Fears manifest themselves in the minds of men as monsters. The monsters of Beowulf symbolize those fears that course through the minds of the characters, and carry substantial themes that progress throughout the epic. Men combat fears on several levels. Physically, men fear monsters because of their hideous appearance, and great strength. Psychologically, monsters act as illusions in order to mask the fears of men. Originally perceived as opposing God, and divine entities, monsters produce a spiritual fear embedded deeply within the minds of men. Monsters play a significant role altogether in and throughout Beowulf.
             Monsters in Beowulf pose a physical threat to society. "And now alone I shall settle affairs with Grendel, the monster, the demon." Beowulf tells the people of Herot that he will rescue them from Grendel, the monster. The excerpt portrays Grendel as a physical being that frightens the Herot citizens. Beowulf reassures everyone that he will cleanse the town of the evil impurities. "Grendel and the dragon are threats to the security of the lands they infest just as human enemies would be, but they are not part of the social order and presumably have no one to avenge their deaths..." The quotation describes the physical fears that men have facing the monsters and dragons. The fear unmistakably creates problems for the people, because of their inability to enter their mead hall after dusk, for fear of Grendel, one of the many monsters in the epic. The created physical fear in the minds of men, calls for the need of a warrior to save the people from their dilemma, by defeating the!
             monster. "So the old monster became images of the evil spirit or spirits, or rather the evil spirits entered into the monsters and took visible shape in the hideous bodies of pyrsas and sigelhearwan of heathen imagination." This quotation, derived from Tolkien's critique of Beowulf, indicates that monsters n...