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Christian hero beowulf
Christianity in beowulf role
Christian hero beowulf
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Throughout literature there have been countless parallels and references to the story of Christ as written in the Bible. Even in such unexpected places as in seemingly pagan poems of ancient Danes and Geats- an epic with dragons and monsters- one still finds similar biblical allusions. In just such an unexpected place, the epic Beowulf, it's title hero and his circumstance, become an allegory for the story of Christ. In this sense, Beowulf can be seen as a Christian story of salvation.
The similarities between Beowulf and the story of Christ are striking. All one would need to see the many parallels between the two would be a simple sign or thought that this allegory does exist. After that simple hint of what to look for, the evidence in the text itself becomes proof enough that Beowulf is indeed a allegory for Christ.
Firstly, the people, the Danes and Geats, in Beowulf live in a seemingly pagan setting but never once do they mention the Gods or even allude to any of the Nordic myths. Instead, every reference to a higher deity is described by the "Ruler, the Judge of Deeds, the Lord God, Protector of Heaven, and the Glorious King." (Beowulf, pg. 29) This distinctly Christian concept of monotheism should be the reader's first point of awareness on what type of story Beowulf actually represents.
The theology which appears in the Christian allusions in Beowulf is very vague and indefinete: there is no mention of Christ, the saints, miracles, Mary His Mother, specific doctrines of the church, martyrs of the church, the New Tes...
It is common opinion that Beowulf was written by a Christian poet. This was probably true because at the time when it was written, most of the few people who knew how to read and write were in the clergy. There are various references within the poem to elements of the Christian religion. However, the story is about Pagan people and certain aspects of their culture are even glorified. The ambiguity of Beowulf’s religious content has caused confusion as to what significance religion had in inspiring the author and in what manner the author meant to inspire or influence his audience. I do not think that Beowulf is a Christian allegory because Beowulf had very little in common with the Biblical figure of Jesus Christ. I think that religion was not the primary thematic concern of the writer. Although there are discrepancies between the two styles of thinking, Beowulf seems to praise values which were considered moral and good among all humanity, both Christian and Pagan.
Beowulf is steeped in a pagan tradition that depicts nature as hostile and forces of death as uncontrollable. Blind fate picks random victims; man is never reconciled with the world. Beowulf ends a failure. There is some truth in this conclusion, but for the most part, someone who didn’t have a well-lived life has most likely portrayed it.
In the epic of Beowulf, Herot is plagued by the monster Grendel. A hero, Beowulf is summoned to defeat the beast. Beowulf is a Christian and Pagan based poem that includes several examples of each element. There are several biblical illusions in the text that give insight into the use of Christianity but just the same, there are several references to the Devil and Hell and Cain. Therefore the poem must be both Christian and Pagan because it represents both.
Scholars have argued about the religious stance of the epic poem Beowulf for centuries. Although the man who put the poem down on paper, known as the Beowulf poet, was a devout Christian, the actual poem itself is pagan. There are many clues in the epic that lead us to this conclusion such as the numerous references to pagan symbols, namely the symbol of fate. Also, the central idea of revenge in the poem opposes the ideas of Christianity. The poem also contains many breaches of the Ten Commandments, which prove that the story is not Christian. However, the biggest clue to the paganism of Beowulf is the scene that contains the burial of Beowulf and the building and idolization of the tower, all of which go directly against the Christian religion.
In this religion, Christians believe that: no one can survive and be protected without the faith of believing in God, that the son of God is to be humble and unselfish, and that the life that one life and happiness was given to them by God. Beowulf a New Telling was originally written in Paganism then converted to Christianity. Christianity and Paganism are very close religions. There are many discussions rather Beowulf has Element of Christianity or not. People say that Beowulf represents God through his leadership, and risking his life for the peoples benefit, much like God did. Although others believe that Beowulf's heroic pride for defeating the demons, comes in conflicts with the Christian values. When Beowulf is taking on the monster, he says “Grendel, child of Cain, come down into Heortot. I am Beowulf, son of Ecgtheow. I am Beowulf, not afraid of you. I am Beowulf, come to kill you!”(Nye 69). As people know too much pride in oneself will lead to a decline in the person's life. Beowulf is continually referring back to God as his savior in this book, Beowulf talks about his battle with Grendel's mother and says that he would have died if it wasn't for God guarding him. People thrilled of the win, “His men were too astonished to rise a cheer. Some fell on their knees and offered thanks to God” (Nye 122). Meaning with someone’s dedication to the faith of God, with his protection you will be safe. Much like God, he sacrifices to die on the cross for his people and the future, Beowulf sacrifices his life while fighting the dragon for his
...ash between good and evil. Beowulf is a representation of a Godly figure, possibly Christ, whereas his enemies represent figures of darkness, possibly Satan. Due to his battle with Grendel, Beowulf realises the true abilities of Gods power and develops into a more Saint like character who is more concerned with giving help rather than Gaining fame. He seeks Gods guidance, but looks to pagan ideals when he deems so. Although he never completely takes complete advantage of Gods power, he does earn the fame and glory that he fought bravely for.
