“Heaney has turned Beowulf into a success: a vivid and compelling tale written in an elegant, flowing style...Heaney's version is faultless...And (his) wonderful introduction ...it alone is worth the price of the book. ” -- Eve Claxton, Time Out NY The poem is known for its epic battles against an inhuman trio and its Middle Ages "horror" lore. Everyone and their neighbors learn about Beowulf by reading the poem or the animated version, which had its own course of events. It's about a Scandinavian hero who sails overseas to a foreign land to kill an infamous monster who cruelly terrorizes the kingdom and ends up killing the monster's mother as well. Beowulf represents life with a spiritual twist and in itself weaves together various themes that I have learned from.(Horror theme)(2)BOOKBeowulf is seen as the original horror story, with three monsters that don't quite give off that image scary. “What the original audience of Beowulf had in mind was terror. They listened to the poem in circumstances very similar to those it describes, huddled together around a fire and worrying about what lurked outside in the dark, and they knew something that some of the modern adapters may have lost sight of: that in the right circumstances it is extremely nice to be scared to death” (McGrath). From personal experience while reading the poem, I found it quite smooth and relaxing. So, I didn't feel any terror or fear reading it. But in older times, when monsters seemed as real as anything lurking outside, it would have made sense why they attracted terror in ancient times. There were points where I absolutely admired Heaney for his translation of certain parts that would otherwise have been seen… middle of the paper… highlighting the dark ages of warrior culture. Instead of taking the text and making an interpretation of what it might be based on what it has to offer, I did that and expanded on something that is meaningful to me. Sometimes taking things as they are isn't enough and using my personal experiences helped me identify any relationships between me and poetry. After all, Beowulf taught me lessons that I could carefully take note of and improve my beliefs and morals. I would recommend the book to people to consider and possibly shape their beliefs and morals differently. It doesn't necessarily have to be a positive event for someone to take Beowulf and change slightly for the worse. As long as it is a significant change and the reader is able to value himself as I had done by reading the poem.