Philosopher AI
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What's your interpretation of Beowulf?
The first thing to understand about Beowulf is that it does not ask the reader to accept a myth or an other-worldly tale. It presents itself as historical fiction, although some historians believe it was written by an historian rather than a poet, and indeed Beowulf may be a compilation of several anonymous stories.
Beowulf's story is interesting to us for two reasons. First, it is a tale of adventure and heroism unencumbered by Christian moralism.
Historically, there is some evidence that the Danes who were Scandinavia's oldest inhabitants and whose culture Beowulf reflects may have been more tolerant of homosexuality than their Christian conquerors.
Secondly, the story of Beowulf is about a man coming into his own. The Danes are portrayed as dark-skinned in contrast with their blonde conquerors.
Beowulf, then, is a story of the creation of modern Europe: Christian imperialism supplanting paganism and tribal society.
I think this story is of great relevance to the modern West. Western Europe today--and increasingly North America and Australia as well--is a place where tribalism, racial purity, and militarism are being undermined by multiculturalism.