The poem Beowulf is a renowned story that displays many different surroundings and religious beliefs. Some may believe the story of Beowulf portrays pagan beliefs or customs and others believe that the poem is more in agreement with Christian ethnicity. The author of Beowulf uses both Christian and pagan elements in the poem to define the heroic warrior, Beowulf, and the evil dragons. After reading Beowulf the author clearly shows how Beowulf is a man who is filled with Christian customs and is willing to die and defend the world against evil using the help of God.
Beowulf contains multiple instances of the usage of symbolism to Christianity. Symbolism is portrayed through the characters and situations in the epic poem. According to the Danes in the epic, Beowulf is viewed as a savior. Staver states, “Jesus is the young warrior who comes to earth to fight with Satan” (Staver 155). This means that Beowulf is a symbol of Jesus for the way Beowulf leaves his home to embark on a journey to rescue Herot by defeating Grendel, and it shows the way the Anglo Saxons projected their faith in Christianity through Beowulf. Also, Grendel is used in Beowulf as a symbol of Christianity as a representation of Satan or a spawn of hell. In the modern English translation of Beowulf, Rafeel writes:
What are the qualities of an epic hero? An Epic hero is a hero on a
Beowulf was originally thought of as a Pagan tale which happened to be scribed by a Christian monk. This first piece of information confused people immensely. Some found it hard to believe that a Pagan legend would be left in the hands of someone who worshiped Christianity to scribe it on paper for all the read. The Christian speculations that many encompassed are justifiable because of the various Christian references and elements that can be decoded and interpreted within the text. An example of this within the poem is the reference of the biblical figure Cain being a related figure to the despise...
Beowulf has been estimated to have been written over twelve hundred years ago. According to The Norton Anthology Of English Literature, “It is now widely believed that Beowulf is the work of a single poet who was a Christian and that his poem reflects a well-established Christian tradition,” (37). This conclusion was likely drawn by accounting for the time at which Beowulf was written and factoring in most people in the area of where it was believed to be written had already been converted to Christianity. In a way, this provides the best explanation for why Beowulf contains a high level of Christian influences for the story to have taken place when it did. Dr. J. Michael Stitt of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas says that, “Much of this epic poem is dedicated to conveying and exemplifying the heroic code which values such attributes as strength, courage and honor. Conflicting with this ideology are other factors such as Christianity, and these tensions affect the lives and decisions of the narrative's characters.” If the one of the main focuses in Beowulf is the heroic code and the heroic code convicts with the authors beliefs than why did he write it? This is not to say that authors do not write about things that they ...
Beowulf has multiple references to God and how God chooses what happens in his life. For example on the very first page of the story (Beowulf, 27) we see that God saw the need for a king so he sent a king to the Danes. This shows us that God is able to see his people and in a fair and just way he sends them a much needed king. Later on, we see how God punishes those who go against his will. On page 29 we read that Grendel is from Cain.
Even though many Pagan influences appear in the poem, Christian influences override them. An example would be when Beowulf saved the Danes from Grendel. He also expressed a fair attitude towards battles when he refused to use a weapon. The idea of loyalty, a hero, and a giver are all signs of Christianity. Beowulf could be seen as Christ when trying to help the people as Grendel could be compared to Satan who tries to destroy happiness and well-doing.
In this recognized epic, Beowulf, is abound in supernatural elements of pagan associations; however, the poem is the opposite of pagan barbarism. The presentation of the story telling moves fluidly within Christian surroundings as well as pagan ideals. Beowulf was a recited pagan folklore where the people of that time period believed in gods, goddesses, and monsters. It's significance lies in an oral history where people memorized long, dense lines of tedious verse. Later, when a written tradition was introduced they began to write the story down on tablets. The old tale was not first told or invented by the commonly known, Beowulf poet. This is clear from investigations of the folk lore analogues. The manuscript was written by two scribes around AD 1000 in late West Saxon, the literary dialect of that period. It is believed that the scribes who put the old materials together into their present form were Christians and that his poem reflects a Christian tradition....