Beowulf is an epic poem that was articulated somewhere around the 8th century by an unknown author. This was a time in which England was in the process of changing from a pagan culture to a Christian society. Since the poem was told around the same time when Christianity was rising then it is difficult to determine if Beowulf is a pagan or Christian poem. Many critics argue if the Christian imagery in this epic poem is the structure of the poem or just an additional aspect. The Christian imagery in Beowulf can be found mainly in the characters, where as the society tends to have a pagan background. Certainly some views can be tied to the pagan culture but the Christian beliefs in the poem are much more dominating.
             The characters in Beowulf display some of the most potent Christian behaviors throughout the entire poem. Although some characters, such as Grendel would not have Christian behaviors, Grendel would be included in Christian beliefs. Grendel of course is the foe of the Danish people. He is a powerful monster that is living down in the darkness and becoming tiresome of the music and singing from Herot, the banquet hall of the Danish King Hrothgar. Grendel being the adversary of the Danish people, is like being the adversary of mankind. He represents the evil and atrociousness in the world. Saying that Grendel lives down in darkness and is irritated with humanity is symbolic because darkness represents evil which can be tied to hell and Satan. Clark says, "The poem's language suggests that Grendel represents evil according to a Christian view of reality . . . " (x) It is clear that a Christian or a person intellectual about Christianity would recognize Grendel's form of evil as Satan-like. It is almost like Grendel is jealous of the happiness of the Danes and so he does evil to ruin that happiness. That is familiar to Satan being cast out of heaven and being envious of the joys of mankind. The author even...