Beowulf Religion

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The Early Middle Ages was a time of great conflict and religious identity. People were still in fear from the Dark Ages and there was constant worry from Scandinavian society of being attacked. The Catholic Church was a very powerful entity after the fall of the Roman Empire and Islam was on the rise. War was very prominent during this time with the Catholic Church calling for military expeditions in the name of God. The Crusades took up a majority of this time period in the name of religion, but no one ever won. With the constant confusion as to what was the ‘proper’ religion, many tried other ways than war to convince the world that their religion was ‘right’. Out of these attempts the epic poem Beowulf emerged. Beowulf was written …show more content…

Beowulf is offered to become the next king of Geatland, but refuses and agrees to advise King Hygelac’s son after King Hygelac dies. Sadly, the King’s son dies shortly after the he does and Beowulf is forced to take the throne. Beowulf rules Geatland peacefully for about 50 years. Then one day, someone steals treasure from the dragon that lives under Geatland. The dragon becomes angry and starts tormenting the Geats. Beowulf knows he must defeat this dragon to protect and save his people. During this battle however, he needs the help of another, Wiglaf, and uses a sword, much unlike his past great battles. Beowulf and Wiglaf defeat the dragon at the cost of Beowulf’s life. He dies from the bite he received during the battle that carried with it a powerful and deadly venom. Beowulf’s death showed that even the greatest warriors must fall and no one was supposed to live forever. There were many prominent themes in Beowulf such as heroism, revenge, family ties, and fate. However, the theme that seemed to stand out the most was Christianity and how it was promoted throughout this epic poem. Around the time this poem was based and written was when Christianity was more widely accepted than other religions. Pagan religions were being encouraged to convert to Christianity. Beowulf promotes Christianity and its truths in order to encourage people to convert and stay with

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