The Influence Of Christianity In Beowulf

Most works of literature written throughout history reflect the time period and the events that were unfolding in that age. Beowulf is a sixth-century Scandinavian epic passed down by many generation of scops, and eventually written on paper by an unknown source. At the time in history when the epic was written, the Anglo-Saxons had already become Christianized in their faith, still, there was an undertone of Pagan elements in the religion. Since the Pagan influences had dominated Europe for centuries, the ideas were still embedded in the citizen’s minds (Maloney). Yet, the idea of Christianity overpowered Pagan components of society in a short amount of time, as John Streissguth says, “The conversion [of the pagan Anglo-Saxons] was relatively rapid… within only a century the Anglo-Saxons entered into a golden age of Christian learning… (Streissguth 32)”
The historic work of Beowulf shows strong influences of Christianity, but with many Pagan elements present in the text. The fusion of these two concepts can be seen in the text and in the lifestyle during that era. Even though Christianity had become the main religion, Pagan symbols and elements were still relevant. For example, the Pagan temples were used as a place for worship of …show more content…
The Christian author of Beowulf needed to make the epic enticing towards the Christian audience, while still incorporating Pagan influences. The assimilation of the two religions is also relevant to the major theme of good versus evil. Beowulf is constructed as a parallel to Jesus Christ as a retelling of Christ’s story, and the Christian allusions serve as the good in the epic. Contrastingly, Grendel and the other monsters represent the nefarious Pagan elements. Although the epic of Beowulf is a conflict between good and evil, the power of God rules profoundly over the evil aspects of Pagan