An Honorable Death

So Grendel's mother has gotten a little action lately, and her snatching of one of the king's most trusted men has made me think more about modern death in battle vs. anciently.

These days, if a helicopter is shot down in the Middle East and five people die, the whole world knows. But back in the time of Beowulf, battles were common in which droves of people would be slain, and this was seen as honorable, and not seen as a cause to mourn. A common expression that people use regarding death is “they went out with their boots on,” or they died while in action, and people commonly say that death while in action is the best way to die.

Beowulf says on page 97,

“Wise sir, do not grieve. It is always better to avenge dear ones than to indulge in the mourning. For every one of us, living in this world means waiting for our end. Let whoever can win glory before death.”

Therefore, it probably wasn't as common back then for people to sit around and cry because someone died, because death in battle was thought of as honorable. Besides death in battle, there was more death in general because of their lack of effective medicine, and because many died as infants, children, or birthing mothers.

Also, one's legacy was at stake. The reason why death in battle was seen as honorable was because it ensures that the person's reputation would be forever seen in good light; the last action of such a man would be defending his God, his religion, his freedom, the peace, his wife, and his children. And personally, I'd like to be frozen in history as a defender of those subjects.