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Definition of Hyperbole
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements are usually quite obvious exaggerations intended to emphasize a point... read full definition
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements are usually quite obvious exaggerations... read full definition
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements... read full definition
Hrothgar’s Early Reign (Lines 64–85)
Explanation and Analysis—The Noblest:
The narrator of Beowulf heaps heavy praise on the heroes and kings of the sixth century despite their opposition to the paganism of the society described in the poem. The poet uses hyperbole, for example, in describing the deeds and accomplishments of former Kings of the Danes, including King Hrothgar. When describing Heorot, a mead-house created by Hrothgar to honor the successes of his reign, the narrator uses hyperbolic language:
To Hrothgar was given such glory of war,
such honor of combat, that all his kin
obeyed him gladly till great grew his band
of youthful comrades. It came in his mind
to bid his henchmen a hall uprear,
a master mead-house, mightier far
than ever was seen by the sons of earth,
and within it, then, to old and young
he would all allot that the Lord had sent him,
save only the land and the lives of his men [...]
It fell, as he ordered,
in rapid achievement that ready it stood there,
of halls the noblest:
The narrator declares Heorot as a “master mead-house,” which is “mightier far / than ever was seen by the sons of earth.” His language here is hyperbolic in its praise of Heorot, which was not only built rapidly, but which is the “noblest” hall in the world. The narrator’s celebratory tone here underscores the later tragedy of the mead-hall’s abandonment.
Related Themes:
Beowulf vs. Grendel (Lines 702–836)
Explanation and Analysis—The Scene of the Battle:
The narrator uses both imagery and hyperbole to depict the frenzied scene in which Grendel attacks the mead-hall Heorot:
Angry were both
those savage hall-guards: the house resounded.
Wonder it was the wine-hall firm
in the strain of their struggle stood, to earth
the fair house fell not; too fast it was
within and without by its iron bands
craftily clamped; though there crashed from sill
many a mead-bench—men have told me—
gay with gold, where the grim foes wrestled.
So well had weened the wisest Scyldings
that not ever at all might any man
that bone-decked, brave house break asunder,
crush by craft,—unless clasp of fire
in smoke engulfed it. Again uprose din redoubled.
Here, the imagery is sharp and focused, drawing from multiple senses, including sight and sound. The narrator notes the long, noisy “din” that fills the hall, the shaking of the building’s walls, and the benches that crash as they are flung during the climactic fight between Grendel and Beowulf. The narrator also uses hyperbole, claiming that it was a “wonder” that the hall did not collapse entirely during the course of the fight, but later acknowledging that the well-made building would “not ever” actually fall unless by fire. The narration in this scene, then, with its vivid imagery and hyperbolic language, emphasizes the scale of this momentous fight.
