ving each day to its fullest potential (Ogilvy, 61). In the end of the poem, Beowulf has a premonition that his time has come and that fate will not be so kind to him in his upcoming battle with the dragon. Ultimately in a great fight, Beowulf is killed by the dragon and relives the same fate that the man who died there years before in this same situation. Once again there is a visual reference of the cycle of life that began with the death of the great Shield Sheafson and that will end in the death of the great hero Beowulf. Fate takes its final twist and the life of a great hero comes to an end. The people that have valued their lives in the security blanket that was laid by Beowulf soon find themselves in danger. When the life of their great hero has come to an end, so has their life of safety in a land that they once called their own. Their fate like before, is unknown and a sense of doom and misfortune consumes the end of the poem. Beowulf is one of the oldest European epics. Beowulf is a hero and personalized many important aspects and ideals of this time. He was loyal, selfless, and believed in justice. There are many Germanic elements in the poem that are connected to the ongoing theme of fate. Beowulf lived as a warrior-king figure in feudal society. He lived the Germanic Heroic Code that valued loyalty, strength, and courage. Beowulf also conducted himself with many Anglo-Saxon ideals of conduct that included allegiance to the lord and king, the love of glory that rules the meaning and existence of life, and the belief in the inevitability of fate. Fatalism was a popular mindset of people of this time. Fatalism is the philosophy that all events, actions, or incidents that make up a persons life are determined by fate. It incorporates the belief that people have little or no control over their destiny because what happens is what is meant to be. In a time when future was uncertain and the lives of people could be taken at any ...
