Erwin Lijklema
3342417
Ina Boudier Bakkerlaan 143-2
3582 XW Utrecht
Bachelor Eindwerkstuk
British English
6288 words incl. quotes
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Introduction
The first written texts in the Old English period, c. 450-1066, are only available from the eighth century onwards. Before this time there was a strong oral tradition among the Anglo-
Saxons. The poems, epics and other genres were composed and distributed via the spoken
2 word. One of the longest and most complex surviving poems of that age is Beowulf - an epic about a hero from Geatland who comes to free the Danish king Hrothgar from the demon that plagues his lands. The epic poem Beowulf is contained in the Anglo-Saxon composite codex
Cotton Vitellius A. xv
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, held in the British Library. This composite codex contains two codices, which are known as the Southwick Codex and the Nowell Codex. The latter, thus the
Nowell Codex, contains the Beowulf Manuscript as well as four other texts, which are found in the codex in the following order: the prose texts The Passion of Saint Christopher,
Wonders of the East and Letter from Alexander to Aristotle followed by Beowulf and the incomplete poem Judith.
The poem Beowulf as well as the composite codex in which the poem is contained, Cotton Vitellius A. xv, have been the focus of many studies. One question that has dominated the field of research for years is the following: why have the texts that comprise the Beowulf Manuscript, been put together in the Nowell Codex? This thesis will deal with three selected texts that are in the Nowell Codex, the Southwick Codex will not be treated. Research has been conducted on this question with respect to a single unifying theme, such as in Andy Orchard’s Pride and Prodigies: Studies in the Monsters of the Beowulf-
Manuscript . Moreover, Kevin Kiernan has conducted interesting and controversial research on the entire manuscript in Beowulf and the Beowulf Manuscript . Kathryn Powell’s research draws on different secondary sources, including that of K. Sisam, and Powell’s theories differ from that of Kiernan mainly in that she proposes the Beowulf Manuscript as a collection of texts that deal with the notions of rulers and foreigners. Other earlier studies were conducted
1 This is the official name for the Manuscript. The codex is also known as the Beowulf Manuscript.

3 in The Place of Judith in the Beowulf Manuscript by Peter J. Lucas. The focus in these studies was mainly on unifying the texts through a single theme whereas little research has been carried out concerning the unification of the Beowulf Manuscript, or selected texts, through multiple themes. This thesis will, therefore, try to shed light on unifying themes between the poem Beowulf and two other texts contained in the same codex, namely Judith and Wonders of the East.
The particular focus will be on the following themes: (a) monsters, (b) history and geography, (c) Christianity and Paganism, (d) the role of women, (e) genre. Due to the scope of this thesis, I was unable to carry out research on the entire codex. Judith and Beowulf share many similar qualities and themes and though Wonders of the East seems an entirely different genre, I find that it does contain similar elements to Judith and Beowulf . For example, even though Judith and Beowulf contain respectively a heroine and a hero and Wonders of the East does not, the reoccurrence of monsters in all three texts links them.
This thesis has been divided into three parts. The first part deals with earlier research that has been carried out with respect to the Beowulf Manuscript and explains my method of research. The second part will contain the results of my study into the unifying themes between the three texts; it will contain brief summaries of the texts followed by a discussion which explains correspondences and differences in the texts. The final part will summarise my findings and point out possible new research directions.
In order to better understand the purpose of this study, it is necessary to explore some of the major theories that surround the Beowulf Manuscript. Commonly accepted theories before Kiernan’s research dated the manuscript in the eighth century. Kiernan focuses mainly on proving that the poem Beowulf and the manuscript are dated at a later time. When he first presented his theories, they were deemed radical and controversial because he proposed the date of Beowulf’ s composition nearly two centuries later than most previous research. In
Beowulf and the Beowulf Manuscript, he proposes many theories that give material for

