How Does Beowulf Mature

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Beowulf’s fight with Grendel was battled in hand to hand combat. In the anonymous epic Beowulf, Beowulf is challenged to fight three battles. In these battles, Beowulf uses various methods to defeat Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon, and takes different trophies each time. As Beowulf continues to fight more monsters, he not only develops his own trophy collection, but also develops as a character. Further, Beowulf’s attitude and personality change as he transitions from youth to adulthood and further on into old age. The weapons Beowulf uses in battle and the trophies he claims exemplify these transitions in his life. Beowulf’s fight with Grendel was battled in hand to hand combat. Instead of wielding a sword, Beowulf decides to use his bare hands because he realized that his sword proved to be ineffective against the great beast. Further, Beowulf is aware that Grendel fights without weapons. To preserve his honor, Beowulf declares he must fight Grendel on his own terms without weapons. "I have heard moreover that the monster scorns in his reckless way to use weapons; therefore, to heighten Hygelac's fame and gladden his heart, I …show more content…
y renounce sword and the shelter of the broad shield, the heavy war-board: hand-to-hand is how it will be, a life-and-death fight with the fiend." (433-440) When Grendel was locked in Beowulf’s strong grip,
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