[Bill Carpenter]

The poet doesn't call them "sweet-singing ," Janice, but "blithe-hearted." Although it is ominous making them heralds of heaven's joy, there is a basis in their typical behavior, which is social, communicative, playful, bold, inventive. You should read Tolkien's Beowulf and the Critics. Nothing better on the relationship of Christianity and paganism in the poem. Richard North's Origins of Beowulf is a fascinating compendium of source material, including likely tale-telling from Scandinavian sailors and heterodox scriptures.