Beowulf

"All beings here on God's earth, wherever it is written that we go, taking our bodies from death's cold bed to the unbroken sleep that follows life's feast."
                      - from Beowulf, Chapter 15

"He who can earn it should fight for the glory of his name; fame after death is the noblest of goals."
                     -Beowulf, from Beowulf, Chapter 21

"And death would be better for them all, and for you, that the kind of life you can lead, branded with disgrace!"
                    -Wiglaf, from Beowulf, Chapter 39