Name________________________________________
Beowulf / Anglo Saxon Study Guide
English 10 / Ms. Friedman
Review: The Anglo-Saxon Period (pp 2-9 in textbook) and class notes on the Warrior Code
Define:
Boast: a method of inspiring heroic deeds //announce who you are, what you will do, your past accomplishments, how you intend to
accomplish your deed
Wergild: money claimed to avenge a man’s death
Mead /meadhall: an alcoholic beverage made from honey // a place where warriors meet and drink
Talons: claws
Sinews: tendons
Hoard: a hidden collection of money/goods
Flyting: is a contest consisting of the exchange of insults / / verbal combat
Peaceweaver: a woman who married someone from an enemy tribe in order to establish peace between her family and his.
Wyrd: power of fate
Literary Terms:
Heroic epic: a long narrative poem, written on a serious subject, in a grand style, about a larger-than-life hero
Example:
Ironic understatement: A figure of speech in which a writer or speaker says less than what he or she means; the opposite of
exaggeration
Example:
Kenning: a literary device in which a noun is renamed in a creative way using a compound word or union of two separate words to
combine ideas.
Example:
Alliteration: repetition of consonant sounds
Example:
Foreshadowing: a device that an author uses to hint at future events
Example:
Allusion: a reference in a literary work to a person, place, or thing in history, or to another literary work
Example:
Caesura: a pause somewhere in the middle of a verse
Identify:
Beowulf
Hrothgar
Wiglaf
Unferth
Brecca
Higlac
Grendel
Welthow
Grendel's mother
Fire Dragon
Herot
Hrunting
Review Questions
1. Describe Herot.
2. What is the significance of Grendel being descended from Cain?
3. Why does Grendel attack Herot?
4. What had Herot symbolized before the coming of Grendel? After?
5. Why does Unferth bring up Beowulf's swimming match with Brecca? How does Beowulf respond?
6. What is Welthow's role in Herot? What is the role of women in this society?
7. Describe the battle between Beowulf and Grendel.
8. Why can't the other warriors come to Beowulf's aid?
9. How does Beowulf wound Grendel?
10. Describe the lake (the monster's lair). How does it compare to Herot?
11. What does Unferth give Beowulf? Why?
12. Describe the battle between Beowulf and Grendel’s mother.
13. How does Beowulf defeat her?
14. What does Beowulf do before he swims back to land?
15. When does Beowulf realize he’s losing the battle with the dragon? What does he do?
16. What do Beowulf ’s followers do when they realize he’s losing? What does Wiglaf do?
17. How is Beowulf killed?
18. Identify the Christian influences in the poem.
19. Discuss the code of loyalty in Beowulf. How is society structured? What is important to the warriors in Beowulf?
20. What qualities did they feel a good king should possess? What do they consider courageous?
21. Discuss the battle between good and evil in the poem. Who represents good? Who represents evil?
22. Discuss the behavior of Beowulf's men in each of the battles (Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the Dragon).
23. What attitudes and actions lead to Beowulf's downfall?