Thursday, May 30, 2019

Epic of Beowulf - Christian Morals in Beowulf :: Epic Beowulf christbeo

Christian Morals in Beowulf           Beowulf is an epic tale that has been changed over clock to try and express a christian moral. While this transformation over time has added a new variable to the plot, it is still impossible to try and exhaust the original pagan plot completely. It has become evident that the original epic was pagan and had no mention of the biblical references or the christian morality that it contains now. However, it is likewise evident that the original story dealt with the conceit of a higher beingness or beings.         The overriding christian view has many facets and deals with them all as a new way of proposing christianity into the theme of the story. The reason that Grendel becomes out frenzyd is that the bard in the mead hall is singing a song that has to do with creation. This shows Grendels apparent disregard for immortal and he proceeds to go to the hall and capture men and eat them while they are asleep. As we progress into the story, we learn that Grendel carries the curse of Cain with him. He exhaust the curse of the seed of Cain/ Whereby God punished the grievous guilt of Abels murder. Cain was the son of Adam and Eve and was the one who murdered Abel, his brother, out of a jealous rage for Gods favor to Abel. This shows us that Grendel had more than just a dislike for the men, the song was showing Grendel that his ancestor was looked upon as the bad person and was therefore the underlying concept for Grendels rage. This was the constant reminder to Grendel of his evil past and thus his reasoning for his actions. We learn to see Grendel as a less than human being, but in actuality, he is a monster who has a degree of humanity in him and that is the reason that he is so hard for Beowulf to kill. He has the human emotion of pride which in conclusion is the cause of his downfall. While this seems to be a major part of the story line, it can be remov ed and the story will only lose the terra firma of Grendels evil side. This could have been where the real story of Grendel originally was.         As with many of the classic medieval stories there is a sense of a higher being and fate is a major factor in Beowulf.

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