Early Anglo-Saxon Government
Early tribes were organized by clans or families and the head of the
family governed.
Anglo-Saxon characteristics of a chieftain included skill in battle,
courage and royal generosity.
The heroic paradox: By dying gloriously one may achieve
immortality.
The bards, or poets, gave their kings immortality by preserving their
history.
Because of the heroic paradox and Christianity, by the end of the
Anglo-Saxon era, kings believed they ruled by divine right. Their
subjects pledged their loyalty and the feudal system become the
governing system.
Characteristics of Old English poetry:
Alliterative – use of alliteration, or repetition of consonant sounds.
“Oft Scyld Scefing
Pronounced “Oft shyld shefing
sceapena preatum.”
sheethenaw threetomb”
Kennings – formalized compound metaphors. “whale’s road” or
“swan’s path” for the sea.
Ceasura – a pause or break within a line of poetry. In Anglo-Saxon
poetry, it divides the four-beat line in half.
Textbook
pp. 6 – 8
1. Who were the Celts?
2. What was a druid?
3. How long did Rome rule over the British Isles?
4. Where were the Anglo-Saxons from? Can you identify these
countries on your map I gave you?
5. What contribution did Christianity bring to England?
6. What was so great about Alfred the Great? 
7. Norman Conquest. Know who? When? Where? Why?
Textbook
p. 10
1. Anglo-Saxon poetry. Beowulf!
2. Anglo-Saxon prose. Latin vs. Old English. Which was the
language of prose?
Textbook
p. 14
List, in order of invaders, the evolution of the English language.