thought. He suggests that the date of Beowulf is no earlier than 1016, which he attributes to
4 several factors, i.e. in particular by taking into consideration the shifting balance of power in
Britain at that time. It is unlikely that an Anglo-Saxon would write a text in which the Danes, who were Vikings, are praised. At least, not under an Anglo-Saxon ruler, who would have tried to enforce his own power. However, Kiernan’s proposed date of composition is during the reign of King Cnut, who reigned from 1018 until 1035, which would explain why the poem is about Danes rather than Anglo-Saxons. Kiernan also offers analyses and information about the other texts in the Beowulf manuscript as well as paying attention to the artificial state of the Cotton Vitellius manuscript. Kiernan states that: “Sir Robert Cotton artificially combined two totally unrelated codices, a 12 th
-century collection known as the Southwick
Codex, and an 11 th
-century collection (which includes Beowulf) known as the Nowell Codex.”
(Kiernan, 7). The two other main subjects he touches upon is the composition of the Codex, with respect to how it was put together rather than why. Finally, he discusses the making of the Beowulf poem and the role of the scribes in the editing process. The Manuscript was written by two scribes, the second one taking over at Beowulf line 1939. He also provides information on the current state of the Beowulf Manuscript. Orchard’s research differs from that of Kiernan in that Orchard focuses mainly on: “the motivation and background to the compilation of the Beowulf -manuscript, and in particular to address the question of the precise role and meaning both of the ancient monsters who stalk through the sources and of the heroes who battle against them.” (Orchard, vii). In this sense, Orchard points out the most obvious of unifying themes that are present in the Beowulf Manuscript. Orchard also touches upon the subject of the Liber Monstorum , a collection of five manuscripts that date around the ninth and tenth centuries. This research links with K. Sisam’s theory of the Beowulf
Manuscript being in itself, or as part of a collection of work, built up around a central theme of monsters. Judith can be seen as an oddity in that it was probably added to the Beowulf

Manuscript at a later date. Peter J. Lucas focuses entirely on Judith in his article The Place of
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Judith in the Beowulf Manuscript . Despite this focus, his research provides interesting ideas on the composition, and overall direction of the Beowulf Manuscript. As Lucas states: “But commentators are divided as to how it came to be there and where it came from...I propose in this article to try to draw together the various strands of evidence, codicological, linguistic and literary or textual, relating to this problem” (463), the issue concerning the placement of
Judith has been much debated. As mentioned before, this thesis will not focus on how or where the text originated, but why the scribes added it to the manuscript. Kathryn Powell draws on Andy Orchard and K. Sisam, to present her theory that the Beowulf Manuscript is based around the notions of rulers and foreigners. As Powell states: “But what seems to have particularly captured the imagination of the Anglo-Saxons is the specific opposition of rulers and monsters. This opposition opens onto an additional, ethical, dimension introduced by the ruler's special responsibilities to his loyal followers and armies, to his people and, in a
Christian context, to God.” (5). All of the research discussed above is focused on one or two themes that occur in the texts of the Beowulf Manuscript. By using different and more themes and three selected texts this thesis is focused on other areas than previous research.

Theoretical Framework and Method
As indicated, this thesis is a philological study that investigates selected unifying themes in
6 the epic poem Beowulf, Judith, and Wonders of the East.
The study will be based on the original texts, i.e. Kiernan’s Electronic Beowulf , which will be viewed and analysed in the context of their history. The main themes this study will focus on are: monsters, history versus geography, paganism versus Christianity and genre. I will take into account the correspondences, and possibly differences between the texts. The main focus will be on the themes instead of, as for example what Kiernan also does, codicology, palaeography and the investigation of differences in language use and style. The method adopted for this thesis is a close-reading of the present-day English translations of the texts under investigation, also observing differences in the translations found in Orchard’s
Pride and Prodigies and Elaine
Treharne’s
Old English Anthology . By comparing and contrasting the texts and determining the aspects that these texts have in common, it is demonstrable that the texts can be unified through multiple themes rather than a single one. As mentioned earlier, only three of the five texts were employed for this study because of the size and difficulty of investigating the entire
Manuscript. The fact that there are multiple translations for some of the texts made it important to take a close look at how the translators interpreted the original text.

