distinction. The epic tells the story of a hero, a Scandinavian prince named Beowulf, who rids the Danes of the

monster Grendel, a descendent of Cain, and of his exploits fighting Grendel's mother and a Dragon. Throughout the

epic, the Anglo-Saxon story teller uses many elements to build a certain depth to the characters. Just a few of the

important character elements in Beowulf are Wealth & Honor, Biblical & Paganistic, and Man vs. Wild themes.

Many of the characters in Beowulf are, like in most epics, defined by their status. But, in addition to status, the

Anglo-Saxon culture also adds an element of honor. To the Anglo-Saxons, a character's importance, as well as their

wealth and status, where measured not only in monetary terms, but it was also measured in terms of honor, fame,

and accomplishments. Hrothgar, king of the Danes, is one example of the Anglo-Saxon measurement of importance

in Beowulf. In Canto 1 the story teller describes his wealth and importance, not as mounds of gold or jewels, but

instead as his ability to "[lead] the Danes to suc

was obviously Paganistic due to the time period of it's creation. But, as time wore on, the rewriting and touching up

more than one of glory because it causes many deaths and the coming of Grendel. Apart from Wealth, Honor, and

shows the difference between mankind's ways (good), and evil's wild nature (evil). Grendel for one, is totally wild

Beowulf has many other such archetypal, symbolic themes and motifs, but the most important themes that serve to

example of this is in Canto 6 line 381 in which Hrothgar states, "Our Holy Father had sent [Beowulf] as a sign of

purity. Beowulf doesn't fight evil in a wild manner, rather, as shown in his first battle with Grendel. First off,

Some common words found in the essay are:
Biblical Paganistic, Grendel Grendel, Beowulf Canto, Honor Paganistic, Holy Father, Earns Fame, Goodness Beowulf, Beowulf English, Banishment God, Defeating Grendel, wealth honor, wealth status, beowulf wealth honor, throughout epic, beowulf wealth, depth characters, biblical reference, story teller, serves symbol, anglo-saxon culture, paganistic vs,
Approximate Word count = 1241
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)