Beowulf, the Wrath of God and the Fall of the Angels

Abstract

ABSTRACT Beowulf’s anger has typically been viewed either negatively, as a sign of his monstrosity, or positively, as a form of furor heroicus (heroic anger). This article argues that the hero’s battle-fury is a manifestation of the wrath of God. Through comparison with Genesis A and other Old English biblical poems, it identifies the Fall of the Angels as an important new context for Beowulf’s first two monster-fights. Countering arguments that Beowulf is a flawed or even failed hero, it proposes that when read in the light of Old English biblical poetry, Beowulf emerges not as frenzied berserker but as a righteous avenger whose anger is controlled and directed against evil.