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Results and Discussion
The discussion of my findings will be split into two parts, namely summaries of the texts to be analysed, which will be followed by detailed analyses with respect to the earlier-mentioned themes. The analyses will interconnect and cross-reference with each other. Wonders of the
East will be discussed first, as it takes precedence in the codex.
Wonders of the East
This text provided the Anglo-Saxon reader with a collection of marvels and unknown wonders from the East. The East was not necessarily the same stretch of land that we call the
Middle-East now. A number of locations are mentioned, such as Babylon, Persia, Egypt, and
India. Overall there are around thirty-two wonders described in the text and the marvels are described in detail. The journey starts at Antimolima, near Babylon where there is an island of sheep. The reader is then given a short description of red hens that self-combust when you touch them. Not all of the marvels are as innocent as hens, there are tales of Donestre, a people who lure strangers to their death and eat them. These monsters do not eat the head but instead sit over it and weep. There are also the long-haired white women who are thirteen feet tall, with boar’s tusks, camel’s feet, donkey’s teeth and ox-tails on their loins and how they are slaughtered by Alexander the Great (Orchard, 19). Throughout the text the author uses phrases such as: “thaet syndon ungefregelicu lyblac.” which can be translated as: “that is extraordinary magic” (Orchard, 186-7), with which the author tries to give an extra touch of spirituality to the text. Moreover, real geographic locations and landmarks are given such as for instance, the length or span of a country or city.
Judith
Judith is a poem about a virtuous heroine who saves her city from oppressors. Its intentions are to show that pagan pride is sinful and that God will prevail. The source for the Old
English version is the Old Testament story of Judith. Holofernes is the leader of a pagan army

that is besieging Bethulia, a Hebrew city. Judith leaves the city to gain access to the camp of
8 the Assyrians. After remaining in the camp for several days and gaining trust Judith slays
Holofernes during a party, after which his army is routed by the warriors of Bethulia. When the Assyrians discover that their leader is dead, they are absolutely destroyed on the battlefield. Judith then returns victorious to her city and is honoured. The Anglo-Saxons, a people that were largely Christianised by the time the Manuscript was written (or possibly copied from an earlier manuscript) were still interested in the paganism of their forefathers.
This text tries to reinforce the fact that Christianity is better than paganism. The Old English version is simplified from the Latin one, with fewer characters and more comprehensible, symmetrical sentences. As Orchard states: “But perhaps the most evident feature of the Old
English poem Judith lies in its polarisation and simplification of the narrative, lending a coherent structure and even symmetry in the Old English which is certainly not present in the
Latin original.” (Orchard, 7). It is therefore, an adaptation of the Old Testament
Deuterocanonical book.
Beowulf
By far the longest and most famous text in the manuscript is Beowulf . Beowulf is also the name of the main character, and he is the embodiment of a brave warrior. In my personal view, I think this poem can be divided into three parts. Firstly, Beowulf comes to Hrothgar to save him from the evil monster that haunts his lands: Grendel. When Beowulf arrives, the relation between him and Hrothgar is explained. Hrothgar helped Beowulf’s father, and thus
Beowulf owes him. When Unferth, Hrothgar’s counsellor tries to destroy Beowulf’s reputation, Beowulf defeats him in a verbal contest. Unferth thus acts, through this flyting , as a contrasting character to Beowulf. In the second part, Beowulf slays Grendel only to find out that Grendel’s mother also stalks the hall of Heorot, looking for vengeance. After Beowulf’s valiant fight, in which he also vanquishes Grendel’s mother, he returns home. In the final part

