Comparing Beowulf And Inferno

One of the largest, most diverse, and global religions today is Christianity. With such a global scope, the religion has been adapted to suit many different cultures; each adding their own unique beliefs and cultures to fuse with the Christian belief system. A prime example of this are the epics Beowulf and Inferno. The first epic Beowulf, written in the 8th century by a monk, recalls the tales of a larger than life hero in the namesake character Beowulf as he triumphs in battle against various horrors that haunt the Scandinavian kingdoms. While strongly pagan in the culture depicted in the book as well as the people and monsters, the Christian belief is seen to be strongly added into the story to help convince the local people to adopt those traditions. Inferno, written by a Florentine author Dante, follows a depiction of the author himself as he descends through hell to gain insight into the recognition of sin and punishment. This story is significantly more Christian in its culture, setting, and theme than Beowulf. Even with stronger religious influence, Inferno also adds local pagan beliefs into the story borrowing from ancient Greek and Roman culture then adapting it to a Christian setting. Although Inferno and Beowulf differ in the cultures synthesized and extent in which Christian belief effects the story, ultimately their underlaying

Things such as famous monsters and characters from pre-existing cultures make "cameos" in the stories or are given backstories to make them Christian. Allusions can be very effective as many people have knowledge of these stories, therefore they can be introduced to produce a desired effect on the audience without having to go into detail. For Inferno, this is seen with the use of monsters and heroes from Greek and Roman myth placed in the setting of Hell. As depicted by Dante, Ulysses resides in hell