Beowulf: Anglo-Saxon Imitation: Writing a Boast
Meanwhile, a thane
of the King’s household, a carrier of tales,
a traditional singer deeply schooled
in the lore of the past, linked a new theme
to a strict meter. The man started
to recite with skill, rehearsing Beowulf’s
triumphs and feats in well-fashioned lines,
entwining his words.
(866-873)
As we have seen several times in Beowulf, the telling of lays (ballads) is a major part of
celebration. For this assignment, you and your partner will write an imitation of Anglo-Saxon
poetry in the form of a boasting speech. You may be serious or humorous (clever or satiric, not
just silly). The deed may be recent or distant, major or minor. You may—in fact are
encouraged—to embellish, hyperbolize, and stretch the truth. Think of a feat (something maybe
you or your partner did?) and write a boasting poem about it.
Your goal is to capture some of the techniques of the Anglo-Saxon poet. Make sure you include
those devices employed by the poet of Beowulf: kenning (compound word that means something
else, like sword-play= battle) alliteration, genealogy, elevated and ornamental language, vast
setting, etc.
Other examples of kenning:
o
a) helmberend—"helmet bearer" = "warrior"
b) beadoleoma—"battle light" = "flashing sword"
c) swansrad—"swan road" = "sea" Essentially, then, a kenning is a compact
metaphor that functions as a name or epithet; it is also, in its more complex forms,
a riddle in miniature.]