It cannot be! A boat? Out across the whale-road? We had no word of this from Hrothgar or the sentries! I must ready the reinforcements, and send a messenger to alert our dear king. In the meantime, what should I wear? I want to be ready for battle, but at the same time look presentable. Hmm… A pair of leather chaps should do, yes, and with my trusty chainmail. I’ll take my black steed and my spear with me as well. Ah! Here come the reinforcements–looking quite shabby if I do say–up at last. The boat is closer to shore, and preparing to moor. We will wait up here to see what they do first, that will be the safest plan. Let’s hope this drizzling rain ceases, I do hate fighting in the rain with a passion. I hope it will not come to that though. What could they be here for? We rarely get visitors unless they are diplomats from another tribe… and they tend to arrive in much smaller vessels. Well, here they are on shore now. They are unloading battle equipment and rations; could they be here to try to take on the great Dane tribe while we are weak from our struggles with Grendel? No, no, it can’t be… if they were here to fight they would be suited up for battle already. I’ll make my way down to the beach to inquire then, and have the men stagger at my back just in case. Remember to sit up tall, remember to look into the eyes of the leader, remember to keep your spear ready. Is that who I think it is? The famed Beowulf of Geatland, the man with the strength of a hundred. Why would he grace our shores? Well, it is time to address him and find out.
There, I’ve said all I could say… and these interlopers don’t seem angered, so that is good. Ah, Beowulf is stepping forward, is he ready to make his case?
Good lord! And how I thought of these brave men! They are risking their lives to help the Dane’s destroy Grendel. They must be brought to Herot at once, to make there motives apparent to Hrothgar and to be fed and lavished after their long journey. Keep your composure though, do not let on how much we truly need help… stay strong.
That should do, I’ll lead them to Herot while some of my men take care of their boat. How does Beowulf plan to take care of Grendel I wonder? Beowulf is no doubt, if the stories are true, a strong and courageous Geat. However, Grendel is not of this earth, and many of our finest men have met their untimely deaths against that horror. Also, what will Hrothgar make of the son of Ecgtheow? The blood feud still remains from when Ecgtheow killed Heatholaf. Is Beowulf intending to end the feud with this good deed? Ah, here we are. I should go back to my post and let the Geats continue on with my men.
Back to the tower I guess. Us Danes haven’t had such excitement and hope in a long time. I do hope Beowulf succeeds.
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Dylan! First off, love the blog title, quite inventive :) Second, I love the modernist stream-of-consciousness-esque style in which you wrote your entry. I did the same character but didn't develop him as fully psychologically as you did. Keep up the great work!
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p.s. i adored his little conversation with himself about outfit choice too, btw
Tehe, that was very entertaining. I like that he was debating what to wear and talking to himself about how he needed to appear to Beowulf and gang. It was definitely an interesting side of the character that I wouldn't have thought of. It was really good and really fun to read!
ReplyDeleteDylan, I must say, I am a huge fan of stream of consciousness works and your blog here illustrates that quite well. I like how you establish the character of the sentry through the various thoughts you think that he would think. Additionally, I must say that you seem to sum up the position and the state of the Danes quite nicely through the sentry’s thoughts. By using stream of consciousness writing, you create questions that will later be answered in the story (eg. Why would he grace our shores?) Lastly, I like the little thought at the end about the Danes not having had excitement for a while.
ReplyDeleteDylan, you perfectly captured the image of a meak, insecure coast guard attempting to defend his warrior clan. I loved the interjection where the guard thought about clothing choice! You also did a great job at showing how the Danes had been looking for something like this to happen for a long time, and that though they hope that Beowulf can free them of their terror, they still have their doubts. Bravo!
ReplyDeleteDylan, I thought this was great. You presented the thoughts and ideas of the outlook in a very honest manner. It was also slightly comedic - in a Dylan McAdam sort of way. :P This was very well written and I enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteHow comedic and witty this was. You should look at Zahid's, you both use the stream-of-conscious technique quite well. I enjoy his thoughts around himself and his presentation, and enjoy how you make it seem as if external action is still going on while he is thinking all of this. Great job Dylan MyBoy.
ReplyDeleteDylan, I really like this take on the coast-guard. It is however very fitting that you would write this since you consider this so often, wearing the best shirts. I also really like the stream-of-consciousness style as Alex mentioned.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Wear your neon yellow shirt soon. It's legit.
Nice little digressions like worrying what to wear and remembering how much he doesn't like fighting in the rain. Clever and funny but also true to the original.
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