Epic means a long narrative poem, often written about a hero or heroies.

Beowulf is a epic
poem, because: The delineation of a heroic code is one of the most important preoccupations of
the poem. Beowulf is a hero, all story is about his brave and the fight between him and the
monsters. Beowulf exemplifies the traits of the perfect hero. The poem explores his heroism.
Beowulf is long,it contains 43 songs(3182 lines). Language (old English)and style is elevated.

Beowulf - The protagonist of the epic, Beowulf is a Geatish hero who fights the monster
Grendel, Grendels mother, and a fire-breathing dragon. Beowulfs boasts and encounters reveal
him to be the strongest, ablest warrior around. In his youth, he personifies all of the best values
of the heroic culture. In his old age, he proves a wise and effective ruler.
Read an in-depth analysis of Beowulf.
King Hrothgar - The king of the Danes. Hrothgar enjoys military success and prosperity until
Grendel terrorizes his realm. A wise and aged ruler, Hrothgar represents a different kind of
leadership from that exhibited by the youthful warrior Beowulf. He is a father figure to Beowulf
and a model for the kind of king that Beowulf becomes.
Grendel - A demon descended from Cain, Grendel preys on Hrothgars warriors in the kings
mead-hall, Heorot. Because his ruthless and miserable existence is part of the retribution exacted
by God for Cains murder of Abel, Grendel fits solidly within the ethos of vengeance that
governs the world of the poem.
Read an in-depth analysis of Grendel.
Grendels mother - An unnamed swamp-hag, Grendels mother seems to possess fewer human
qualities than Grendel, although her terrorization of Heorot is explained by her desire for
vengeancea human motivation.
The dragon - An ancient, powerful serpent, the dragon guards a horde of treasure in a hidden
mound. Beowulfs fight with the dragon constitutes the third and final part of the epic.

Summary
The Story
The following is a brief outline of the story, which naturally divides itself into five parts.
1. Beowulf, with fourteen companions, sails to Denmark, to offer his help to Hrothgar, king of
the Danes, whose hall (called " Heorot ") has for twelve years been rendered uninhabitable by the
ravages of a devouring monster (apparently in gigantic human shape) called Grendel, a dweller
in the waste, who used nightly to force an entrance and slaughter some of the inmates. Beowulf
and his friends are feasted in the long-deserted Heorot. At night the Danes withdraw, leaving the
strangers alone. When all but Beowulf are asleep, Grendel enters, the iron-barred doors having
yielded in a moment to his hand. One of Beowulf's friends is killed; but Beowulf, unarmed,
wrestles with the monster, and tears his arm from the shoulder. Grendel, though mortally
wounded, breaks from the conqueror's grasp, and escapes from the hall. On the morrow, his
bloodstained track is followed until it ends in a distant mere.
2. All fear being now removed, the Danish king and his followers pass the night in Heorot,
Beowulf and his comrades being lodged elsewhere. The hall is invaded by Grendel's mother,
who kills and carries off one of the Danish nobles. Beowulf proceeds to the mere, and, armed
with sword and corslet, plunges into the water. In a vaulted chamber under the waves, he fights
with Grendel's mother, and kills her. In the vault he finds the corpse of Grendel; he cuts off the
head, and brings it back in triumph.
3. Richly rewarded by Hrothgar, Beowulf returns to his native land. He is welcomed by Hygelac,
and relates to him the story of his adventures, with some details not contained in the former
narrative. The king bestows on him lands and honours, and during the reigns of Hygelac and his
son Heardred he is the greatest man in the kingdom. When Heardred is killed in battle with the
Swedes, Beowulf becomes king in his stead.