Compare and contrast the following passages: Lines 1591-1631 (When Hrothgar’s men leave, but Beowulf’s retainers stay) and lines 2401-2668. What do we think about the fact that Beowulf’s men stuck by him in the past when he fought Grendel and Grendel’s mother, but they abandon him when he fights the dragon?

Compare and contrast the following passages: Lines 1591-1631 (When Hrothgar’s men leave, but Beowulf’s retainers stay) and lines 2401-2668. What do we think about the fact that Beowulf’s men stuck by him in the past when he fought Grendel and Grendel’s mother, but they abandon him when he fights the dragon? He hand-picked these men both times, so what happens in the fight with the dragon? How/why is this fight different? What does their behavior say about Beowulf as a king? What does this say about Beowulf’s *best* men? How can we explain their abandonment, and what do we think about Wiglaf?

Your response should be at least 2 pages double-spaced.

AI Policies:

The submission or use of any Generative AI-produced material in this course without my explicit direction or approval constitutes academic fraud. If questions arise about Generative AI use, please consult me. In all cased where Generative AI use is allowed, it must be properly cited, and the prompts included.

Note: we use MLA style in this class. For poetry, this means citing line numbers when providing a quote in your answer. Your citation must be a complete sentence–you cannot drop a quote into the body of the text without incorporating it into a sentence. When citing 1-3 lines, you need to use quotation marks and include a forward slash separating each line of poetry. For more than four lines, please use block quotation format. You do NOT use quotation marks for block quotations. Instead, you indent each line one tab from left margin. Here are example of how to cite both forms properly, and pay attention to where end punctuation goes in each instance:

1-3 lines:

In the fight with Grendel’s mother, the men waiting on the edge of the meer “saw a heave-up and surge of waves/ And blood in the backwash” (1593-1594).

Block quotation format:

In the fight with Grendel’s mother, the men waiting on the edge of the meer

Saw a heave-up and surge of waves

And blood in the backwash. They bowed grey heads,

Spoke in their sage, experienced way

About the good warrior, how they never again

Expected to see that prince returning. (1593-1597)

Requirements: 2-3 Pages