Beowulf
There are two clearly different interpretations of the poem Beowulf, one being that of a fundamentally Christian nature and the other being a distorted superficial Christian nature. As one would think, these inverse ideas should be easily justifiable or dismissed. However, upon first read, this is not the case. Beowulf has a confusing balance of both pagan and Christian concepts. It is a sort of battle between pride and humility, sacrifice and selfishness. "...The wondrous gifts God had showered on him: He relied for help on the Lord of All, on His care and favor." (pg. 89) The Christian aspects of Beowulf can be seen fairly clearly throughout the poem, but the directly Biblical portions are more evident in the first half. Page 9 is the first obvious Christian ideal, taken directly out of the Old Testament. The murder of Abel by Cain is the explained reason for the existence of the monster, Grendel. Also, on page 117, the Flood from the book of Genesis is described as the cause for the death of the giants, whom the sword that Beowulf used to kill Grendel's mother is from. Throughout the poem, Beowulf repeatedly acknowledges God as his protector and the provider of his great strength. "...if God had not hel
Even though there are some aspects of pride and selfishness, there are just as many, if not more, aspects of humility and sacrifice. Let whoever can win glory before death. Humility is strongly stressed in the Christian faith and there are many specific examples of this in the poem. 97) This is the very opposite of any Christian moral that can be thought of. Some would argue the exact opposite, a pre-Christian nature. The Christian moralizing, although it does change shape often, does not ever cease throughout the writing. The author of Beowulf seems to have a primarily Christian audience and I believe this is why the values are seen strewn throughout the poem. Beowulf constantly tests fate and believes that through courage he can live on in the memory of those who will live after him. It seems apparent that the Christian value system is the desired way of life. Grendel is the evil descendent of a murderer and the hero, Beowulf, with his strength from God, saves the people from disaster. Also, another idea accenting the hint of a non-Christian poem is the pagan war society and their values of revenge. As was stated in the opening, there is a continuous battle between pride and humility, sacrifice and selfishness. Also, the burial of Beowulf at the end of the poem seems to be entirely pagan.
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Acceptance Essays
