Æschere

Æschere as portrayed by Gunnar Eyjólfsson in Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

## Background

Æschere is a retainer to King Hrothgar. He also a close friend, consultant, and mentor to Hrothgar. He is killed by Grendel's Mother when she attacks Heorot after Grendel is fatally wounded by Beowulf. Æschere's head is discovered at the entrance of Grendel's Mother's lair after a party goes out to take revenge.

## Etymology

Æsc: Ash Tree, Lance, Small Ship

Here: Army, Battle, Devastation

Story-wise, Æsc seems unrelated, but Here is relevant as there was a short battle that killed Æschere causing King Hrothgar and the Danes to be devastated.

## Role in *Beowulf*

Æschere's death and consequent beheading solidify Grendel's Mother as a villain, and are justification for Beowulf to go out and fight Grendel's Mother. Æschere's death is also used to show Beowulf's skill at communication when he inspires King Hrothgar to take revenge.

Æschere's death can also be used to show that the bonds between Geats may be weaker than the bonds between Danes by comparing it to Hondscioh's death. "The poet reveals very little about Hondscioh, and does not identify him until Beowulf retells his adventures to Hygelac more than 1,300 lines later. In contrast, only some twenty lines separate Æschere’s death and Hrothgar’s use of his name in a passage"

This thought could be taken further as foreshadowing of the ten Geats abandoning Beowulf before his battle with the dragon.

In some translations, Æschere is also the person who reads for the king, so his death may also describe "an anxiety within Beowulf about 'things' that defy human interpretation [letters] and convey monstrous, marginal, or unknowable messages [beheading] instead."

## Strengths and Weaknesses

#### Strengths:

* A close confidant of the king.
* Having others care about him.
* Having allies who want to avenge him.

#### Weaknesses:

* Monstrous women.
* Being ambushed.

## Lines Referenced in *Beowulf*

fæste befangen, þa heo to fenne gang.
Se wæs Hroþgare hæleþa leofost
on gesiðes had be sæm tweonum,
rice randwiga, þone ðe heo on ræste abreat,
blædfæstne beorn. Næs Beowulf ðær"
(1294-1299)
in a tight hold, then headed for the fen.
To Hrothgar, this man was the most beloved
of the friends he trusted between the two seas.
She had done away with a great warrior,
ambushed him at rest. Beowulf was elsewhere"
 "Denigea leodum. Dead is Æschere,
Yrmenlafes yldra broþor,
min run-wita ond min ræd-bora,
eaxl-gestealla, ðonne we on orlege
hafelan weredon, þonne hniton feþan,
eoferas cynsedan. Swylc scolde eorl wesan,
æþeling ær-god, swylc æschere wæs!
Wearð him on Heorote to handbanan
wælgæst wæfre"
(1323-1331)
He was Yrmenlaf's elder brother
and a soul-mate to me, a true mentor,
my right-hand man when the ranks clashed
and our boar-crests had to take a battering
in the line of action. Aeschere was everything
the world admires in a wise man and a friend.
Then this roaming killer came in a fury
and slaughtered him in Heorot."
 " ... Denum eallum wæs,
winum Scyldinga, weorce on mode
to geþolianne, ðegne monegum,
oncyð eorla gehwæm, syðþan Æscheres
on þam holmclife hafelan metton."
(1417-1421)
to all of the Danes, friends of the Shieldings,
a hurt to each and every one
of that noble company when they came upon
Aeschere's head at the foot of the cliff."
 " ... þær wæs Æschere,
frodan fyrnwitan, feorh uðgenge."
(2122-2123)
from the sage Aeschere, an elder wise in counsel."
(Heaney 2122-2123)

## References

1. ↑ Simpson, J. et. al. (Producers), & Gunnarsson, S. (Director). (2005). Beowulf & Grendel [Motion Picture]. Canada: Eurasia Motion Pictures, United Kingdom: Spice Factory, Iceland: Bjolfskvida (Studios)
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Johnson, M. (1927). A modern English - Old English dictionary. *Cornell University*
3. ↑ Biggs, F.M. (2003). *Hondscioh and Æschere in Beowulf*. Neophilogogus, 87(4), 635-652. https://doi-org.libproxy.mst.edu/10.1023/A:1025471415863
4. ↑ Paz, J. (2013). Æschere's Head, Grendel's Mother, and the Sword That Isn't a Sword: Unreadable Things in Beowulf. *Exemplaria: A Journal of Theory in Medieval and Renaissance Studies*, 25(3), 231-251. https://doi-org.libproxy.mst.edu/10.1179/1041257313z.00000000033
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Heaney, S. (2001). *Beowulf: A New Verse Translation*