Beowulf 62More would they mourn, lament for their ruler
18
Literature · Poetry
Beowulf 62
More would they mourn, lament for their ruler
HallEnglish
Speak in measure, mention him with pleasure,
Weighed his worth, and his warlike achievements
Mightily commended, as 'tis meet one praise his
Liegelord in words and love him in spirit,
40 When forth from his body he fares to destruction.
So lamented mourning the men of the Geats,
Fond-loving vassals, the fall of their lord,
{An ideal king.}
Said he was kindest of kings under heaven,
Gentlest of men, most winning of manner,
45 Friendliest to folk-troops and fondest of honor.
ADDENDA.
Several discrepancies and other oversights have been noticed in the H.-So.
glossary. Of these a good part were avoided by Harrison and Sharp, the
American editors of Beowulf, in their last edition, 1888. The rest will, I
hope, be noticed in their fourth edition. As, however, this book may fall
into the hands of some who have no copy of the American edition, it seems
best to notice all the principal oversights of the German editors.
~From hám~ (194).--Notes and glossary conflict; the latter not having been
altered to suit the conclusions accepted in the former.
~Þær gelýfan sceal dryhtnes dóme~ (440).--Under 'dóm' H. says 'the might
of the Lord'; while under 'gelýfan' he says 'the judgment of the Lord.'
~Eal bencþelu~ (486).--Under 'benc-þelu' H. says nom. plu.; while under
'eal' he says nom. sing.
~Heatho-ræmas~ (519).--Under 'ætberan' H. translates 'to the Heathoremes';
while under 'Heatho-ræmas' he says 'Heathoræmas reaches Breca in the
swimming-match with Beowulf.' Harrison and Sharp (3d edition, 1888) avoid
the discrepancy.
~Fáh féond-scaða~ (554).--Under 'féond-scaða' H. says 'a gleaming
sea-monster'; under 'fáh' he says 'hostile.'
~Onfeng hraðe inwit-þancum~ (749).--Under 'onfón' H. says 'he received
the maliciously-disposed one'; under 'inwit-þanc' he says 'he grasped,'
etc.
~Níð-wundor séon~ (1366).--Under 'níð-wundor' H. calls this word itself
nom. sing.; under 'séon' he translates it as accus. sing., understanding
'man' as subject of 'séon.' H. and S. (3d edition) make the correction.
~Forgeaf hilde-bille~ (1521).--H., under the second word, calls it instr.
dat.; while under 'forgifan' he makes it the dat. of indir. obj. H. and S.
(3d edition) make the change.
~Brád~ and ~brún-ecg~ (1547).--Under 'brád' H. says 'das breite Hüftmesser
mit bronzener Klinge'; under 'brún-ecg' he says 'ihr breites Hüftmesser
mit blitzender Klinge.'
~Yðelíce~ (1557).--Under this word H. makes it modify 'ástód.' If this be
right, the punctuation of the fifth edition is wrong. See H. and S.,
appendix.
~Sélran gesóhte~ (1840).--Under 'sél' and 'gesécan' H. calls these two
words accus. plu.; but this is clearly an error, as both are nom. plu.,
pred. nom. H. and S. correct under 'sél.'
~Wið sylfne~ (1978).--Under 'wið' and 'gesittan' H. says 'wið = near, by';
under 'self' he says 'opposite.'
~þéow~ (2225) is omitted from the glossary.
~For duguðum~ (2502).--Under 'duguð' H. translates this phrase, 'in
Tüchtigkeit'; under 'for,' by 'vor der edlen Kriegerschaar.'
~þær~ (2574).--Under 'wealdan' H. translates þær by 'wo'; under 'mótan,'
by 'da.' H. and S. suggest 'if' in both passages.
~Wunde~ (2726).--Under 'wund' H. says 'dative,' and under 'wæl-bléate' he
says 'accus.' It is without doubt accus., parallel with 'benne.'
~Strengum gebæded~ (3118).--Under 'strengo' H. says 'Strengum' = mit
Macht; under 'gebæded' he translates 'von den Sehnen.' H. and S. correct
this discrepancy by rejecting the second reading.
~Bronda be láfe~ (3162).--A recent emendation. The fourth edition had
'bronda betost.' In the fifth edition the editor neglects to change the
glossary to suit the new emendation. See 'bewyrcan.'
