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• Argument
• The Story of Beowulf
• I.: And First of the Kindred of Hrothgar.
• II.: Concerning Hrothgar, and How He Built the House Called Hart. Also Grendel Is Told Of.
• III.: How Grendel Fell Upon Hart and Wasted It.
• IV.: Now Comes Beowulf Ecgtheow’s Son to the Land of the Danes, and the Wall-warden Speaketh With Him.
• V.: Here Beowulf Makes Answer to the Land-warden, Who Showeth Him the Way to the King’s Abode.
• VI.: Beowulf and the Geats Come Into Hart.
• VII.: Beowulf Speaketh With Hrothgar, and Telleth How He Will Meet Grendel.
• VIII.: Hrothgar Answereth Beowulf and Biddeth Him Sit to the Feast.
• IX.: Unferth Contendeth In Words With Beowulf.
• X.: Beowulf Makes an End of His Tale of the Swimming. Wealhtheow, Hrothgar’s Queen, Greets Him; and Hrothgar Delivers to Him the Warding of the Hall.
• XI.: Now Is Beowulf Left In the Hall Alone With His Men.
• XII.: Grendel Cometh Into Hart: of the Strife Betwixt Him and Beowulf.
• XIII.: Beowulf Hath the Victory: Grendel Is Hurt Deadly and Leaveth Hand and Arm In the Hall.
• XIV.: The Danes Rejoice; They Go to Look On the Slot of Grendel, and Come Back to Hart, and On the Way Make Merry With Racing and the Telling of Tales.
• XV.: King Hrothgar and His Thanes Look On the Arm of Grendel. Converse Betwixt Hrothgar and Beowulf Concerning the Battle.
• XVI.: Hrothgar Giveth Gifts to Beowulf.
• XVII.: They Feast In Hart. the Gleeman Sings of Finn and Hengest.
• XVIII.: The Ending of the Tale of Finn.
• XIX.: More Gifts Are Given to Beowulf. the Brising Collar Told Of.
• XX.: Grendel’s Dam Breaks Into Hart and Bears Off Aeschere.
• XXI.: Hrothgar Laments the Slaying of Aeschere, and Tells of Grendel’s Mother and Her Den.
• XXII.: They Follow Grendel’s Dam to Her Lair.
• XXIII.: Beowulf Reacheth the Mere-bottom In a Day’s While, and Contends With Grendel’s Dam.
• XXIV.: Beowulf Slayeth Grendel’s Dam, Smiteth Off Grendel’s Head, and Cometh Back With His Thanes to Hart.
• XXV.: Converse of Hrothgar With Beowulf.
• XXVI.: More Converse of Hrothgar and Beowulf: the Geats Make Them Ready For Departure.
• XXVII.: Beowulf Bids Hrothgar Farewell: the Geats Fare to Ship.
• XXVIII.: Beowulf Comes Back to His Land. of the Tale of Thrytho.
• XXIX.: Beowulf Tells Hygelac of Hrothgar: Also of Freawaru His Daughter.
• XXX.: Beowulf Forebodes Ill From the Wedding of Freawaru: He Tells of Grendel and His Dam.
• XXXI.: Beowulf Gives Hrothgar’s Gifts to Hygelac, and By Him Is Rewarded. of the Death of Hygelac and of Heardred His Son, and How Beowulf Is King of the Geats: the Worm Is First Told Of.
• XXXII.: How the Worm Came to the Howe, and How He Was Robbed of a Cup; and How He Fell On the Folk.
• XXXIII.: The Worm Burns Beowulf’s House, and Beowulf Gets Ready to Go Against Him. Beowulf’s Early Deeds In Battle With the Hetware Told Of.
• XXXIV.: Beowulf Goes Against the Worm. He Tells of Herebeald and HÆthcyn.
• XXXV.: Beowulf Tells of Past Feuds, and Bids Farewell to His Fellows. He Falls On the Worm, and the Battle of Them Begins.
• XXXVI.: Wiglaf Son of Weohstan Goes to the Help of Beowulf: NÆgling, Beowulf’s Sword, Is Broken On the Worm.
• XXXVII.: They Two Slay the Worm. Beowulf Is Wounded Deadly: He Biddeth Wiglaf Bear Out the Treasure.
• XXXVIII.: Beowulf Beholdeth the Treasure and Passeth Away.
• XXXIX.: Wiglaf Casteth Shame On Those Fleers.
• Xl.: Wiglaf Sendeth Tiding to the Host: the Words of the Messenger.
• Xli.: More Words of the Messenger. How He Fears the Swedes When They Wot of Beowulf Dead.
• Xlii.: They Go to Look On the Field of Deed.
• Xliii.: of the Burial of Beowulf.

