Essay: Beowulf as Mirror of Culture and Religion in Medieval Britain
Beowulf is an epic poem that relates the adventures of an Anglo-Saxon hero, composed to be recited in England in the early 8 th century. It was put into manuscript form, in Old English, in the late 10 th century, and the only surviving manuscript was partially destroyed by fire in 1731. Though the text as it was originally related is not available to us today, the many hands through which it passed and the numerous reincarnations thereof make this poem an invaluable tool. Through inferences about the changes made to the text as it changed hands, we may gain insight into the cultural values and religious beliefs prevalent in early Medieval Britain. The poem relates events that took place two centuries prior to its composition. It centers around two south Scandinavian tribes, the Danes and the Geats. The original audience of Beowulf, that of its oral incarnation, probably considered themselves descendents of the Geats (of whom Beowulf derived). Thus, much in the manner that the Aen