Throughout the epic of Beowulf, the main character Beowulf takes on three major battles in his lifetime. While each battle is a major event in his heroic life, each battle goes differently and teaches him different things. One of the battles is easy, almost too easy. Another battle is almost lethal, however, Beowulf’s careful preparation saves his life. His final battle is unfortunately what ends his life. Even though each battle is different, there is one thing that stays the same, Beowulf uses his strength in order to benefit himself. Every battle had some similarities but many differences and each had significance to Beowulf’s life.
Beowulf’s first major battle takes place in a land that is not home to Beowulf “beyond the whale-road had
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Headley has an introduction dedicated to Grendel’s mother and how she feels about her. Headly was introduced to Grendel’s mother at a young age however it wasn’t originally through the epic. Headley states that when she “finally encountered the actual poem, years later, [she] was appalled to discover that Grendel’s mother was not only not the main event but also, to many people, an extension of Grendel rather than a character unto herself” (Headly, vii). In almost all other translations Grendel’s mother is depicted as a monster who has no care or human characteristics. However, Headly thinks of Grendel’s mother simply as a mother: “She behaves like a bereaved mother who happens to have a warrior’s skill” (xxv). Headly believes that Grendel’s mother wasn’t just simply killing a person to be killing him, but rather avenging her son. Additionally, Headly states that the word agalec-wif is the feminine form of the word agelaeca. When these two words are used to describe different characters it means “‘hero’” when pertaining to Beowulf, but “‘wretch or monster, or a woman’” (xxv). The difference between the usage of words shows how many translators look at Grendel’s mother in comparison to