Beowulf is king. After a successful reign as king, Beowulf dies after he slays a dragon that
9 caused devastation in his own kingdom.
Analysis: Wonders of the East
Monsters
The marvellous or the unknown has always fascinated mankind, even in the classical age. The
Wonders of the East is based on a Latin text. The Liber Monstrorum is linked to the Beowulf
Manuscript, but not quite the same. Orchard states: “All or part of the so-called Liber monstrorum de diversis generibus (‘Book of monsters of various kinds’) is extant in no fewer than five manuscripts, all dating from the ninth or tenth centuries...the Liber monstrorum , far from being a casual compendium of the bizarre and outlandish, is in fact the rather subtle and sophisticated work of a learned author.” (Orchard 87), and mentions the goal of the Liber monstrorum is to offer a view of the monstrous in nature. The Wonders of the East is accompanied by colour drawings and its narrative is very scientific. An example of this can be found when the narrator explains why pepper is black: “The snakes keep the pepper in their eagerness. In order to take the pepper people set fire to the place and then the snakes flee from the high ground into the earth; because of this the pepper is black” (Orchard, 189). Many monsters and legends are mentioned and also completely thought-up animals such as the red hens that self-combust.
History and geography
There is also an historical and geographically correct element present. The red hens are mythical, the location is mythical but the geographical context is real. As mentioned before, some of the places mentioned are in Persia, Egypt and India. Historical figures such as
Alexander the Great are mixed with fictional ones. Combined with the scientific language and thorough descriptions of distances between places it is as if by reading the story one could navigate to these places.

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Paganism versus Christianity
There is no true Christian versus pagan element in Wonders of the East, though the text is linked to Judith and Beowulf in other important ways. One of these is the notion of rulership that permeates all three texts. As Powell states: “All of these works have the potential to communicate lessons about right rulership to Anglo-Saxon readers of the late tenth and early eleventh centuries—for example, the need to balance one's desire for personal glory with the protection of one's people from foreign threats” (Powell, 16). The great difference between
Wonders of the East and the other selected texts is that whereas Beowulf and Judith fight against (symbolic) monsters invading in their lands, the Wonders of the East are foreign monsters.
Genre
The aspect of genre is the final theme through which this paper aims to unify these three texts.
Though Beowulf and Judith have more in common in this respect, and Wonders of the East seems slightly out of place it is debatable whether Wonders of the East also has something which the other two texts clearly do: namely elements of an epic. An epic is a long narrative in which heroic deeds or events are described. Most often these events are important for a culture, nation or country. It is arguable, whether the creatures described in Wonders of the
East can be seen as significant for the culture of the East, and thus giving this text a minor epic element.
Analysis: Judith
Monsters
Judith was probably added to the Manuscript by the first scribe to work on the Beowulf manuscript (Kiernan). As previously stated, the poem is incomplete at both the beginning and the end. It is estimated that about a hundred lines are missing from the poem. The morals that
Judith upholds are Christian values; she herself is described as a “prudent woman”, “holy

11 maiden” and a “glorious handmaiden” (Treharne, 229). This contrasts with the way in which
Holofernes and his warriors are described, for example “the notorious one”, “that hateful tyrant” and “the heathen man”. However, Holofernes is not entirely evil as he is also described, as would be normal, as a “ruler of warriors” (Treharne, 229). As Orchard and
Powell point out in their research, the focus with Holofernes is more on his Pagan arrogance, rather than him being an evil being, such as Grendel.
History and Geography
The elements of history and geography are evident in Judith . There has been much debate as to the location of Bethulia, and it has been speculated that Bethulia refers to Jerusalem.
Moreover, Holofernes and his Assyrian army serve Nebuchadnezzar, the Assyrian king, who is a historical figure. His estimated reign was from 634-562 BC, and his empire stretched from Cyprus to Persia. He is mentioned in several other Bible texts besides the Book of
Judith, such as the Book of Daniel.
Paganism versus Christianity
To emphasize the contrast between the holy and the damned, the Old Testament version of
Judith was adapted and simplified. The manner in which the Assyrians can be seen as damned is twofold. Holofernes’ arrogance and pretences to be a false god are the first, as can be seen in lines 46-54 of the Elaine Treharne’s translation:
There was a beautiful all-golden fly-net that the commander had hung around the bed, so that the wicked one the lord of warriors, could look through on each of those sons of men who came in there, but not one of the race of mankind could look on him, unless, brave man, he commanded one of his very iniquitous men to come nearer to him for secret consultation. (229)
Moreover, as Kathryn Powell states: “By hiding behind the veil of the flynet, Holofernes not only appears to be a kind of false god, as Carl Berkhout and James F. Doubleday suggest, but

