Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
Scholar’s name__________________________ Date__________________
PART ONE...MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS ON BEOWULF...
CHOOSE THE BEST ANSWER...
_____1) Beowulf is a) a poem b) a novel c) a short story d) the basis for the
Geatish Constitution, revised shortly after the Geats fought for and won
independence from the Peruvians who had occupied Geatland since Beowulf's
death e) all of the above ab) two or three of the above ac) nine or ten of the
above ad) none or less of the above
_____2) Beowulf was written down by a) Beowulf b) Bede c) Geatish monks
d) Peruvian monks e) an unknown author ab) Alfred the Great ac) Alfred
the Not So Great ad) Alfred the OK ae) Alfred the Pretty Good
_____3) Beowulf was composed/first sung in approximately _____ A.D. a) 100
b) 400 c) 700 d) 1000 e) 1300 ab) 1600 ac) 1900 ad) 1996
_____4) A slave stole a(n) a) feather boa which had originally been owned by
Welthow, who had worn it while belly dancing for her husband's drunken
followers. (How the boa came into the dragon's possession is still a matter of
much academic speculation and debate, but the most widely accepted and
logical explanation revolves around the mysterious connection between The
DaVinci Code and a secret meeting between Jeffrey Dahmer and the Burger
King Corporation, thought to concern some unusual new menu items.)
b) ring c) cup d) potato e) potato chip ab) Mr. Potato Head set ac) set of
yellow armor ad) yellow balloon ae) yellow submarine bc) pitcher of mead
bd) sword fashioned by giants
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
_____5) The setting of Beowulf is a) hyperspace and cyberspace
b) Walworth and Sharon c) Iceland and Norway d) Denmark and
Geatland e) Geatland and England ab) England and Denmark ac) unknown
ad) unknowable ae) ac and ad bc) unknown but probably not unknowable
bd) unknowable but probably not unknown be) bc and bd
_____6) Beowulf was killed by a) unknown assailants who mistook him for
Tupac Shakur during a drive-by shooting b) Ongentho c) a dragon
d) Grendel e) Grendel's mother ab) Franks ac) Beans ad) a sword
fashioned by gerbils
_____7) Grendel was killed by a) unknown assailants who mistook him for
Dante and Virgil during a drive-by shooting b) Beowulf c) Hrothgar
d) a snaggle-toothed sea hag e) sea monsters in an underwater cave ab) a
sword fashioned by monks
_____8) "Whale road" (for the ocean) and "God's bright beacon" (for the sun) are
examples of a) wyrds b) kennings c) barbies d) Barbies e) Emblas
ab) midgaards ac) scops ad) wergild
_____9) The king of the Danes was a) Japanese b) Ongentho c) Peruvian
d) Hrothgar e) Other ab) Alfred the Great ac) Alfred the Dane ad) Alfred
the Great Dane ae) a Great Dane named Alfred bc) an Eskimo bd) British
be) Higlac
_____10) In his first encounter with Grendel, Beowulf a) cuts off his head
b) tears off his arm c) cuts out his heart d) pokes out his eyes e) teaches
him how to line dance to covers of Brittney Spears’ songs sung by snaggletoothed sea hags accompanied by Beavis and Butt-Head ab) challenges him to
a game of Torchlight Croquet, Geatland's national sport ac) challenges him to
a game of Toorchlight Croquet, Iceland's national sport ad) throws croquet
balls at him ae) beats him three out of four in thumb wrestling bc) gives him
an exploding cigar bd) shakes a spear in the monster’s face
_____11) Beowulf killed Grendel's mother in a) Herot b) the Astrodome
c) a dispute over the literary merits of gangster rap d) Geatland e) an
underwater cave ab) a shootout at the OK Corral ac) a shootout at the Lousy
Corral ad) a shootout at the Totally Excellent Corral ae) Frisia bc) England
bd) Sweden be) a case of mistaken identify
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
