Question

In the following lines from Beowulf, what literary technique has the poet used in the underlined words? To many it seemed the wolf-of-the-waves had won his life

Answer 1

Hello, if the words underlined are "wolf-of-the-waves", then the correct answer is "kenning". It is very similar to a metaphor. Something figurative is used instead of a concrete noun. So, in this case, "the wolf-of-the-waves" actually refers to Grendel's mother.