12 he actually appropriates for himself the gaze that would otherwise belong to God, who is unseen but views
æghwylcne … hæleða bearna
(ll. 50–51a; ‘each of the sons of men’) from beyond the temple veil.” (4). Holofernes’ pride will be his downfall as Judith will kill him, bringing victory to the Hebrews. Moreover, the Assyrians are damned because in this situation, they are the foreigners. This recalls the same monstrous effects as Grendel in
Beowulf and the weird creatures in Wonders of the East . They would seem alien to the Anglo-
Saxon reader.
Genre
Among other changes, the number of characters was reduced and the focus switched from
Judith’s beauty to her purity, intellectuality and Christian piety. The reduction of the number of characters both simplifies the story, as well as drawing more focus to the struggle of
Paganism versus Christianity. Judith also shares a textual aspect with Beowulf : the ending of the story is revealed early on. In Judith
, this passage can be found on page 229 of Treharne’s
Old English Anthology : “He intended to violate the bright woman with defilement and with sin. The Judge of glory, the Majestic Guardian, the Lord, Ruler of hosts, would not consent to that, but he prevented him from that thing,”. There is a similar passage in
Beowulf lines 705-
710: “It was known to men that the demonic ravager could not, when the Creator did not wish it, drag them under the shadows; but he, watching, hostile in anger, enraged awaited the outcome of battle” (Treharne, 201). I would argue there are two major differences between
Beowulf and Judith . In both texts there is a central character, a hero who defeats someone evil.
Where Beowulf fights against a true monster however, Judith battles a man with monstrous qualities. As will also be mentioned in the analysis of Beowulf , there are interpretations of the text where Beowulf is criticised. After his death, what will become of him, since he is a heathen; will he, even though he ruled justly, end in hell? Judith is praised throughout the text since its focus is more on Christianity. The second difference encompasses the role of women

13 in both texts. Whereas the women in Beowulf may seem passive and unimportant at first, this can be disproven by taking a closer look at Hrothgar’s wife and daughter. The importance of women in Beowulf is twofold. Both Wealhthow and Freawaru are what is known as
‘peaceweavers’. Freawaru is married to Ingeld in order to settle a feud between the Danes and the Heathobards. Wealthow is a Wulfing, married to Hrothgar when he settled the feud for
Beowulf’s father. This marriage was successful and the feud ended. Freawaru’s attempt, however, is unsuccessful and eventually the grand hall of Heorot will burn. Furthermore,
Wealhthow also fulfils an important role in Hrothgar’s court. During the ceremony in which she fills the cups of the brave Geats and later when she rewards Beowulf for cleansing Heorot she keeps the peace in the court. The main difference is the more active role, that of battle, that Judith has. While she is also considered a wise woman and is respected in her community, she is actually the one who slays the monster. Although Judith is slightly different in genre than Beowulf , nevertheless both can be considered epics. Similar to
Beowulf, Judith slays a monster and is the heroine of the texts and of her town. The aspect of length is not applicable to Judith, as it is a short poem. Due to the Cotton fire that damaged the manuscript both lines before and after what is now considered the poem have been lost.
Analysis: Beowulf
Monsters
Beowulf is considered by many to be one of the greatest poem of the Anglo-Saxon Age. It is an epic poem in every sense, with a hero travelling abroad to fight monsters and perform other heroic deeds. During the course of the poem, we learn of Beowulf’s adventure with Breca, he slays both Grendel and Grendel’s mother and defeats a dragon that plagues his kingdom.
Similar to those of Wonders of the East , the monsters in Beowulf can be considered ‘real’ monsters, a difference with Judith . The focus at first is on Grendel, a monster on which more will be explained in the section about paganism versus Christianity.

