Taking a Look at Beowulf

The story of Beowulf represents the merging of two cultural belief systems: paganism and Christianity. Historically, the Anglo-Saxon culture was based upon pagan practices- idolatry, worship of many Gods and a specific warrior’s code of conduct. Beowulf was born of this culture as a legend passed down through centuries by oral tradition until shortly after their conversion to Christianity. It was finally preserved in written form by an obviously Christian author in an attempt to unify the two belief systems, and in doing so hopefully further convincing the new Anglo-Saxon believers that the two cultures could be compatible with one another. The character of Beowulf becomes the ultimate Christian hero, bound to the Anglo-Saxon warrior’s code yet giving credit and praise to the Christian God for his victories. It is from this context that the story presents the conflict of good and evil in its characters, its imagery and its symbolism. In this way the author hopes to inspire faith and belief in God, demonstrate how God deals with the forces of evil and ultimately how God is the answer to triumph over evil or adversity.

Beowulf was a very interesting and entertaining epic poem and movie. It tells the story about the different challenges Beowulf had to go through and accomplish. The book and the movie both showed similarities for the whole time. Also it had some differences to when it came to different events that occurred. Beowulf was a very strong and brave character, and he faced a lot of challenges. The challenges he faced was the battle with Grendel, the battle with Grendel’s mother, the battle with the dragon and so on and so forth.

The story of Beowulf deals with life, death, violence, kings, and monsters. Written around 800 CE, and then picked up hundreds of years later to be rewritten by a monk, it is written well after the coming of Christ. It could be simply read as an action adventure, filled with conquests and elaborate feasts, as were common of Old English tales. The story is not that simple though, and gives us a peek into a culture going through some drastic changes. Once built upon a Pagan belief system void of Christ and saturated with values such as revenge and violence, the Anglo-Saxons did not immediately adopt all of Christianity. There was a lengthy time in which both sets of beliefs were muddled and weaved together haphazardly, where no one religion was distinct. Beowulf is an example of these cultural influences crashing together. While Christianity in Beowulf, the Old English epic poem, looks different than the Christianity we recognize today, the story is built with Christian values.

Movies and books are never the exact same, sometimes even the whole plot is changed around. In the book Beowulf the plot, characters, and setting are a lot different than they are when the movie was created. If a person watched the movie before they read the book, it may be totally confusing to read. In the book, Beowulf shows up and plans to fight with his men, then leaves to go back to his own kingdom. In the movie Beowulf, Beowulf ends up staying and becoming king of Dane Land.

Within the poem Beowulf, the poet utilizes the Christian religion to symbolize the elements of good and evil and Heaven and Hell. Beowulf is the oldest known English epic poem. The manuscripts date back to about 1000 A.D., when two scribes wrote it down for posterity. The poem was handed down from the Anglo-Saxon period, and through the retelling of the poem, it changed a little each time. The poem creates an oral depiction of an epic hero who strived to fight against the forces of evil. There really was a “historical” Beowulf who helped the Geats and Danes fight off pirates, but he was neither King of the Geats nor Danish hero at any time. In fact, he was not considered a man of any

What are the challenges of the Anglo-Saxon life, that Beowulf faces? The strongest competitors Beowulf faced were Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon.

In eighth-century Anglo-Saxon society, an important transition occurred from the use paganism to the new traditions of Christianity. Beowulf is an epic poem in which the main character Beowulf has an internal conflict regarding two religions. To further understand why Beowulf has both Christian and pagan influences you must first understand the Anglo-Saxon culture. In the eighth century, Christianity was evolving into the orthodox religion for the people. However, aspects of pagan culture were still being observed, but to a lesser extent. This connection led to many works of the time being of both religions. Beowulf was written by an anonymous Christian monk; the ideals of the epic poem represents Christianity, paganism, and coexists as both faiths.

