Paganism

Anglo-Saxon culture considers heroes vital with the warrior prevailing. Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel, verifies the Anglo-Saxon culture with Beowulf vanquishing the monsters, including Grendel. Beowulf comes to the Danes to help defeat Grendel, the giant monster killing men while they slept. As a warrior, Beowulf enjoys the thrills of fighting and being known by the community as their hero. Although Beowulf succeeds in overpowering Grendel, the true victory to him includes being seen as a…

Along with Christian beliefs, Beowulf and The Grapes of Wrath seem to incorporate Christ figures or representations of God. First, in Beowulf, Robert Stevick has a different viewpoint with Beowulf following along with Christianity. In his article, “Christian Elements and the Genesis of ‘Beowulf,’” Stevick said “Beowulf does have some Christian virtues and fights against monsters that could double as Christian symbols of evil, but he hardly seems to be a Christ-figure, a pre-Christian thane of…

Harold C. Zimmerman’s “Comparing Conquests: The Life of St. Birinus and the Norman Invasion of England,” written for Studies in Philology, is an analysis of the Norman Invasion of 1066 from the perspective of the Anglo-Saxons. The point of comparison here is the attempted conversion of West Saxons to Christianity by the Roman missionary Birinus. Although by most definitions that does not sound like a “conquest,” it was considered by the Anglo-Saxon author of the record for these events to be one…

Beowulf is an epic poem that has the values of christianity in its main plot. The basis of Christianity roots were instilled into this epic poem, the beliefs were altered to fit the story’s format; Beowulf has been told for hundreds of years.“Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different” (T.S. Eliot, The Sacred Wood). Although the writer of the epic poem Beowulf is unknown, we do know…

The famous Roman fabulist, Phaedrus says, “Things are not always what they seem; the first appearance deceives many; the intelligence of a few perceives what has been carefully hidden”(Phaedrus). Phaedrus’ observation distinguishes the common misconception about the truth derived from religious passages in Beowulf. The epic poem appears to be a Christian poem because of numerous allusions to the Christian God and The Bible. However, careful observation and analysis of the religious passages…

This paper will cover the Vikings’ religion, from being thought of as Pagans, to converting to Christianity, it will also include their deities and other beliefs. The Vikings, also referred to as the Norse, were thought of being Pagans because of their traditions but they then slowly converted to Christianity after being introduced to it. Even though they were thought of as either Pagans or Christians, they still had their own gods and goddesses and mythology, which is what makes Viking…

In Valerie Tarico’s article, “Christianity’s own ‘War on Christmas,’” she states that Christianity takes part in a practice called “syncretism.” Syncretism is when local traditions and religions are absorbed into Christianity. In fact, Tarico claims that Pagan temples became churches, indigenous gods became saints and pagan festival days were turned into Christian holy days. To further this idea of syncretism, Tarico goes on to say that the earliest documentation of Christmas comes from the…

Having the tendency to focus mainly, on Greek mythology, Norse mythology, the set of religious stories the Vikings told to one another, can sometimes be forgotten. Normally, when hearing of Norse mythology, most people refer to Marvel’s Thor and Loki, however, there's more to the story than what is presented. Norse mythology is the set of religious stories the Vikings told to one another and is sometimes referred to as cosmology, the theory of the origin of the universe. Norse mythology has its…

The History of the Franks and Lais of Marie de France’s were both written in the Middle Ages of Christian Europe. Gregory of Tours writings is the principal source for the history of Frankish kings. He also chronicles the Franks’ intimate lives, such as their polygamous marriages. Lais of Marie de Frances are a collection of narrative poems that deifies love while at the same time having a pessimistic outlook. The History of the Franks and Marie de France both do not conform to Christian…

The literary poem “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight”, originated in Britain fourteenth century, contain a number of Celtic culture and religion in the story as well as the way of its transmission. It have been passed many years as Celtic Mythology of the legend of Gawain. “The Celts ware a non-Germanic, Iron Age folk that had migrated throughout Europe between the fifth and third centuries B.C.E., settling in the British Isles before the time of Christ.” (Gloria 254) Celtic people orally…