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History and geography
A feature that Beowulf shares with Wonders of the East is that of the semi-historical characters, meaning that some are fictional while there is proof of other’s real existence. For example, Beowulf the hero is fictional but Hygelac, who is Beowulf’s father as well as a historical character, for example, really conducted a raid on the Frisians in 516. There is also archaeological evidence of the existence of a hall such as Hrothgar has, as John D. Niles states:
This status quo ought to have been ruffled by excavations undertaken in 1986-
88 under the direction of the archaeologist Tom Christensen of Roskilde
Museum. Just southwest of Gammel Lejre were found the postholes of a great hall 48.5 metres long by 11.5 metres wide at its midpoint. Nearby were traces of outbuildings including a smithy, an apparent kitchen, an apparent barn or stables, and a separate longhouse that may have served as living quarters for members of the Lejre elite. This hall, about half the length of a football pitch, was twice the size of the houses at Trelleborg and almost twice the size of
Yeavering, the early seventh-century Northumbrian palace that is the largest building known from early Anglo-Saxon England. (6)
Paganism versus Christianity
There are two main element that relate to Christianity in Beowulf. When the monster Grendel is first described it is said that he descends from Cain. Cain commits the first murder when he kills his brother Abel and he is pure malignant. The other element, and a possible sign of weakness is Beowulf’s lack of faith. The reader might expect Grendel to contrast with
Beowulf, his vileness making Beowulf more glorious. However, as said in the summary,
Unferth is the character that assumes this role in Beowulf . The clash between Christian values and the Anglo-Saxon warrior can be described as:

The code is also often in tension with the values of medieval Christianity.
While the code maintains that honor is gained during life through deeds,
Christianity asserts that glory lies in the afterlife. Similarly, while the warrior culture dictates that it is always better to retaliate than to mourn, Christian doctrine advocates a peaceful, forgiving attitude toward one’s enemies.
Throughout the poem, the poet strains to accommodate these two sets of values. Though he is Christian, he cannot (and does not seem to want to) deny the fundamental pagan values of the story. (SparkNotes, 4)
There is no definite victory of one of these values over the other in Beowulf.
Beowulf is deemed a good king and a valiant warrior throughout the story. The reason that neither of these values dominates over the other is the intention of the author. He strains to give both
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Christianity and Paganism their role in the story. The most obvious way in which these themes clash in the story is on the question of an afterlife. In the pagan world, the way to be remembered after your death was fame, for example as a great king. There was no afterlife such as in Christianity. Moreover, fame is not as eternal as the afterlife. The Anglo-Saxons found their legacy very important, just as forefathers or ancestors were important in their culture. Being remembered after your death was only achieved by reaching a status of fame during life. There is also a conflict between the warrior Beowulf and Beowulf the king. When he decides to fight the dragon, this is a decision made by the warrior, not the king. A good king would not put himself in harm’s way because he needs to take care of his people.
Genre
Beowulf is one of the most complex poems due to its interlaced structure. Throughout the story several other events are related, such as the Finnsburg episode. In this episode
Hrothgar’s bard sings of a series of battles and tragic deaths between the Danes and the
Frisians. Though this episode has no real relevance to the Beowulf story itself it serves as a

warning. In a way, the failure of solving a feud via marriage forebodes the fall of Hrothgar
16 and his people. Beowulf , of the three texts contains the most elements of an epic. Moreover, the text is considered an example of the epic genre. Although the notion of genre is not the strongest of ties between these three selected texts, the fact that two of the three selected texts can be considered epics

