Beowulf: The Anglo-Saxon Period

Beowulf by unknown is a great example of the work from the Anglo-Saxon period. This period was one that lasted for six hundred years lasting from four ten to one thousand sixty six. This time period existed mainly in Britain and brought on new religious beliefs. Many things stemmed from the Anglo-Saxon period such as the concept of respect or Christianity. The text Beowulf is a great representation of all of these ideas from the Anglo-Saxon time period. The main character of this epic is Beowulf who is a mighty hero who wins over the hearts of many by defeating three major monsters: Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon. Beowulf was set in Northern Europe near the land of Denmark and Sweden and was said to be wrote by many Christian men, …show more content…
The Anglo-Saxon code speaks heavily as being a part of the group. Therefore, as a component of a group, it is necessary for the individual, regardless of status, to do what one can to protect the group. At this point in the epic (part 3), Beowulf has found himself in a very sickly state where he is no longer young and able to readily fight. Thus, Beowulf must ask for help of a younger person, something that can be an obstruction to one’s pride, “Beloved Beowulf, best of warriors, avoid such evil and seek the good, the heavenly wisdom. Beware of pride!” (Pg. 6). While Beowulf was used to being able to fight his own fights, this is the point in his life where he must accept the fact that he can no longer do so. His act in this part of the book can be described by one word: generosity. This generosity is applied very heavily in the group as he does this for the group. He could have let …show more content…
Killing Grendel was away for Beowulf to complete his duty in life. All people, as believed according to the Anglo-Saxon code, if one can do something for the better of the group, it is their responsibility for that individual to do so. This is exactly the case with Beowulf as he was a mighty man in the prime of his life able to defeat many evils. Another motivation through this epic is that of defeating Grendel’s mother in part two. Beowulf did this one to show that he could complete the job of ridding the city completely of evil. This was important to him and the Anglo-Saxon code as it demonstrated the idea of respect. A hero is one who would leave a good legacy behind, with the people who knew him thinking highly of him. The only way for this to happen is by the individual taking immediate action, as Beowulf was able to do. Finally, the good of the people is the last motivation for killing the dragon in part three. This dragon was a monster that occurred at the end of Beowulf’s life. He was unable to destroy this monster by himself, leaving him with the only choice of asking for help. While this did little for his pride, it helped the good of the people as they were able to destroy the dragon. While it would have been better for Beowulf’s pride to attempt to defeat the monster by