are afraid to come near it. Unafraid, Beowulf and his men go to the lake. It is covered with a bloody froth. This means that Grendel's mother had carried the body of the dead man to her cave at the bottom of the lake. Wearing full armour, Beowulf dives into the water. When he reaches the bottom, the monster attacks, but Beowulf's armour protects him from her claws. She carries him to her cave. Beowulf then seizes the monster and they fight and roll on the floor of the cave. In this furious struggle Grendel's mother draws a dagger and tries to kill him, but his armour saves his life. Suddenly Beowulf sees a magic sword lying on the floor near him. He seizes the sword and strikes with all his strength. The monster falls dead at

once. Looking around the cave, Beowulf sees Grendel lying dead near the wall. With another stroke of the magic sword he cuts off the monster's head. Meanwhile Beowulf's friends waiting for him at the lake have seen bloody bubbles rising on the water. They are afraid their leader has been killed, but still they stay, gazing at the water. At last Beowulf appears carrying Grendel's bloody head in his hands. His friends shout with joy and accompany him back to the king's palace. That night another great feast is given in honour of Beowulf. The people of Denmark thank him for his courage and give him many presents. The following day Beowulf and his friends get on their ship and return home. So ends the first part of the poem. In the second part of the poem Beowulf, after ruling for fifty years as king of the Geats, fights for a second time in the role of killer of monsters. He hears that a fire-dragon comes every night to his kingdom to destroy the villages and the crops. The dragon is the guardian of ancient treasures stored in a cave. A passing traveller carries away a jewelled cup. The burning of the crops is the fire-dragon's revenge. Beowulf decides to fight the beast. When he goes out to meet the dragon all his friends except one leave him. His only friend, Wiglaf by name, follows Beowulf to the dragon's cave. Belching fire and smoke the dragon attacks Beowulf. Wiglaf stands aside and waits for his turn. The fight is terrible to look upon. At first Wiglaf sees little because Beowulf is covered with black smoke and flames. But now Wiglaf sees the monster with two of his three heads cut off. With his terrible tail the dragon is trying to strike at Beowulf from behind. His last head is still breathing fire into Beowulf's face. Wiglaf runs to help Beowulf and with his sword cuts off the monster's tail. At the same moment Beowulf strikes for the last time. The dragon is dead. But Beowulf himself is dying, too, because the poison has entered his chest. Beowulf knows that death is near. He sends Wiglaf into the cave where the young soldier finds many treasures. Wiglaf fills his hands with jewels and brings them to Beowulf. The dying hero is glad to learn that by his death he has got more riches for his people. He tells Wiglaf how to rule the country after his death. His last words are full of care for the future of his kingdom. Wiglaf burns the body of the king and the memory of Beowulf is honoured by a high mound on the shore of the sea visible from a great distance. Many Geats come to say goodbye to Beowulf because of all the kings of the earth he was the most beloved and the kindest to his people.