XX.

GRENDEL’S DAM BREAKS INTO HART AND BEARS OFF AESCHERE.

• SO sank they to slumber; but one paid full sorely
• For his rest of the even, as to them fell full often
• Sithence that the gold-hall Grendel had guarded,
• And won deed of unright, until that the end came
• And death after sinning: but clear was it shown now,
• Wide wotted of men, that e’en yet was a wreaker
• Living after the loathly, a long while of time
• After the battle-care, Grendel’s own mother;
• The woman, the monster-wife, minded her woe,
• She who needs must in horror of waters be wonning,
• The streams all a-cold, sithence Cain was become
• For an edge-bane forsooth to his very own brother,
• The own son of his father. Forth bann’d then he fared,
• All marked by murder, from man’s joy to flee,
• And dwelt in the waste-land. Thence woke there a many
• Ghosts shapen of old time, of whom one was Grendel,
• The fierce wolf, the hateful, who found him at Hart
• A man there a-watching, abiding the war-tide;
• Where to him the fell ogre to hand-grips befell;
• Howe’er he him minded of the strength of his might,
• The great gift set fast in him given of God,
• And trowed in grace by the All-wielder given,
• His fostering, his staying; so the fiend he o’er-came
• And bow’d down the Hell’s ghost, that all humble he wended
• Fordone of all mirth death’s house to go look on,
• That fiend of all mankind. But yet was his mother,
• The greedy, the glum-moody, fain to be going
• A sorrowful journey her son’s death to wreak.
• So came she to Hart whereas now the Ring-Danes
• Were sleeping adown the hall; soon there befell
• Change of days to the earl-folk, when in she came thrusting,
• Grendel’s mother: and soothly was minish’d the terror
• By even so much as the craft-work of maidens,
• The war-terror of wife, is beside the man weapon’d,
• When the sword all hard bounden, by hammers to-beaten,
• The sword all sweat-stain’d, through the swine o’er the war-helm
• With edges full doughty down rightly sheareth.
• But therewith in the hall was tugg’d out the hard edge,
• The sword o’er the settles, and wide shields a many
• Heaved fast in the hand: no one the helm heeded,
• Nor the byrny wide-wrought, when the wild fear fell on them.
• In haste was she then, and out would she thenceforth
• For the saving her life, whenas she should be found there.
• But one of the athelings she speedily handled
• And caught up full fast, and fenward so fared.
• But he was unto Hrothgar the liefest of heroes
• Of the sort of the fellows; betwixt the two seafloods
• A mighty shield-warrior, whom she at rest brake up,
• A war-wight well famed. There Beowulf was not;
• Another house soothly had erewhile been dighted
• After gift of that treasure to that great one of Geats.
• Uprose cry then in Hart, all ’mid gore had she taken
• The hand, the well-known, and now care wrought anew
• In the wicks was arisen. Naught well was the bargain
• That on both halves they needs must be buying that tide
• With the life-days of friends. Then the lord king, the wise,
• The hoary of war-folk, was harmed of mood
• When his elder of thanes and he now unliving,
• The dearest of all, he knew to be dead.
• To the bower full swiftly was Beowulf brought now,
• The man victory-dower’d; together with day-dawn
• Went he, one of the earls, that champion beworthy’d,
• Himself with his fellows, where the wise was abiding
• To wot if the All-wielder ever will to him
• After the tale of woe happy change work.
• Then went down the floor he the war-worthy
• With the host of his hand, while high dinn’d the hall-wood,
• Till he there the wise one with words had well greeted,
• The lord of the Ingwines, and ask’d had the night been,
• Since sore he was summon’d, a night of sweet easement.