

“It is an heroic-elegiac poem;and

in a sense all its first three
thousand lines are the prelude to a
dirge… one of the most moving
ever written.”
J.R. R. Tolkien
Beowulf is a great
warrior who comes
to the aid of a group
of people whose
lives are in
jeopardy. Later in
his life, he becomes
king.
 Beowulf is a Geat warrior who crosses the sea to come
to the aid of the Danes.
 Beowulf later returns to Sweden to succeed his uncle as
king of the Geats. 
 The Geats are from present-day Sweden
 
 Beowulf is the first Masterpiece in English literature.
 Its author is unknown.
 Consists of 3182 alliterative long lines
 The original audience and purpose of the work is also
unknown.
 Beowulf is the longest and greatest surviving Anglo-Saxon
poem.
 Beowulf is the oldest surviving epic in English literature.
 An unknown bard composed it around the 7th or 8th century,
and probably recited it to the accompaniment of harp music.
 The setting of the epic is the sixth century in what is now
known as Denmark and South Western Sweden.

 Beowulf remains one of the most important works of English

literature though it was written centuries ago. One reason for this
fact is that many of the themes that it touches on are still pertinent
in today's extremely different society. One of the most prevalent
themes found in Beowulf is the importance of the heroic code. Much
of this epic poem is dedicated to conveying and exemplifying the
heroic code which values such attributes as strength, courage and
honor.
 Conflicting with this ideology are other factors such as
Christianity, and these tensions affect the lives and decisions of the
narrative's characters. Over the course of the poem, Beowulf
matures from a gallant warrior into a wise leader. This transition
illustrates that a sometimes conflicting code of values goes along
with each of his roles.

 In Germanic societies, such as the one in which Beowulf
takes place, there were heroic codes which defined how a
noble person should act. In addition to strength, courage and


honor, these codes also included loyalty, generosity, and
hospitality. The heroic code was of great importance in
warrior societies. In his book Beowulf and Epic Tradition,
William Witherle Lawrence says that these codes were
"defined with the utmost strictness, and were not lightly to be
transgressed."
 He goes on to say that upon these codes "the whole
motivation of the poem depends" and that "tribal law and
custom [were] the rocks against which the lives of men and
women [were] shattered" (Lawrence 28-29). Therefore, all of
the characters' moral decisions originate from the code's
directives. Consequently all individual actions can be seen
only as either complying with or going against the code.

 Beowulf highlights the code's points of tension by
relating circumstances that reveal its internal
inconsistencies. The poem contains several stories in

which characters experience divided loyalties, in these
situations, the code gives no realistic guidance as to how
they are supposed to act or react.
 One example of this is when Hildeburh, a Danish
woman, marries the Frisian king. When war breaks out
between the Danes and the Frisians, Hildeburh
experiences losses on both sides. Do her loyalties lie
with the land of her birth, or with her new home? In the
end, Hildeburh is left grieving over the deaths of both
her Danish brother and her Frisian son.

 Another, perhaps greater, tension within the poem is the one
between the heroic code and Christianity. While the heroic
code claims that glory is achieved in this life through noble


deeds, Christian doctrine maintains that glory lies only in the
hereafter. Also, warrior tradition states that it is always better
to get revenge than to grieve. This directly contradicts the
Christian belief to forgive those who have done us wrong.
Upon the death of his friend Ashhere, Hrothgar says:
Woe has returned
to the Danish people with the death of Ashhere…
He was my closest counsellor, he was keeper of my
thoughts,
He stood at my shoulder when we struck for our lives
At the crashing together companies of foot,
When blows rained on boar-crests. Men of birth and merit
All should be as Ashhere was! (1321-1328)
 It can be said that these lines "sound like
an echo of divine service… and are a
mingling of heathen valor and desire for
glory, on the one hand, and Christian

gentleness and kindness on the other"
(Lawrence 242). In this case, the Beowulf
poet seems to have found a balance
between the pagan world of the heroic
code and the Christian ideology.
Throughout the course of the poem, we
see the transformation of Beowulf. In the
beginning he is a brave fighter, but by the
end, he has become a wise and noble king.
This transition shows that perhaps a
different code is necessary to fulfill these
different roles. These sets of values
illustrate early on in the poem the contrary
outlooks of Beowulf and Hrothgar.
 . Early in the poem, Beowulf is young,
brave and has no one to worry about
but himself. Because of this he can
risk everything in his quest for

personal glory. Hrothgar, on the other
hand, is responsible for the lives of
many people, and therefore seeks
their safety rather than his own honor.
Hrothgar's example becomes
invaluable to Beowulf in preparation
for the time when he will take the
throne. He learns that as a king, it is
his duty to praise his warriors as well
as protect his people. Hrothgar
emphasizes the importance of
creating a stable environment. He also
says that having good relationships
with one's own men, as well as with
other groups, is imperative.
 When Hygelac dies, Beowulf does not hurry and seize
the throne, but rather supports Denmark's rightful heir.
With this gesture of loyalty and respect for the throne,
Beowulf shows that he has been transformed. Instead of

wanting all of the glory for himself, he sees that the right
thing is to wait for the throne. This episode
demonstrates that Beowulf is now fit to be king.
 At the end of the poem, Beowulf has taken the throne,
and as king should therefore act for the good of his
people. His encounter with the dragon at the end calls
his values into judgment. By fighting the dragon, and
ultimately dying, Beowulf has left his people without a
king and without protection. However, William
Lawrence sees Beowulf's final fight as an act of "heroism
that springs not only form valor but from consciousness
of virtue, and from faith in the True God."
 Our hero's battle with the dragon is an:
Occasion not only for heroic achievement, and for the
protection of suffering mankind, but also for the defense of

the settled orderly happiness of the civilized state. It is the
duty of the sovereign and of those who would uphold
human sovereignty to meet and destroy [the dragon]
(Lawrence 131).
In this way of thinking, it would seem that Beowulf was
able to reconcile the differing codes of heroism,
Christianity and kinship.
 At the center of the epic poem Beowulf is the idea of the
heroic code and its tenets. Because the code sometimes
conflicts with other ideologies, such as Christianity and

nationalism, tensions often arise. However, as we see in
the lives of characters like Hildeburh, Hrothgar, and
especially Beowulf, one does not always have to choose.
Though Beowulf has to make some changes in his life
once he becomes king, he shows that the heroic code and
other influences are not mutually exclusive.
 Heroic Values in
Beowulf

 Relationship between king and his warriors
 The king rewards his warriors with gifts
 If a kinsman is slain, obligation is to kill the slayer or
obtain payment (wergeld) in compensation.
 Bibliography

 Anonymous. Beowulf. Ed. Michael Alexander.
Penguin Books: London, 2001.
 Lawrence, William Witherle. Beowulf and Epic
Traditions. Hafner Publishing: New York, 1961.
 -The Literature of the beginnings:from Beowulf to paradise
lost. Luminita Elena Turcu
 -”A history of the English Language “-Albert C.
Baugh and Thomas Cable.
 Presented by:

 Hudema Cătălina
 Loghin Maria
 Pîrghie Ana -Dorica
 Popovici Raluca-Alexandra
 Puha Dana
 Ursaciuc Silvica-Ionela