Values in Beowulf Essay

In the poem Beowulf, many of the most important values and ideals of Anglo-Saxon culture are represented by the main character Beowulf. Beowulf carries on many of these values through his actions throughout this epic poem. Some of these Anglo- Saxon virtues include, bravery, loyalty, faith in the Christian God, and the belief in fate.

Throughout the poem, Beowulf shows that he is incredibly brave and courageous. Whenever there is a challenge that not many other normal men would stick up to, Beowulf being the incredible warrior he is takes on the challenges that may come across his path. One clear example of this is when Beowulf hears about the monster Grendel who is terrorizing King Hrothgars land. The monster Grendel is one of the conflicts that arise throughout this epic poem and the hero Beowulf shows no fear at all when he sails across the sea to battle this infamous monster that had been causing havoc in Herot for over a decade. We can see Beowulfs bravery in (Lines 112-116) when it is written, Heard how Grendel filled nights with horror and quickly commanded a boat fitted out, proclaiming that hed go to that famous king, would sail across the sea to Hrothgar, Now when help was needed. It is clear that Beowulf was extremely brave to stand up against evil and try to help those who were in need when all else had failed.

Another Anglo-Saxon virtue that his clearly exemplified by Beowulf throughout this poem is loyalty. One can clearly see this when Beowulfs people come under attack by a vicious dragon who is terrorizing his people. Even though he knew that he was not as young and lacked the strength that he once had he still went into battle defeat the dragon that menaced his kingdom. Someone who is loyal would put their own life at risk in order to help those who need him the most, and this is exactly what Beowulf did. Beowulf also recognized the loyalty that he also received from his comrades. After a fierce battle with the dragon only Wiglaf remained by his side, and because of this Beowulf rewarded his companion because he saw a part of himself within Wiglaf. His loyalty was recognized and rewarded when Beowulf tells him, Take what I leave, Wiglaf, lead my people, help them; my time is gone. (Lines 821-822) As a king and warrior, Beowulf would only reward a man with loyalty to carry on his tradition and lead his people in the future.

The Anglo-Saxon virtues of Christian beliefs are also upheld time and time throughout the poem by Beowulf. Before this brave hero goes into battle with the monstrous Grendel, he makes a decision to fight the beast with only his hands since the monster may not have any weapons either. Beowulf says, My hands alone shall fight for me, struggle for life against the monster, God must decide who will be given to deaths cold grip.(Lines 276-270) Beowulf clearly places all his faith in God and has confidence that his God will allow him to prevail. His faith in this clearly shows that Beowulf embodies characteristics that were held very highly by Anglo-Saxon society. Even when Beowulf is speaking his last words he exalts his God saying in lines 816-820, For this, this gold, these jewels, I thank our Father in Heaven, Ruler of the Earth- For all of this, that his grace has given me, allowed me to bring to my people while breath still came to my lips. Clearly Beowulf held his religious beliefs very strongly even till his death, once again upholding the ideals of Anglo-Saxon culture.

Another extremely highly regarded part of Anglo- Saxon society is their strong sense of the warrior culture. The culture was based around the strength, and courage of the warriors. The more battles that a warrior was able to win and the greater the victory the more high regarded the individual were. This was clearly embodied by the Beowulf throughout the poem. Beowulf was able to defeat menacing monsters throughout his lifetime and even died after a battle with a fire breathing dragon that no one else was able to defeat but him. He had killed numerous monsters and won many victories as a warrior and a leader, this is clear when Beowulf says, They have seen my strength for themselves, have watched me rise from the darkness of war, dripping with my enemies blood. I drove five great giants into chains, chased that entire race from the earth. I swam in the blackness of night, hunting monsters out of the ocean, and killing them one by one; death was my errand and the fate they had earned. (Line 246-254) Beowulf clearly exemplifies a true warrior from his young days as a fierce foe in battle all the way to his death after being victorious in battle.

All in all it is very clear that Beowulf embodies all the virtues that were held highly in Anglo-Saxon society. These ideals included bravery, loyalty, faith in God, and being a fierce warrior. He began as a warrior that fought the battles that no other men were able to defeat, and ended his life passing on these virtues to another Anglo-Saxon warrior. These are the highly regarded virtues that allowed for Beowulf to become a legendary warrior.