BEOWULF
EPIC NOTES
AN EPIC IS:
pg.1
• sometimes called a heroic poem.
• a long narrative poem about the adventures
of larger-than-life characters.
• sometimes called a literary epic.
EPIC HEROES
TEND TO HAVE THESE CHARACTERISTICS
pg.2
• The hero is a great leader strongly identified
with a particular people or society.
• The setting is broad and often includes the
upper and lower worlds.
• The hero does great deeds in battle or
undertakes an extraordinary journey.
• Sometimes the gods or other supernatural or
fantastic beings take part in the action.
• The story is told in heightened language.
THE THEME OF BEOWULF
pg.3
• Heroic Deeds: A way to Immortality –
The recounting of heroic deeds is a major
feature of Anglo-Saxon literature.
The ancient heroes quested to overcome evil,
even loneliness, and by so doing, they hoped
to win a place in the memory of their people.
THE EPIC FORM OF BEOWULF
pg. 4
EPIC – a long narrative giving the story of heroic deeds accomplished by a hero
of above-average strength and ability.
1. Hero undergoes perilous adventures for the sake of the tribe or nation.
2. Sometimes the hero accomplishes his task with little assistance. (other
times the gods may intervene)
3. Comes from oral tradition of history
4. Classical epic opens with invocation to the Muse of epic poetry.
-followed immediately by a crucial moment of action. (in medias res, in
the middle of)
5. Also has flash backs, repetitions, catalogues, stock phrases, epithets,
hospitality codes, epic boasting , intervention of gods and also visits to
Hades.
THE HERO
pg. 5
• The concept of the hero comes out of epic poetry in which
historical, geographical, and spiritual elements are incorporated
to make the adventure significant enough to carry moral truth.
• Beowulf represents both himself, as one who seeks immortality
through fame, and the tribal group. He may die, but the group
will be saved; his honor is preserved, and that honor strengthens
the people. Because of these qualities, he draws followers
naturally.
• The stature of the hero is frequently measured by the
formidable qualities of his adversary. The monster can be
analogous to Cain and the serpent, animal and spirit, as well as
other forms of evil incarnate with the hero as its antithesis.
Epic Elements
pg. 6
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1. Address to the Muse (Invocation) (prayer)
2. Conflict
3. Beginning (In media res) (In the middle of)
4. Flashback
5. Return to present
6. Repetitions
EPIC ELEMENTS CONT.
pg.6 cont.
• 7. Catalogues (long lists – the poet would devise long lists of famous
princes, aristocrats, warriors and mythic heroes to be lined up in battle
and slaughtered)
• 8. Stock phrases
• 9. Epithets (Short nickname like – fleet-footed Achilles or grey-eyed
Athena)
• 10. Hospitality Code
• 11. Epic boasting
• 12. Intervention of gods (Supernatural)
• 13. Visit to Hades
• 14. Affects entire nation
• 15. Vast setting
• 16. Narrative format
MONSTER QUALITIES
pg. 7
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1. cruel
2. alien
3. uses magic
4. strange dwelling/home
5. unnatural strength
6. beast-like
7. no values/morality
8. alone/alienated
HERO QUALITIES
pg. 8
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1. leadership
2. sincerity
3. courage
4. warrior
5. strength
6. fearlessness
7. modesty
8. honor
9. self-sacrifice
10. concern for the group
BEOWULF LITERARY TERMS
pg. 9
• 1. caesura - \si zhoor’ e\ - n. a pause or break in a
line of verse.
• 2. kenning – metaphorical compound words or
phrases that indicate a person or thing by a
characteristic or quality (ex/ ring-giver=king)
• 3. alliteration – the repetition of the same initial
letter, sound or group of sounds in a series of words.
• 4. personification – giving animate characteristics to
an inanimate object
TIMELINE
pg. 10
HISTORY
DATE
Stonehenge
2000 B.C.
Celts arrive in England
1500-1000 B.C.
Roman occupation
55 B.C. – 410 A.D.
LITERATURE
Jutes, Angles, Saxons arrive 450 A.D.
Christian revival
597 A.D.
Historical King Arthur in
Celtic Wales
500 -600 A.D.
707 A.D.
Danish (Viking) raids
787 A.D.
The Battle of Hastings
1066 A.D.
Beowulf written