Magic Chant in the 'Old Man's Lament': A Reconsideration of Beowulf 2460B–2461A.

The article reconsiders a magic chant interpretation in the Old Man's Lament in the poem "Beowulf," wherein an anonymous father is depicted mourning for his deceased child. It discusses the sorrow in the lyric of the poem and argues that the elegy sang by the father alludes to a ritual practice with Odinic associations and is a magic chant intended to restore life to the dead. It analyzes the context of Old Man's Lament and relates it to Germanic mythology and its use of Old Norse language.