Think about Neville

[Talisman]

--- In the_old_crowd at yahoogroups.com, Randy Estes <estesrandy at y...> 
wrote:
 
> I also think Dumbledore is an allusion to Beowulf...<snip>
> I think this means that Dumbledore will die fighting a
> dragon...<snip>
 Randy


Talisman:

You see Dumbledore as Beowulf, huh? Well, it's true enough that
Rowling choose an Anglo-Saxon name for the old guy. 

I must say, I've seen Beowulf in the HP series, myself, but in
rather a different place.

When Harry drives Godric's sword through the Basilisk's head, and
receives a deadly fang in exchange, it reminds me forcefully of the
death of Beowulf.

(I'm rather enamoured of Beowulf's death, and have a framed fin-de-
siècle etching purporting to depict the event, upon which I gaze
lovingly from time to time.)

Just as Harry was "mortally" wounded while killing the serpent,
Beowulf was pierced by the deadly fang of the wyrm, and died after
killing this final foe.

While Beowulf's death is a "perfect" death for an ancient warrior-
king, it was certainly not the perfect death for a twelve-year-old
boy.

By emulating Beowulf's death, but then saving Harry (via phoenix
tears)I've always read Rowling as conferring Beowulf's mantle
(hero / defender of the people / leader by right)to Harry, who must
live to carry on in that capacity.

You, possibly, see him as Wiglaf?

Talisman, who keeps an Early English Text Society facsimile of the
MS Cotton Vitellius A. xv around so that she can complete her own
translation, some happy day when she is so old and querulous that
everyone will leave her to her own pursuits. And, who would very
much like to die Beowulf's death, but will probably just stroke out
in the process of telling some jerk to eff off.

...þá his ágen wæs glédum forgrunden.
Þá gén gúðcyning miht gemunde· mægenstrengo slóh
hildebille þæt hyt on heafolan stód níþe genýded...


...then the war-king remembered his strength again / with mighty
force struck with his battle-sword / so that it stood in [the
serpent's] head / driven by violence...

Beowulf, lines 2678-2681
transliterated from the MS. Cotton Vitellius A.xv