Macbeth and Beowulf: Evil Defined By Human Preoccupation For centuries evil was defined by human preoccupation, and it was often indicated in the English literature. From Beowulf to Macbeth, people's perception on the nature of evil had matured and became more complex. In Beowulf's period, evil was simply defined based on outer appearances and actions. The author of Beowulf described the evil Grendel as a fearsome monster: "He(with sharp claws)…snatched up thirty men, smashed them." For the same reason, Grendel's mother was also considered evil although she merely wanted to revenge her son. The last evil character in the story was the Dragon