In the original poem, the dragon fought and defeated by Beowulf is “unnamed” or “unknown”. Even in the animated Beowulf 2007 movie, the creature is also not given any name.
There is actually a lot more mystery about the dragon particularly its kind. According to science, there are many different species of dragon. Just to name a few of them, we have the drakes, wyverns, hydras, and etc…
What’s really interesting about the dragon described in the Beowulf poem is that, it does seem to have logical way of thinking. In short, it was not just an ordinary creature.
Beowulf thought that his death defying adventure of slaying monsters had ended when he finally put an end to Grendel and his mother which made him became the king of the Geats.
At a later period of time, there was a slave who entered a certain dragon lair and stole the creature’s most precious cup from its treasures. This really angered the dragon so much that it attacked the neighboring towns as a form of revenge.
Here is what I noticed about it. If the dragon was just some kind of ordinary creature, losing the cup just mean nothing. Surely, it will be just fine.
However, the dragon seem to possess an emotional feeling and intellect similar to a human. Thus, losing its precious cup was what triggered its emotion to seek revenge.
In my own personal opinion, the dragon was unique because it was probably demonic in nature like Grendel and his mother. This could be the reason why the Geats run away in fear leaving only Beowulf and his most trusted companion Wiglaf behind.
Aside from the mystery if the dragon had a name, there are some good chances that this creature can also utter words or speak human language which is again, similar to Grendel and his mother.
Conclusion
Sadly, the only named opponent of the legendary hero Beowulf in the original poem is Grendel. Both Grendel’s mother and the dragon are not given any identifiable names. Yet, these two creatures are a far more formidable opponent than Grendel that nearly killed Beowulf at the heat of their battles.
There is actually a lot more mystery about the dragon particularly its kind. According to science, there are many different species of dragon. Just to name a few of them, we have the drakes, wyverns, hydras, and etc…
What’s really interesting about the dragon described in the Beowulf poem is that, it does seem to have logical way of thinking. In short, it was not just an ordinary creature.
Reason that Triggered the Dragon to Attack
Beowulf thought that his death defying adventure of slaying monsters had ended when he finally put an end to Grendel and his mother which made him became the king of the Geats.
At a later period of time, there was a slave who entered a certain dragon lair and stole the creature’s most precious cup from its treasures. This really angered the dragon so much that it attacked the neighboring towns as a form of revenge.
Here is what I noticed about it. If the dragon was just some kind of ordinary creature, losing the cup just mean nothing. Surely, it will be just fine.
However, the dragon seem to possess an emotional feeling and intellect similar to a human. Thus, losing its precious cup was what triggered its emotion to seek revenge.
In my own personal opinion, the dragon was unique because it was probably demonic in nature like Grendel and his mother. This could be the reason why the Geats run away in fear leaving only Beowulf and his most trusted companion Wiglaf behind.
Aside from the mystery if the dragon had a name, there are some good chances that this creature can also utter words or speak human language which is again, similar to Grendel and his mother.
Conclusion
Sadly, the only named opponent of the legendary hero Beowulf in the original poem is Grendel. Both Grendel’s mother and the dragon are not given any identifiable names. Yet, these two creatures are a far more formidable opponent than Grendel that nearly killed Beowulf at the heat of their battles.
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