Beowulf

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Beowulf

• Text and Context

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Beowulf

• The Old English language was mostly spoken, but
  it did have highly developed poetry and prose
  the most famous of course, being the epic ballad
  of BEOWULF
• Beowulf the earliest known recorded (written
  around 8th century) epic ballad. Since the poem
  takes place in Scandinavia, it provides some
  information about customs and traditions of the
  people of this time and place
• http//faculty.virginia.edu/OldEnglish/Beowulf.Rea
  dings/Prologue.html

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Background

• Unknown date of composition (roughly 8th-11th
  Century CE) around 700 A.D.
• The story had been in circulation as an oral
  narrative for many years before it was written.
• The action of the poem takes place around 500 AD
• Poet is reviving the heroic language, style and
  pagan values of ancient Germanic oral poetry
• Unknown author possibly one Christian author in
  Anglo-Saxon England

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.Background

• Only a single manuscript of the poem survived the
  Anglo-Saxon era. In the 1700s it was nearly
  destroyed in a fire
• It was not until 1936 when the Oxford scholar
  J.R.R Tolkien published a paper on the poem that
  it became popular.

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Background

• Was bound together with 4 other works in Old
  English.
• The Passion of St. Christopher
• The Wonders of the East
• Alexanders Letter to Aristotle
• Judith (a poem)
• All have the presence of monsters, so this
  suggests that was the common thread.
• Today, the manuscript is in the British Library
  in London

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Beowulfs Name

• Beowulfs father Edgetho
• In most cases, the son is named after the father
• Don
• Donald (son of Don)
• McDonald (son of son of Don)
• McDonaldson (son of son of son of Don)
• Proves Beowulf is own individual with own powers
  and abilities (and more important than his
  father)
• Beo Bear
• Bears are known as Great Protectors in Norse
  mythology
• Strong
• Wulf Wolf
• Wolves are also great protectors, but are also
  cunning and speedy

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Geats and Danes

• The poem deals with ancient Germanic forebears,
  the Danes and the Geats
• Beowulf was a war leader of the Geats, a group of
  people in what is now southern Sweden
• Hrothgar was king of the Danes

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The Beowulf Poet

• The poet is Christian
• The poem reflects established Christian tradition
• Allusions to the Old Testament
• Beowulf is a Redeemer who is sent by God to save
  man from sin
• The price of salvation is life itself
• Correspondences between Beowulfs death and the
  death of Christ

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Elements of an Epic

• Epic hero a character with a trait or
  characteristic that is valued by his society.
• (E.g. Supermans bravery or valor)
• Quest A journey through which the character or
  the reader learns something
• Valorous Deeds Doing something bravely.
• Divine Intervention The hand of God (or gods)
  help the hero, proving his value.
• Great events The hero has a hand in something
  important in the history or mythology of a
  culture.

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2 Types of Epics

• Folk
• Told out loud first (usually by scops)
• Unknown author
• Unknown dates
• (E.g.Beowulf is a folk epic because we dont
  know who wrote it)
• Literary
• Known author
• (E.g. Paradise Lost, by John Milton is a
  literary epic because we know who wrote it.)

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3 Epic Conventions

• Invoke a muse
• Muse inspiration provided by the gods
• Plot begins in medias res
• In medias red In the middle of the action
• Serious tone

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Heroic Values in Beowulf

• Relationship between king and his warriors
• The king rewards his warriors with gifts
• If a kinsman is slain, obligation to kill the
  slayer or obtain payment (wergeld) in
  compensation

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Warrior Code

• Comitatus Germanic code of loyalty
• Thane warrior swears loyalty to the king for
  whom they fought and whom they protected
• Kings generous, protected thanes
• Reputation thanes were expected to be loyal,
  brave, courageous kings were expected to be
  generous and hospitable
• Wergild man-payment a fee paid to the family
  of a slain man to atone for his murder and to
  prevent the family from seeking revenge.

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Conflicting Christian Values and Heroic Values

• This tension is at the heart of the poem
• Pagan history and myth are made to point to a
  Christian moral
• Beowulf is poised between two value systems

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The Character of Beowulf

• He fights for personal honor, but is committed to
  service to his own people and humanity.
• A superhuman who remains recognizable
• Contrast old and young Beowulf
• Beowulf as savior

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Theme Topics

• Good vs. Evil
• Fate
• The Importance of Establishing Identity
• Tension between Heroic Code and Christianity
• Significance of artifacts
• The past

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Important Elements of the Poem

• Elegaic tone
• Heroic poem
• Contrasts
• Christian and pagan
• Youth and old age
• Rise and fall of nations
• Joy and sorrow
• Fate and Gods will
• Violence
• Irony

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Literary Devices

• Allusion Biblical, Germanic oral tradition,
  Norse myth and legend, historical Anglo-Saxon
  kings (eg. King Offa of Mercia)
• Alliteration (eg. Scylds strong son)
• Epic poetry a long narrative poem written in
  elevated style which celebrates the deeds of a
  legendary hero or god.
• Kenning two-word metaphorical name for something
  (eg. whale-roadsea)
• Scop Anglo-Saxon composers and storytellers
  (like minstrels or bards)

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Sutton Hoo

• Near Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, is the site of
  two Anglo-Saxon cemeteries of the 6th century and
  early 7th century. One contained an undisturbed
  ship burial including a wealth of Anglo-Saxon
  artifacts of outstanding art-historical and
  archaeological significance, which are now held
  in the British Museum in London. Other sites
  before then had already produced significant
  finds, but many had been looted.Burial site
  discovered in 1939
• Important links to Anglo-Saxon world and Beowulf
• Remains of a boat were discovered and large
  burial chamber containing numerous artifacts
• Artifacts suggest a distinctly Christian element
  intermingled with pagan ritual.
• Episodes in Beowulf now have tangible
  archaeological evidence to add credibility to the
  blend of customs in the text.

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Sutton Hoo Artifacts
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Video links re sutton Hoo

• .
• http//greenehamlet.com/beowulf-resources/suttonh
  oo
• http//www.blinkx.com/watch-video/anglo-saxon-trea
  ure-hoard-found-in-staffordshire-field/AOyZvCEUOPu
  rd3cSGJ05ZQ