J.R.R. Tolkien studied Beowulf extensively and discussed it in his 1936 lecture.
Tolkien delivered his lecture “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics” in 1936. He argued that scholars had paid too much attention to using the poem as evidence about history and language while undervaluing its artistic structure. Tolkien insisted that its monsters—especially Grendel, Grendel’s mother and the dragon—were central to its meaning rather than embarrassing distractions.
The lecture became one of the most influential modern studies of Beowulf. It helped shift critical attention toward the poem as a unified work of literature. Tolkien’s engagement with the poem also influenced his own creative work, including his treatment of heroic cultures, monsters, treasure and the tragic effects of age.
Beowulf is an Old English epic about the hero Beowulf, who fights Grendel, Grendel’s mother and a dragon. The surviving manuscript dates from around the year 1000, although the poem itself is older.