a. Committing Murder

b. Living as Grendel

Throughout literature, many writers have alluded to stories in the Bible. Whether it's from the Old Testament or the New Testament, writers have paid references to Biblical stories. In literary analysis, this is called an allusion. The Oxford Encyclopedic English Dictionary defines an allusion as a reference, especially a covert, or indirect one (37). In the case of

Tuso, Joseph F, ed. Beowulf: The Donaldson Translation Backgrounds and Sources Criticism New York: WW Norton, 1975.

The next allusion differs from the earlier two. The poet of Beowulf uses this following allusion to show the relationship of the devil: man's greatest foe. This allusion started in the Genesis chapter with the tale of Adam and Eve. In the Garden of Eden, there was man's perfect world. There were no worries of any kind at all and no problems. It was a literal Utopia. There was only one conflict that the two human inhabitants of Eden had to worry about: the tree of knowledge. The serpent, who was also Satan, eventually persuades Eve to eat from the tree: then, she convinces Adam as well. This eating of the apple was Satan's first real act of evil and leads to man's downfall from Eden. This story is the first showing of the serpent in the Old Testament.

The last and final set of allusions that the poet of Beowulf told about is of God. The poet told so much of how humble the human race was to the all-powerful Lord. The poet told of how God was the Lord of the Universe and creator of all. In the beginning of the epic poem, it tells of the construction of Herot. This construction can also be alluding to the creation of the world. Also, the Old Testament tells the reader that God is the Creator of the Universe. Throughout the entire poem, God is also referenced or alluded to in this same fashion. This allusion is the poet's way of showing the Anglo-Saxon pagan's more about God.

The allusion of the She-Monster comes in two close parts. Both allusions are to the same story of David and Goliath. The first is when Beowulf loses his sword and has to fight against incredible odds. This is much like David fighting against Goliath. Both Beowulf and David fought against an almost invincible foe and triumphed. The second allusion is the decapitation of the She-Monster. The She-Monster and Goliath were both killed in the same method: decapitation. Since the story of the She-Monster and the story of David and Goliath resemble each other, its safe to say that the poet alludes to the Old Testament.

Vivone, John. "Lecture on 'Biblical Allusions in Beowulf'," given at Cherry Hill East on 28 September 1999.

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Approximate Word count = 1556
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)