- Been in Pontus [present-day Turkey] for 3 years having been exiled ("Danube [river] has has frozen thrice over"); away from his country long enough for Troy to be attacked by Grecian Army
- Time passes too slowly; seems like Mother Nature is trying to make time feel long and dragged out
- Native Scythians live terribly, w/plundering men, everything is dangerous, scarcely defended city; everyone always wary & watchful
- Barbarians took over half the houses
- Tristia is the foreigner, forced to use hand gestures to communicate; made fun of for speaking Latin
Beowulf
- A powerful monster living in darkness and pain, growling at the happiness above him
- Conceived by a pair of monsters born of Cain, exiled and split into all evil
- Sneaked into the room at night, snatched 30 men, smashed them & ran w/ their bodies; those that escaped were those who fled
- Grendel ruled, fought and won against many; Herot stood empty and deserted for many years
- King Hrothgar of Danes grieved for 12 years; word spread and how Grendel's hatred began
- The monster relishes savage war on the Danes, keeping bloody feud alive, seeking no peace, offering no truce, accepting no settlement
- Monster kills as often as he can; lives in Herot but never dares to touch King Hrothgar's throne protected by God, whose love Grendel could not know (like Voldemort in Harry Potter)
- Beowulf heard how Grendel terrorized at night and went to help w/ 14 of the best men he could find
- Hard journey at sea like Odysseus in The Odyssey, finally made it to land
- Hrothgar's lieutenant approaches them, Beowulf says they come to defeat the monster, so they pass
- Beowulf and his men are called to see the king, Beowulf asking that he & his men alone will defeat the monster; fate will take over
- Grendel marched angrily over to Herot, killed a guard, ate him & drank his blood
- Encounters Beowulf who traps it but cannot severely damaged by the attacks of his men so he escapes w/ his arm ripped off
- Beowulf leaves w/ monster's arm and shoulder hanging proudly; Monster lives in secret den in cliffs
- Beowulf resolves to kill Grendel's horrible mother so he travels to the lake in which she lives
- He finds her at the bottom, and when his sword fails, he uses his hands
- Honored by Hrothgar, then Beowulf and his men return home where he becomes king
- Now an old man, he goes up against a dragon and loses, none of his men coming to help him
- Wiglaf, Wexstan's son, ready to inherit treasures, weapons, and land; he runs to help Beowulf defeat the dragon
- Beowulf is now mortally wounded after killing the dragon, still wants the guarded treasure; Wiglaf comes out of the cave w/gold, precious gems, valuable etc.
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