BEOWULF ANALYSIS

Beowulf was written in England sometime in the 8th century. Beowulf was written in a time when Christianity was becoming a major religion and Paganism was still widely practiced. Beowulf was originally probably a folklore legend told in early Celtic and Scandinavian cultures that was passed through the ages by word-of-mouth and was written down and revised by a Christian monk in later centuries. Beowulf has a combination of Pagan and Christian influences written into it. This combination makes this story great. The pagan elements in the epic poem Beowulf are evident in the characters superhuman qualities. Beowulf is depicted as a superhero. “...Beowulf,...the strongest of the Geats-greater ...

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167-169). During the fight, Beowulf's strength takes over and Beowulf wrestles with Grendel until he is able to rip one of the monster's arms out of its socket. Superhuman feats also appear in the fight with Grendel's mother. When Beowulf enters the water, he swims downward for most of the day before he sees the bottom. “For hours he sank through the waves;...”(Beowulf, line 572). He does this without the use of oxygen. During the battle with Grendel's mother, Beowulf realizes that Unferth's sword is useless against the monsters thick skin. He grabs an enormous sword made by giants, almost too heavy to hold and slashes through the monster's body. “Then he saw, hanging on the wall, a heavy sword,...the best of all weapons but so massive that no ordinary man could lift...lifted it high over his head and struck with all the strength he had left,...”(Beowulf, lines 633-641). This superhero strength continues into the battle with the dragon. By this time, Beowulf is an old man. He ...

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Added: 2/21/2006 03:42:39 AM
Category: Book Reports
Words: 1078
Pages: 4

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