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Conclusion
This thesis has given an account of the themes, motifs and elements that unify three texts in the Beowulf Manuscript, namely Wonders of the East, Beowulf and Judith . The purpose of the thesis was to present evidence of multiple traits that unified these texts. Although other studies and articles have been written that research a single theme within the Manuscript, the evidence from this research suggests that there are multiple levels of interconnection. The main focus in themes were (a) monsters, (b) women, (c) history and geography, (d) paganism versus Christianity and (e) genre.
In this conclusion I will review each point, taking the three selected texts into consideration. The most research has been done on monsters, such as in Pride and Prodigies by Andy Orchard. The three selected texts all have examples of monsters though these vary greatly per text. In Wonders of the East many of the marvels that are described are grotesque or monstrous in their appearance. Some of these are described as evil or wicked and, though not all are dangerous, many are reported to eat or kill men. The scientific language that the author uses does weaken the monstrousness of the creatures that are described. This is entirely different, in for example Beowulf.
Both the monsters in Beowulf and Wonders of the East are
‘real’ monsters. They differ greatly from normal humans in appearance and/or behaviour.
Though Grendel is not as specifically described as the monsters in Wonders of the East , imagination combined with terms such as “evil ravager” (Treharne, ?) can give the reader a fair idea of the monster. Judith differs from the two other texts in that its monster, though no less threatening, is a human and somehow seems less evil. There are no kind words for
Grendel or any of the monsters in Wonders of the East , but Holofernes is also described in more positive ways, such as “ruler of ...” (Orchard, ?). The second theme is that of women and their role in the texts. The text that seems to lack women in a certain role is Wonders of

the East and indeed this is not the text that I have looked at in this respect. That is mainly
18 because I believe that, though the texts are linked by several themes, each theme may link different texts. There is an overlap but it is not always consistent to the point that all texts feature exactly the same themes. The women in Judith and Beowulf play important roles in their respective stories. Judith brings victory to the Hebrews by taking part in battle and slaying the heathen leader Holofernes. Moreover, though her maid only makes a short appearance, she gives Judith good advice on how to act. The correspondence is the importance of the women in the stories, in Beowulf Wealthow and Freawaru are what is known as ‘peaceweavers’, they cement relationships or heal feuds between clans. This is not the only role they play, as Hrothgar’s wife is also a valued member of his court, giving both advice as well as keeping all the warriors happy by filling their cups and praising them.
Although these women seem to fulfil a more passive role than Judith, they are of equal importance to the women in Judith. Historical and geographical aspects feature in all three stories but mainly in Wonders of the East and Beowulf . As said before, the route that is travelled in Wonders of the East could be followed by taking a close look at the landmarks and places that are mentioned. Moreover, some of the characters or people in its descriptions are historical. The hall of Heorot in Beowulf actually existed as John Niles described in his article Beowulf’s Great Hall . Moreover, while Beowulf is probably a fictional character, there is evidence that some of his contemporaries, such as Hygelac, actually existed. Moreover, the geographical location is real. Both stories also contain a lot of fictional countries, locations and characters, for example the dragon in Beowulf . The paganism versus Christianity theme features mainly in Judith and Beowulf . Judith as a protagonist of her story is described as a virtuous and holy maiden, though she is also a strong and wise woman. Because of her belief we know that even though she will die eventually she will go to heaven and live forever after.
Moreover, we learn that Holofernes goes to hell. In Beowulf the author strains to incorporate

