Introduction to Beowulf:
Characters, Setting, Plot and Language
Please complete the following two activities. Record your work on a
Google Doc or separate sheet of notebook paper. Turn in your work to
Google Classroom by the end of the period.
1. A Brief History of English
Language
Pt. 1 The History of English: Whatever
Happened to the Jutes?
Pt. 10 - History of the English Language:
Global English
The Task: Produce notes that
demonstrate you have
comprehended the information
about the history of the English
language.
A. Listen to the Pt. 1 and Pt. 10
of the “The History of English,
In 10 minutes” video series.
Take notes on what you learn
from the videos
B. Listen once more. Then fill in
any information that you
missed during the first
playthrough.
Important note:
The purpose of this activity is to
understand the cultural and
historical forces that impacted the
history of the English language.
Your notes should focus on those
topics.
Introduction to Beowulf:
Characters, Setting, Plot and Language
2. Beowulf: Shrinking the Epic
The Task: Produce notes that
demonstrate you have
J.R.R. Tolkien’s
comprehended the information
“The Lay of Beowulf”
about the characters, setting, and
plot of Beowulf based upon J.R.R.
(For the text, please see materials Tolkien’s “The Lay of Beowulf”.
attached to the “Intro to Beowulf:
Plot and Language” assignment)
A. Read “The Lay of Beowulf” by
J.R.R. Tolkien. While reading,
take notes to accomplish the
following:
a. Identify important
characters in the poem.
b. Identify important places
in the poem.
c. Identify important
events in the poem.
B. Once you have finished
identifying this information,
record any questions you still
have about the following
topics in “The Lay of
Beowulf”:
a. Characters
b. Setting
c. Plot