Please take notes
Beowulf
Is a long heroic poem
considered the
supreme achievement
of Anglo-Saxon
poetry because of its
length (3,182 lines)
and sustained high
quality.
Horner
Why is Beowulf
important?
Beowulf is both the first
English literary masterpiece
and one of the earliest
European epics written in
the vernacular, or native
language, instead of literary
Latin.
The story survives in one
fragile manuscript copied by
two scribes near the end of
the 10th or the first quarter
of the 11th century.
No one knows who
“wrote” Beowulf.
Like all early oral poetry, it
had as many authors as
singers who performed it.
It is from this poem that
we derive many of the
details for our
reconstructions of AngloSaxon social life.
Scops (pronounced "shops") were both composers
and storytellers who traveled from court to court —
the entertainers of Anglo-Saxon times.
Scops were expected
to know a broad repertoire
of tales and no doubt
be able to compose tales
in tribute to the patrons
who financed them.
Epic vs. Narrative
The first factor that
distinguishes epics from
other forms of narrative
poetry is scale:
-epic poems tend to be
too long to be read or
performed in a single
sitting.
Second distinguishing factor is style:
Epic poems are written in what might be
termed high style, avoiding popular metres and
verse patterns. For example, an epic written in
English would not use the ballad form.
Third distinguishing
factor
Epic poems always deal
with persons and events
that are considered to
be historically real by
the poet and their
audience, essentially,
the tale of the tribe.
(Based on the history you
learned before what could you
expect?)
The fourth
distinguishing factor
the
epic hero cycle.
(coming soon to a
SmartBoard near
you)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/launch_tl_ages_englis
h.shtml
An important aspect of Beowulf is the
way in which it is told/written.
•The scop uses kennings, alliteration, and
foreshadowing in telling his story.
•He also takes great care in describing
Beowulf’s appearance as he readies for
battle, as well as other parts of the story.
•These create a strong (and difficult) voice.
Kennings
are a special form of compounding
Words that are metaphoric in meaning.
banhus (ban + hus), literally "bone-house," refers
to the human body;
hronrad (hron + rad), literally "whale's road," refers
to the sea;
Rodores candel, literally "sky's candle," refers to the
sun
Alliteration
(a literary device)
DefinitionA figure of speech in which consonants,
especially at the beginning of words, or stressed
syllables, are repeated…
•In [Old English] poetry, alliteration was a
continual and essential part of the metrical
scheme .
•"Five miles meandering with a mazy motion."
Beowulf Translation Comparison
There are many translations of the poem, you will be
comparing three versions based on word choice, use
of kennings and alliteration.
On a separate piece of paper create a grid with
3 columns and 11 rows.
Read pages 27 – 31 in full sentences
1. When was Beowulf written?
2. What is a hero? Explain your definition and give examples.
3. What is courage? How would most people today define
courage?
4. What is an epic?
5. Define and give an example of a kenning. Write an original
kenning about someone you know.
6. In today’s society we have our own monsters, who or what are
they and what do they represent?
7. List three modern fictional heroes and explain how their
journeys fit the epic hero cycle. How are they separated?
What is their initiation? How have they been changed?