to serve himself. Beowulf seeks fame, glory, treasure, and the immortality of a death in combat to secure his legacy. The Anglo-Saxon poem "Beowulf," which is believed to

text, a supernatural force, and the celebration of the hero. Structurally speaking, an epic is "a long narrative poem on a great and serious subject" (Lucas). A primary epic

serve the king and save the Danes, who appear to be senselessly slaughtered. He may have been drafted into the contest, but he undertakes the task as his own.

was the devil incarnate: "At the dawning, as day was breaking, / the might of Grendel to men was known; / then after wassail was wail uplifted, /

in defending his people. It is a story that has its origins in pagan culture, but it was recorded by a Christian scribe (Saupe 97). Therefore there are "overlays" that

on the wording within the Olde English text and on the Christian actions of the characters. Larry Benson pointed out the fact that seeing the characters as both emphatically