Beowulf: The Embodiment of Anglo-Saxonism
...there were approximately 2,000 landowners of the class in Wessex and Mercia. For the Anglo-Saxons, fighting was a way of life. Essential, the Anglo-Saxon society is “honor-bound and blood-stained, presided over by the laws of the blood-feud,” according to Seamus Heaney in the Introduction. While staying at Heorot, Beowulf’s thanes sleep fully prepared for battle. At their heads they placed their polished timber battle-shields, and on the bench above them, each man’s kit was kept to hand: a towering war-helmet, webbed mail-shirt and great-shafted spear. (ll.1242-46) The kin of a person slain are socially bound to exact a price for the death, either by slaying the killer or receiving the wergild (man-price, a legally fixed compensation). Beowulf summed his culture up best, saying, It is always better to avenge dear ones than to indulge in mourning. For every one of us, living in this world means waiting for our end. Let whoever can win glory before death. When a warrior is gone, that will be his best and only bulwark. (ll.1384-89) The prospect of gaining a warrior’s reputation in wael-raes, the rush of battle-slaughter, and the pride of defending one’s lord are what gave drive to the culture enshrined in Beowulf. …in a man of worth the claims of kinship cannot be denied. (ll. 2600-01) Indeed, this loyalty to one’s lord of what earned Wiglaf, son of Weohstan, the crown. He confronted his comrades, those who had abandoned Beowulf in his final battle against the dragon on his homeland, saying, I would rather my body were robed in the same burning blaze as my gold-giver’s body than go back home bearing arms. That is unthinkable, unless we have first slain the foe and defended the life of the prince of the Weather-Geats. I well know the things he has done for us deserve better. (ll. 2651-59) This unquestioned loyalty related back to the code of honor that all warriors followed. So every man should act be at hand when needed. (ll. 2708-09) Failure to adhere to the code of honor was like failure to exact a price for a slain kinsman. A warrior will sooner die than life a life of shame. (ll. 2890-91) As a culture, the Anglo-Saxons recognized that life is fleeting; therefore, they were intent upon reaping as much glory from their earthly life as possible. Famous for his deeds a warrior may be, but it remains a mystery where his life will end, when he may no longer dwell in the mead-hall a...