A Comparison of the Mead-hall in Beowulf and The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki :: comparison compare contrast essays

Mead-hall in Beowulf and The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Is the mead-hall mentioned only in Beowulf or is it an element common also to this famous Icelandic saga? Is the mead-hall described the same way as in Beowulf?    Remaining true to the Anglo-Saxon culture’s affinity for mead (ale/beer/wine), the characters of Beowulf partake frequently of the strong beverage. And the mead hall is their home away from home, with more entertainments than just fermented beverages: â€Å"gold and treasure at huge feasts †¦ the words of the poet, the sounds of the harp.† Needless to say, with â€Å"the world’s greatest mead-hall †¦ Hrothgar’s people lived in joy.† â€Å"after a mead party the Danes †¦ knew no sorrows.† When Grendel â€Å"moved into the [mead] hall,† that is an indescribably torturesome pain for everyone: â€Å"Hrothgar was broken †¦ the Danes forgot God †¦ [they were] in great distress †¦ they wept and seethed.† When Beowulf and his men arrive they immediately â€Å"came toward the hall †¦ then sat down on benches †¦ pouring sweet drink.† They came â€Å"to cleanse Heorot [the mead hall],† to stop the â€Å"humiliations in Heorot† where men are â€Å"over their ale-cups.† Beowulf predicts: â€Å"When I get done with him, anyone who wishes may happily go into the mead hall.† Unferth, in his battle rune at Hrothgar’s feet, was insulting to the hero because Unferth was â€Å"drunk on mead.† When Queen Wealhtheow entertained the Geats, she first bid the king â€Å"joy in his mead drinking,† then â€Å"went around to each †¦ sharing the precious cup.† When the hero began fighting the monster, â€Å"many a mead bench †¦ went flying.† The next day the queen â€Å"walked among the mead seats,† and everyone â€Å"drank many a mead cup.† References to this subject are too numerous to enumerate. In the hero’s last days the fire dragon brought death to the Geats; the â€Å"wine hall† was â€Å"abandoned †¦the surging fires burned his house, the mead hall of the Geats. That was â₠¬ ¦ the greatest of sorrows.† Wiglaf, in censuring the ten who deserted their chief, said, â€Å"At the ale-bench he often gave you †¦ helmets and armor.† In this classic poem, can there be anything more vital or essential to joyful living, or to conducting business, than the mead-hall?    T. A. Shippey in â€Å"The World of the Poem† (45) says:    Some objects in fact reach â€Å"mythic† status – most obviously halls.