The Life and Society of Beowulf

In Beowulf, the importance of religion and pagan beliefs are extremely evident throughout the entire work. From the beginning it is deducted that there is a early Christian belief in the concept of heaven or at least in an afterlife. From the start of the epic, Beowulf regards his fate as one of a great warrior. This fate is to have as much honor as he possibly can, but all the while be prepared for death. This fate, as shown in Beowulf, is that of a great warrior and ruler. The quest for honor before death is perhaps the central goal for all true warriors. Beowulf’s quest for this honor before death over all else that is gifted to him such as power, money, and longevity. Beowulf’s glory before death is shown in his actions such as destroying Grendal, hunting Grendal’s mother, and in elimination of the great dragon after being abandoned by his men. Although he realizes he is a great warrior, Beowulf is also very aware of his own mortality, and knows that if he continues to battle he will be killed. Even though he is aware of this mortality he obviously does not fear it. The lack of fear of fate and death is what makes Beowulf a truly great warrior. Beowulf confronts fate, he doesn’t hide from it. Beowulf is ready to be an honorable warrior who dies protecting his people and honoring his king. Beowulf represents a great warrior because he is able to confront and accept his fate. Throughout Beowulf there is much evidence in the religious change from Paganism to Christianity. In Beowulf, the contrast between the pagan beliefs and the Christian belief in one god, is very interesting. In the Christian opinion, a monster is a once human that been deformed and mentally disturbed. However, the monsters in Beowulf, especially the Dragon, are much more attributed to pagan beliefs. The year that Beowulf’s writing is attributed to is 900 A.D. By this time, Christianity was spreading all throughout Europe. It has been theorized that the combination of the Christian beliefs and Pagan beliefs were the primary influences to the writer of Beowulf. The specific elements that are present in Beowulf, are the manifestation of super human tendencies. An example of this would be the ability to breathe or save his breath underwater. Also, Beowulf possesses incredible, perhaps impossible strength, enough to fight the monsters hand to hand. The monsters that are mentioned and take a role in Beowulf are also directly related to Pagan beliefs such as notion of the giants who created the sword used to kill Grendal’s mother. Also, the inclusion of a dragon as the main antagonist is quite common in many Pagan stories. It is quite obvious that Beowulf himself is a Pagan. This is deducted from his urge to commit killings of monsters, and his wishes to be cremated. It is quite common in Pagan tradition that the corpse of a honorable man is cremated. Although Beowulf himself might be a Pagan, he exhibits many attributes of a Christian. He seems to understand the plight of the oppressed Danish and tried to help in any way he can. Also, Grendal is described as a decedent of the Old Testament character Cain, who is tricked by Satan into murdering out of envy. This envy is caused by the desire to live with the humans in Herot. The struggle between good