Beowulf Study Guide
1. What are the years of the Anglo-Saxon time period?
2. When and how did it end?
3. What are the values of the Anglo-Saxon’s?
4. List the characteristics of oral poetry.
5. What is kenning? Write an example.
6. What are the traits of an epic hero?
7. Why did the Anglo-Saxon’s use riddles?
8. What is caesura?
9. According to the story, from what famous person does Grendel trace his monstrous lineage?
10. Why is Grendel angry?
11. How many warriors does Grendel eat on the first night he attacks Heorot?
12. How long does Grendel haunt Heorot until Beowulf comes to help the Danes?
13. What is the one thing in the mead-hall Grendel is unable to touch or ruin? Why?
14. What king does Beowulf serve? Why does Beowulf leave this king to help out Hrothgar? What
qualification or achievements does Beowulf have that make him suitable for fighting Grendel?
15. When Beowulf fights Grendel, what special weapon does he use to dispatch the monster?
16. What does Beowulf do to Grendel that mortally wounds the monster?
17. What decoration or trophy does Beowulf stick on a spike over the entry-way to Heorot?
18. Who comes to avenge Grendel's death?
19. Grendel's mother kills whom in retaliation for her son's death?
20. Where does Grendel's mother live?
21. How long does the text say it took Beowulf to reach the bottom of the lake?
22. How does Beowulf end up killing Grendel’s mother?
23. According to the summary of excerpted material, how long does Beowulf rule as king over the
Geats?
24. Wht arouses the dragon's wrath and lures it from its lair to attack men?
25. Where does the dragon make its lair?
26. Give a brief blow-by-blow of Beowulf's fight with the dragon.
27. Who is the one warrior that remains loyal to Beowulf when the other thegns run away?
28. After Beowulf appoints Wiglaf king, what is Beowulf's last dying request? (i.e., what does he want
to look at before he dies?)
29. What does he ask be done with his body when it comes to burial?
30. What punishment does Wiglaf order for those men who fled from the scene of battle?
Complete the chart.
Chapter
CHARACTERS
CONFLICT(S)
Theme
1 Sentence SUMMARY