Beowulf Challenges

The poem Beowulf depicts the challenges Anglo-Saxons had to face during the early years of Britain. Challenges in the epic include attacks by enemy nations and the death of loved ones during warfare. First of all, Beowulf was written in a time where the Anglo-Saxons were invaded by various tribes such as the Danes and the Germanics. In the poem Beowulf has to defeat the dragon Grendel that kills the people in Herot. The creature slaughtered people similarly to how men would murder each other during war; “[Grendel] came to, ripped [the Geat] apart, cut his body to bits with powerful jaws, drank the blood from his veins, and bolted him down, hands and feet; death and Grendel’s great teeth came together, snapping life shut.” (Raffel, 22) This terrifying description was an image most soldiers saw during battles.

This vision of warfare goes hand in hand with the outcomes of war which results in the lost of loved ones. The death of Beowulf after the battle with the dragon is an example on how Anglo-Saxons should cope with the deceased. Most people would die on the battlefield or because of other factors of war. Families could better cope with the death with loved ones just as the people of Geat had to. The poem features the way the people regarded the death of their king ¨ mourning [Beowulf’s] loss as a man and a king”. (Heaney, 38) Citizens had great respect for the deceased and thus that is how Anglo-Saxons should treat the those who died at war. Through these metaphors the story of Beowulf was able to relate to Anglo-Saxons and their life