Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
The religious portrayal of beowulf
Christian influences in beowulf chapter 1
Culture of beowulf
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The religious portrayal of beowulf
Christian influences in beowulf chapter 1
Culture of beowulf
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The religious portrayal of beowulf
The Wyrd Cross between Christianity and Fate in Beowulf/Grendel The poem Beowulf, authored by an anonymous person, remains to be one of the oldest epics in the Anglo-Saxon tradition. The poem serves as an important influence for later literature; the novel Grendel by John Gardner is one example. The settings of Beowulf and Grendel are a result of the assimilation of Christianity into the Anglo-Saxon pagan religion. Not only did the Anglo-Saxons belief in spiritual predestination but also in fatalism.
Not surprisingly, in the poem Beowulf, the characters of Grendel and Beowulf showed the significant role of religion. Biblical allusions were scattered throughout the poem. The alienated character Grendel was a descendant “of Cain (who was) punished forever for the crime of Abel’s death.” Due to their blood connection to Cain, Grendel’s parents were “murderous creatures banished by God.” God has exiled all monsters; shunned them away from the prosperous lives of humans.
There have been epic stories about saints and fearless pioneers who bring down shrewdness and convey peace to the general population in which they reside, Beowulf follows this traditional concept. The Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf is the most essential work of Old English writing. The epic recounts the account of a saint, a sovereign named Beowulf, who frees the Danes of the beast Grendel and recounts his brave demonstrations battling Grendel 's mom. All through the epic, the Anglo-Saxon story teller utilizes numerous components to construct profundity to the characters. Only a couple of the essential character components in Beowulf are Wealth and Honor, Biblical, and Man versus Wild topics.
Religion in Macbeth and Beowulf Whether it be a play or a poem religion will influence how the author writes their story. Some writings might hold more religious standing than others, for example Macbeth and Beowulf. While both Macbeth and Beowulf express Christian views, Macbeth’s Christian standing is stronger because it doesn’t use paganistic views like Beowulf, and the characters express a more biblical background. Shakespeare's biblical imagery in Macbeth is far greater than Beowulf’s biblical standing.
(Beowulf 478-480). The Anglo-Saxons, as a whole, depended on God for their well-being and protection. This dependency shows the significance God held within their everyday lives and how they had resorted to praying and religious rituals to attain peace. In addition, the epic mentions the relations of Grendel to Cain, the brother and murderer of Abel (Beowulf 104-108). This portrays a direct biblical reference within the story itself and provides background knowledge of their belief system.
Beowulf is a beautiful tale of heroism that inspires the audience to live a heroic life without holding onto illusions and false hopes. No mortal is strong enough to win against death itself, but Beowulf has depicted how the human will can transcend and fight the battle against the worst of human fears. There are three evils that Beowulf personified: Physical, moral and metaphysical. A descendant of Cain, Grendel is the most frightening personification of physical Evil.
Many religious references are made throughout Beowulf. God is referred to as "Eternal Lord", "the Almighty", and "Almighty Judge. " The story of Cain is hugely referenced throughout Beowulf. Pagan practices within the text include the burning of Beowulf’s body after he died along with surrounding his body with luxurious treasures. The characters refer to God as their one and only savior.
I chose to write my essay over the first topic given in the unit one Assessment document. I analyzed how religion was a common motif throughout “Beowulf”, “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight”, and “ The Wife of Bath Prologue”. In the Poem “Beowulf”, him and his community had a tendency to view god highly, and thank him for their accomplishments. They were highly influenced by religion, which is why they applied it in their every day life. Then in “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight”, the community also was influenced by religion because of the code of chivalry.
By the time this monastic scribe began his work, the stories of Beowulf were already legendary tales of this era; legends that were passed down orally. The poet cautiously uses this information to compose an epic poem while also combining the notions of the pagan wyrd (fate) and dom (worth), along with the Christian ideals of refinement and final judgement. A pagan poem in its own right, steeped in ancient Germanic culture, yet it is baptized in lax Christian comments and passages. However, while the passages are referred to as Christian, there is never any reference within the poem, to Christ Himself. When we are first introduced to Grendel, we see the first signs of Christian passages appearing: God had condemned them as kin of Cain.
One of the common themes in Beowulf is religion and life after death. As would be expected of a work scribed by monks, the epic has many references to God and Christianity. However, Beowulf also has many pagan elements that contradict the beliefs of Christianity. Beowulf himself, though he praises God in many occasions, is not guaranteed a spot in Christian heaven because he is an “unbaptized pagan” (106n3). The many pagan elements in this epic emphasize the Anglo-Saxon values of glory, vengeance, and wealth.
The Christian influence in Beowulf’s epic adds certain meaning and connotations for the events that are happening within the story. Without it, many implications written would hold no meaning, and instead appear to be completely random and without any reason. In Beowulf’s fight against Grendel’s mother, Beowulf managed to survive a fatal blow due to miracles created by God (Seamus, pg 107). If Christianity is taken out and God is removed from the story, Beowulf’s survival would’ve been very unlikely or he was truly lucky. A moment after, however, Beowulf stumbled upon a lucky encounter once again; a godsend sword that is able to slay Grendel’s mother was just hanging around the cave walls (pg. 107-108).
The poem remarks a biblical reference as “Grendel … A kindred of Cain” first surfaces. Moreover, the poem often alludes to God as well as the worlds of Heaven and Hell further elucidating the Anglo Saxon views. Beowulf clearly demonstrates his acknowledgement of God countless times: In fact, Beowulf could well have been slayed by Grendel’s fiendish mother had “God not saved him [Beowulf].” The presence of religious influences are reinstated by the glut of glorifications and innuendos of Christianity and the concept of God within the Anglo Saxon society. Even the mighty King Hrothgar depicts these values showing his scarce concern for material objects “Sharing the gifts God had bestowed on him” signifying his compassion, a requisite for Christian
In Anglo-Saxon history, Beowulf is noted as one of the most memorable epic poems. Beowulf has shown certain aspects of the Anglo-Saxon’s real life values, and one of these includes religion. Two types of religious elements can be found in Beowulf: Christian elements and pagan elements. Beowulf tends to have a variety of beliefs. Many times, pagan views are brought up in the poem and the idea that fate will be the decision maker in their lives.
Christopher Cain, professor and expert in Old English and Medieval Scandinavian literature and culture, published an essay analyzing the relationship between Beowulf and the Old Testament, as well as the presence of paganism in this poem. In the essay, it is noted that “the general tone of the poem and its ethical viewpoint are decidedly Christian;” the poet relied heavily upon the Bible, as can be evidenced by “allusions to Cain, the Creation, and the Deluge,” which are all Old Testament allusions (Cain). The characters themselves also serve to represent Christian ideologies, though references to Germanic culture appear frequently. For instance, this is embodied in the scene where Beowulf is fighting to rid Heorot of Grendel, and “Beowulf recognizes it to be God's will that determines the outcome of the fight—” not his own strength (Cain).
Beowulf embodied the ideals of the Vikings in the fact that he chose to fight for another kingdom, protect his sacred name, and fight for his glory and