Elements Of Evil In Beowulf Essay - 698 Words

In times before printed books were common, stories and poems were passed from generation to generation by word of mouth. From such oral traditions come great epics such as England’s heroic epic, Beowulf. In Beowulf, the monster Grendel serves as the evil character acting against the poem’s hero, as shown by his unnatural strength, beast-like qualities, and alienation from society. One of the first responses from a reader of Beowulf is their surprise at Grendel’s unnatural strength, one quality marking him as an evil character. His great strength is shown first in his ability to carry enormous amounts of weight. There occur several instances in the story where Grendel lifts great amounts of weight. In Grendel’s first raid of Herot, a†¦show more content†¦Grendel’s description leads the reader to believe he is less human, and more animalistic, than the other characters. Repeatedly throughout the poem, the diction surrounding Grendel leads to the picture of a terrible animal; one so horrifying only the imagination could create it. The first description of Grendel is one of â€Å"a powerful monster† (l. 23). This immediately creates imagery of a large, vicious animal. Also, throughout the story, Grendel only appears at night, as would a nocturnal hunting animal. Traditionally, the evil creatures of the earth and fiction commit their evil deeds during the night. â€Å"Then, when darkness had dropped† (l. 52-53), â€Å"when the night hid him† (l. 104), and â€Å"through the cloudy night† (l. 367), are only several of many instances that illustrate Grendel’s hunting habits, those of an animal. The sheer terror this night-haunting, animalistic creature rages on the Danes is such that only a force of true evil could produce it, once again showing Grendel as the epic evil character in Beowulf. A fact that seems quite obvious, but is commonly overlooked, is the evil character’s alienation from society. Of course no one wants a beast-like creature with unnatural strength living in their community; Grendel’s banishment from society points directly to his evil character status in Beowulf. From the onset of the story, Grendel is shunned by society. He is described as â€Å"spawned . . . by aShow MoreRelatedTheme Of Christian And Pagan Elements In Beowulf978 Words   |  4 PagesChristian elements Beowulf was written during the time that society was in the process of converting from Paganism to Christianity. Early Christianity developed in the Roman Empire, where many religions were practiced and formed into paganism. Paganism is commonly used to refer to various, largely unconnected religions and beliefs from that time period. Beowulf was written in England between the 8th and 11th century. The name of the author is unknown, but referred to as the Beowulf Poet. 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In addition to Beowulf’s heroic qualities, he is very strong. Beowulf was said to have â€Å"theRead MoreChristian and Pagan Elements in Beowulf926 Words   |  4 PagesMarà ­a Isabel Carrasco Cara Chards CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN ELEMENTS IN BEOWULF The poem Beowulf is full of Pagan and Christian elements, this combination gave place to many discutions about the origin of the poem. On the one hand some scholars have said that this is the result of a transcription made by some monks where they added the christian elements, on the other hand it is believed that the poem was written in a period in which the Anglo-Saxons were being converted from their worship of Germanic