Beowulf is an Anglo-Saxon epic that was transmitted verbally for hundreds of years before it was written down. Around the time of its composition, Christianity was beginning to gain prominence in England and was quickly replacing the animistic religion of the Celts. As a result of the dueling religions of the time, the poem includes influences from both Christianity and paganism, leaving its readers to wonder which religion had the most sway over the poet. Beowulf is a fundamentally more Christian epic on account of Beowulf’s resemblances of Jesus Christ, its allusions to the Bible, and its intimation of a supreme, monotheistic religion.

Many people believe that initially, Beowulf was a Pagan artifact. In fact, such belief has developed further to support that an anonymous Christian rewrote the piece with the intention to apply Christian characters in the first script. Academics, however, differ on whether the central thematic argument was Christian or Pagan. The author remarkably puts actions into the context of the Bible owing to the impulse at the era of converting everyone to Christianity. By, interlocking the old Pagan elements of folklore and Christian belief, Beowulf grows into a standard of fiction, which is difficult to outshine. The epic of Beowulf has no recognized author ever since its original tradition. However, it does represent the culture of the Anglo-Saxon from which it originated. Besides, it serves its goal of moral teaching as a work of art and the meaning hero-life (Disraeli). The poem’s hero, known as Beowulf, seems to display great bravery in all the things he takes part in during his time. Indeed, Beowulf represents one of the greatest epic heroes in history; he symbolizes bravery and honor, loyalty to his people, and the reputation he holds, as he represents the Anglo-Saxon culture.

The epic poem Beowulf, was written sometime in the eighth century by an unknown author. It was based on legend passed down over time. Prior to the time the poem was written, Anglo Saxons had converted from Germanic Paganism to Christianity. Some people argue that it was a Pagan poem rewritten by a person or persons educated in Christianity. “ has come down from heathen times and acquired its Christian character gradually and piecemeal from a succession of minstrels.” ( Hector Monro Chadwick as quoted by Brodeur 182), while others believed that Christianity and Paganism both belonged in the poem. “almost without exception so deeply ingrained in the very fabric of the poem that they cannot be explained away as the work of a reviser or

An epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events. In the story Beowulf ,the main character is a prime example of an epic hero. Beowulf being the main character of the story Beowulf, depicts the characteristics of an epic hero because he is filled with supernatural abilities such as strength, he values honor, glory, and fame, and he is courageous and brave. Throughout the story Beowulf shows many supernatural abilities that help point us toward the fact that he is an epic hero.

Beowulf is the literal definition of strength, mental and physical, as he shows this time after time. “The monster's whole body was in pain, a tremendous wound appeared on his shoulder. Sinews split and the bone-lappings burst. Beowulf was granted the glory of winning; Grendel was driven under the fen-banks,

Throughout the story, one of the main topics is Beowulf’s strength. Even in the beginning descriptions of Beowulf, he is first described as stronger than anyone in this world (111) and the strongest of the Geats (110). Beowulf used his incredible strength to defeat Grendel and during their battle, even Grendel acknowledged his amazing power: “He (Grendel) knew at once that nowhere on Earth had he met a man whose hands

Strength is without a doubt one of the most important traits which a hero should possess and the Anglo-Saxon’s felt the same way. Beowulf’s strength can be compared to that of the American comic book heroes, Superman and Batman, for he is deemed the “strongest and greatest of the Geats”. The first time that his strength is witnessed, not just spoken of, is when he kills Grendel by ripping the monstrous villain’s arm off. But his most notable display of strength occurs when he enters into combat with Grendel’s mother. When everything seems to be going all wrong for Beowulf, he spies a “heavy” sword hanging on the wall of her lair. With all his power and might, Beowulf drew the sword, “hammered by giants...and….so massive that no ordinary man could life it”, from its scabbard. He “lifts it high over his head”, the sword clasped

Beowulf is like every classic hero: born from noble birth, with great strength, who is usually adored by many. When it comes to Beowulf, we have two versions each a little bit different, one is the classic epic poem Beowulf, and then the movie, a more modern version of him. While discussing the poem and watching the movie you can automatically see that there is several differences and similarities. Everyone sees some differences compared to other but there is always differences and hopefully after this essay you will walk away with a more clear understanding of the epic poem and movie Beowulf. And see all of the character changes and development.