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The Christian Coloring In Beowulf

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Who wrote the ancient epic poem, Beowulf? This question has puzzled critics, readers, and scholars ever since people began to study the text because there is no known author. After close analyzation, some people have come to the conclusion that Beowulf once existed differently than the form it is in today. Countless theories exist as to the identity of the author and if there were multiple authors. Christian elements that seem out of place are everywhere in the poem, and F. A. Blackburn, the author of “The Christian Coloring in the Beowulf,” agrees. The misplaced Christian references in Beowulf lead the reader to believe that the poem once existed without Christian influence.
The conclusion that there was an original author and, later, an editor …show more content…

Blackburn noticed this while studying Beowulf. Although there are countless instances of Christian coloring in the epic poem, most of the time they only reference the name of God. Simply saying “God” creates a Christian tone, which is an easy addition to make to the text. This proves that an editor did not have to explain deep Christian values in order to create a sense of religion. Blackburn says, “In no one of them do we find any reference to Christ, to the cross, to the virgin or the saints, to any doctrine of the church in regard to the trinity, the atonement, etc., or to the scriptures, to prophecy or to the miracles” (Blackburn 216). This quote makes the reader realize that the omissions of expanding on Christian views prove whoever edited the text only made minor additions, so as to keep the general storyline. The small changes are frequent enough that the Christian coloring is throughout the whole text, but are obvious enough that the reader can notice the difference between the added sections and the original poem. The poet in Beowulf says, “Afterwards a boy-child was born to Shield, / a cub in the yard, a comfort sent / by God to that nation” (12-14). The fact that this passage says the name God causes it to take on a different tone

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