_____12) After Beowulf’s death, his followers a) set him adrift in his "ringprowed war ship" b) ate mounds and mounds of Geatish Potato Salad, a
Geatish specialty invented by anonymous Geatish monks in the 10th Century
A.D. to commemorate Geatland’s independence from Peru c) burned him
d) tied him to an anvil which they dropped from the Trafficopter Four
helicopter into Lake Michigan e) ate him ab) had a huge rummage sale and
got rid of all the junk Hrothgar had given him ac) gave thanks to Vili, Ve, and
Odin ad) gave thanks to Andhulma and Ymir ae) sailed to Iceland
_____13) Beowulf once had a great swimming contest with a) the mechanical
shark in Jaws b) Moby Dick c) Nagling d) Wiglaf e) Frisia ab) Brecca
ac) Britney Spears ad) a guy eating a ham sandwich ae) a smoked ham
bc) a hamster bd) a hamster eating a smoked ham be) his father cd) his
brother
_____14) Beowulf succeeded Herdred as King of the a) Hill b) Franks
c) Beans d) Franks and Beans e) Geats ab) Danes ac) Frisians
ad) Freezers ae) Geezers bc) Indo-Europeans bd) Euro-Indians be) PanEuropeans cd) Middle Europeans ce) Big Foot Chiefs abc) Swedes
abd) Anglo-Saxons abe) whole wide world abcd) the solar system abce) the
universe
_____15) So far, this test is a) extremely simple b) extremely simple minded
c) an insult to my intelligence d) a serious threat to the educational process
and to traditional family values e) so ridiculous I should be able to refuse to
answer any more of these dumb questions ab) more fun than a barrel full of
monkeys g) more fun than a barrel full of mead ac) more fun than a barrel
full of midgaard serpents ad) more fun than a barrel full of monkeys full of
mead ae) about as much fun as a barrel full of monkeys bc) about as much
fun as a barrel full of mead bd) about as much fun as a barrel full of
midgaard serpents be) about as much fun as a barrel full of monkeys full of
mead cd) less fun than a barrel full of monkeys ce) less fun than a barrel full
of mead de) less fun than a barrel full of midgaard serpents abc) less fun
than a barrel full of monkeys full of mead abd) more fun than a barrel full of
midgaard serpents full of monkeys full of mead abe) about as much fun as a
barrel full of midgaard serpents full of monkeys full of mead bcd) less fun
than a barrel full of midgaard serpents full of monkeys full of mead bce) rad
cde) way rad abcd) tubular abce) totally tubular
abcde) other; specify_________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART TWO...SEVEN EVENTS FOLLOW...1 OCCURRED FIRST...7,
LAST...USE THESE ANSWERS…
a) 1
e) 5
b) 2
ab) 6
c) 3
ac) 7
d) 4
_____ 16) Beowulf slays Grendel’s mother
_____ 17) Beowulf is born
_____ 18) Beowulf battles with the dragon
_____ 19) Beowulf arrives in Denmark
_____ 20) 12 Geats ride horses around a tower that took “ten long
days” to build
_____ 21) A slave steals from the dragon’s treasure
_____ 22) Beowulf becomes king
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART THREE... MATCHING...USE ANSWERS ONCE, MORE THAN
ONCE, OR NOT AT ALL…
_____23) Hrunting
a) Hrothgar's wife
_____24) Valkyries
b) Home of the gods
_____25) Beowulf
c) Danish word for pastry
_____26) Ymir
d) Beowulf's "ancient sword"
_____27) Welthow
e) Unferth's sword--given to Beowulf
_____28) Higd
ab) Geatish word for potato salad
_____29) Wiglaf
ac) Dressed in yellow armor
_____30) Niflheim
ad) Land of the Giants
_____31) Asgaard
ae) Edgetho's brave son
_____32) Odin
bc) Swedish word for meatballs
_____33) Thrith
bd) Higlac's wife
_____34) Andhulma
be) Hrothgar's mead hall
_____35) Jotunheim
cd) Region of cold and ice
_____36) Herot
de) First cow
_____37) Nagling
abc) A god
abd) First giant
abe) Higd’s opposite/foil
bcd) Hungarian word for goulash
bde) Choosers of the Slain
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART FOUR... MULTIPLE CHOICE...
