“Beowulf” is certainly a great example of exceptional literature. The work itself is an arcane achievement that welds the tempered steel of Viking resilience to more contemporary Christian theology. The vastness of the document is the subject of legend; inspiring countless stories and still lighting light bulbs around the world. For most purposes, “Beowulf” embodies the ideal of epic poetry; thus making it a staple in the scant catalog of English epic poems. Historically speaking, Beowulf offers the reader a valuable glimpse into the life of a unique culture. The Scandinavian tradition was one of brutality and honor. Revered men fought for their status; earning every chip on a blade. We are catapulted, as readers, into the archaic world that was the time of Beowulf. A time of pre-knightly attitudes that were more focused on the individual rather than the actions of a group. Beowulf was a source of immense pride to the people of the time. It was the strength, the glue that tied Anglo-Saxon culture to its roots. Furthermore, and differently, the notions about Anglo-Saxon traditions that we acquire by reading the work are immeasurable. As a novice reader, the images of a large mead hall filled with singing and celebration were fantastic. We can try to personify ourselves with the oppressed people of the various places where Beowulf takes refuge. Fittingly, he doesn't run away, even though his actions remind me of a man, a Superman, who could be anywhere and save the world. In this sense, Beowulf is by far the iconic figure that should characterize Anglo-Saxon literature. We must remove the foundations of poetry from this reading. We must read the text and skim its surface; as if you were grasping the tufts of... half the paper... the author's shots are a bit excessive. He injects just a little of his personal moral dynamic and discards too much of the current Scandinavian tradition. There are some aspects of the tradition that we lose, or have to find elsewhere, since they are deleted from the text itself. The religion, for example, is strictly Christianity while the Anglo-Saxon people of that time in that region would not have known what Christianity was. The original tradition, the oral tradition for which it was intended, must have been a true masterpiece. Although, like Homer and his writings, we can only speculate on how truly great it was. The large halls animated by the high-pitched voices of singers singing the epic battles of Beowulf captivate the imagination. The naked and muscular bardic tradition is stripped of the outline of Jesus and served with arctic ice and blood splatters.