both the Christian and the Anglo-Saxon warrior code. The character of Beowulf is mildly
19 criticised in some parts of the story because the pagan idea of an afterlife would be living on through your fame. However, from a Christian point of view even fame will disappear and you will still be forgotten. The monster Grendel is mentioned to be a descendant from Cain, just as hellish and heathen images are linked to Holofernes. Next to these main themes there are some small correspondences and differences between the texts such as the foreboding of future events, beasts of battle and the way in which the outcome of the story is shown early on. Beowulf and Judith share the fact that the victory of their protagonists is shown before the actual battles. Beasts of battle also figure in both these stories. Genre is a theme which shows correspondences between Beowulf and Judith, yet one that also shows the difficulty of incorporating Wonders of the East . The first two texts are epics, with Beowulf and Judith as their heroes and the act of slaying monsters as the deeds that they perform. While Beowulf is a long poem, also typical of an epic, the same cannot be said of Judith since parts of the poem have been lost. Wonders of the East does not share most of these elements. There is no central hero or heroine, and the text does not describe heroic deeds or adventures, but rather marvels.
Moreover, the language in Wonders of the East is scientific and the author added realistic elements to the text. Andy Orchard describes the use of themes in Anglo-Saxon writings in general, and more specifically the Beowulf Manuscript as: “This technique of placing key themes in a text in apposition is one with which Old English poets, particularly that of
Beowulf , were fully familiar. Therefore, though in these three selected texts the notion of genre may not reveal uniformity, in my opinion it is still probable that the Beowulf
Manuscript was composed with genre in mind. The three other themes (a) monsters, (b) history and geography, (c) Paganism versus Christianity show stronger similarities between all three texts. As mentioned in the introduction, due to the size of a possible thesis encompassing the entire Beowulf Manuscript only three texts have been selected. Even

20 though, in my view, it is clear that these three texts are linked, it is interesting to look at other research possibilities. While researching these three texts I noticed that with every theme researched, more questions and thus possibilities for new research arose. For example, instead of employing only three texts, research could be conducted on the entire Manuscript. Some of the minor themes of Beowulf , such as the foreboding of events, or the use of beasts of battle could be present in the other texts of the Manuscript as well. Another interesting notion is the way in which Kathryn Powell looks at the nature of monsters in the Beowulf Manuscript.
More elaborate research into, for example, the question whether the Passion of Saint
Christopher really contains a monster is intriguing. Andy Orchard states some of the other larger themes that can be found in the Manuscript: “Just as Judith and the Passion of Saint
Cristopher are connected by the theme of saintly forbearance overcoming regal arrogance, and the Passion of Saint Cristopher and the Wonders of the East are connected by the figure of the half-human, half-monstrous cynocephali, so too the Wonders of the East and the Letter of Alexander to Aristotle are linked by the figure of Alexander the Great” (27). Furthermore, he takes several smaller themes into consideration, such as the motif of decapitation in
Beowulf and Judith . The links between the three texts Beowulf , Judith , and Wonders of the
East already reveal a deliberate action by the scribes in composing the Beowulf Manuscript. I would argue that the manuscript is set up as a unified body of texts, that have much more in common than what has been researched in this thesis. Compared to the amount of possible interconnections, this thesis gives only a small insight in the complex network of themes and motifs that surrounds the Beowulf Manuscript.

21
References
Author unknown. “Literature Study Guides: Beowulf”.
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Kiernan, Kevin. “Beowulf and the Beowulf Manuscript”. Michigan: The University of
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Lucas, Peter. “The Place of Judith in the Beowulf Manuscript”.
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Niles, John D. "Beowulf's Great Hall." History Today 56.10 (2006): 40-44. Academic Search
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Orchard, Andy. “Pride and Prodigies: Studies in the Monsters of the Beowulf-Manuscript”.
New York: Boydell & Brewer Inc, 1995. Print.
Powell, Kathryn. “Meditating on Men and Monsters: A Reconsideration of the Thematic
Unity of the Beowulf Manuscript”. Oxford Journals . Oxford University Press, 2006.
1 June 2011. Web.
Treharne, Elaine. “The Beowulf Manuscript”. Old and Middle English c.890-c.1450 an
Anthology.
Ed. Elaine Treharne. Oxford, England: Blackwell Publishing, 2010. 189.
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