_____38) In 300 A.D., a tourist would have had to travel to _____ to hear
“English.” a) England b) France c) Iceland d) Wales e) Geatland
ab) China ac) Japan ad) Australia ae) Germany bc) Ireland bd) The
Sudan be) Scotland cd) The Arctic ce) Antarctica
_____39) The Anglo-Saxon Period is generally dated from _____ to _____ A. D.
a) 1-449 b) 449-1066 c) 1066-1776 d) 43-597 e) 410-449 ab) 500-1000
_____40) Which day of the week does not derive from Norse mythology?
a) Tuesday b) Wednesday c) Thursday d) Friday e) Saturday
_____41) In a typical modern English dictionary, _____% of the words would be
modern forms of Old English words. a) 10 b) 25 c) 75 d) 80 e) 85
ab) 90 ac) 95 ad) 99 ae) 100 bc) over 100
_____42) A written literature began to evolve in Britain with the coming of
a) radio b) TV c) the Christian church d) the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes
e) the Franks and Frisians ab) geese (whose quills were used for pens)
ac) Columbus ad) Magellan ae) the Danelaw bc) the printing press
_____43) In 1066, Britain was invaded and occupied by the a) Big Foot Pom
Pon Squad b) Chieftainettes c) Angles and Saxons b) Saxons and Danes
e) Geats and Frisians ab) Norman French ac) Norman Germans
ad) Norman Italians ae) Norman Chinese
_____44) To which language family does English belong? a) Old Norse
a) Anglo-Saxon c) Indo-European d) Old English e) Eskimo ab) EskimoAleut ac) Geat ad) Arabic ae) Semitic bc) Bushman bd) Andaman Island
be) Pan-Asian cd) Pan-American
_____45) Approximately how many Celtic words did the Anglo-Saxons adopt?
a) 12 b) 120 c) 1,200 d) 12,000 e) 120,000 ab) 1,200,000 ac) 1,200,001
ad) 1,200,002 ae) between 1,200 and 1,200,000 bc) more than 1,200,002
_____46) Who lives in Valhalla? a) monks b) gods c) warriors d) lawyers
e) monsters like Grendel, the dragon, and English teachers ab) NASCAR
drivers ac) hamsters ae) gerbils bc) ac and ae
_____47)
and
are two symbols for a) fate b) "DANGER: KEEP OUT:
HIGH VOLTAGE" c) mead d) th e) sh ab) ch ac) gh ad) ae
ae) aeeeiiiiioooooooouuuuuuuuuuu! bc) Spam bd) potato salad be) egg
salad cd) Beowulf ce) Grendel de) Grendel’s mother
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART FIVE...WRITE 5 QUESTIONS YOU WISH I'D ASKED AND
ANSWER THEM...THESE COUNT AS TEST QUESTIONS...MAKE
SURE THEY'RE EQUIVALENT TO THE MORE SERIOUS
QUESTIONS ON THE TEST...DO NOT REPEAT QUESTIONS
ALREADY ON THE TEST…
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART SIX...SHORT ANSWER...ANSWER THOUGHTFULLY AND
THOROUGHLY...
The following are characteristics of epic poetry. Based on these characteristics,
is Beowulf an epic poem? Choose three characteristics to explain fully.
1. Written in verse.
2. Often nationalistic, even xenophobic1.
3. Focuses on a larger-than-life hero who embodies his culture’s values.
4. Opens en medias res2.
5. Begins with an invocation to the Muse(s)/god(s).
6. Consists of episodes rather than a single plot line.
7. Setting is large scale, often ranging around the (known) world.
8. The intervention of supernatural figures (gods, demons, monsters, etc), who are
interested in the outcome of the action.
9. Frequent use of epithets (NOUN: 1a. A term used to characterize a person or thing,
such as rosy-fingered in rosy-fingered dawn or the Great in Catherine the Great.
b. A term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person, such as
The Great Emancipator for Abraham Lincoln.)
10. May/Should be looked at allegorically.
1
2
strong dislike/fear/distrust of foriegners.
“in the middle of things”
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Lit heritage
Exam on Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxon Period
PART SEVEN...EXTRA CREDIT...SOLVE THE FOLLOWING
ANGLO-SAXON RIDDLE...
I’m prized by men, in the meadows I’m found,
Gathered on hill-sides and hunted in groves;
From dale and from down, by day I am brought.
Airy wings carry me, cunningly store me,
Hoarding me safe. Yet soon men take me;
Drained into vats, I’m dangerous grown.
I tie up my victim, and trip him, and throw him;
Often I floor a foolish old man or old woman.
Anyone who wrestles with me, and rashly would measure
His strength against mine, will straightway find himself
Flung to the ground, flat on his back,
Put from his senses and power of speech,
Robbed of his might, bereft of his mind,
Of his hands and feet. Now find me my name,
Who can blind and enslave men so upon the earth,
And bring fools low in broad daylight.
I am_____________________________________________.
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