Section XIII
Beowulf tears Grendel's shoulder from its socket, and the monster flees mortally wounded.
8 argumentative units
- 01Beowulf's refusal to spare Grendel
Beowulf is determined not to let Grendel escape alive, judging the monster's existence to be utterly worthless to mankind.
- 02The warriors' intent to aid Beowulf
Beowulf's thanes are prepared to defend their lord with their swords, though they do not fully understand what will transpire in the fight.
- 03Grendel's immunity to weapons
No earthly weapon or war-bill can harm Grendel because he has sworn off conventional arms, and his death must come through another means—the monster will be delivered into the power of his enemies.
- 04Grendel's nature as enemy to God and mankind
Grendel, who has harbored malice and wrought evil upon the human race, is hostile to God and fated to have his body fail him.
- 05The infliction of a mortal wound on Grendel
The monster suffers an incurable body-wound on his shoulder, his sinews are severed, and his body bursts open, giving Beowulf victory in battle.
- 06Grendel's flight to the moors
Mortally wounded, Grendel flees to the fen-cliffs and marshes to die, fully aware that his death is approaching and his earthly life is ending.
- 07Beowulf's accomplishment and the Danes' deliverance
With the slaughter over, Beowulf has fulfilled the Danes' wishes by cleansing Heorot of evil, saving them from the violence, misery, and oppression they had endured.
- 08The display of Grendel's severed arm as trophy
Beowulf suspends Grendel's hand, arm, and shoulder—the entire claw—beneath the roof of the great hall as a manifest token of his victory.