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• Table of Contents
• 9-10 The Epic Tradition
• Words Worth Knowing
• Epic a long narrative poem that relates the
  great deeds of a larger-than-life hero who
  embodies the values of a particular society.
• Archetype a pattern that appears in literature
  across cultures and is repeated through the ages.
  Can be a character, a plot, an image, or a
  setting.

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Cornell Notes
3
The Epic Tradition
Characteristics of an Epic
? KEY POINT

• Incredible plot, involving large-scale events
• Mix of myth, legend, and history that often
  includes gods and goddesses as characters
• Long narrative poem about a quest, told in
  formal, elevated language
• Larger-than-life hero who embodies the values of
  a particular culture

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The Epic Tradition
Characteristics of an Epic
Epics from all times and places help connect the
past to the future.

• An epicor long narrative poemis about the
  exploits of a national hero.

• Epics carry a cultures history, values and
  traditions from one generation to the next.

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The Epic Tradition
Characteristics of an Epic
Epics may vary across different cultures or times.

• The epic tradition, however, remains a constant
  social feature.

• Where there are people, there are epics,
  retelling the triumphs and trials of life.

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Hero
? KEY POINT
Myths and religious stories, which explain the
origins and deeds of gods, differ from epics.

• The epic tradition reflects the human need
• to understand ourselves
• to bridge the gap between whats human and whats
  divine

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Hero
Epic heroessuch as Anglo-Saxon Beowulf, Greek
Achilles, and Mesopotamian Gilgameshare special,
godlike human beings

• who carry the status and power of gods within
  themselves

• who remain subject to the joys and hardships of
  the human condition

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Hero
Beowulf, Achilles, and Gilgamesh embody the
particular values of their cultures.
These values can be found distilled in a single
figure the heroic archetype.

• The archetype is the model that is somehow
  familiar to all people and times.

• The archetypal hero expresses the universal human
  quest for knowledge and understanding.

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Hero
As in our own journey through life, there are
often trials and obstacles that stand between the
hero and his or her goals.

• Like Beowulf facing Grendel, we must fight our
  own dragonsour inner and outer demons.

• The epic heros belief in himself, in his own
  powers, and in certain values makes success
  possible.

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Lives On
? KEY POINT
Today, the epic tradition thrives in our own
popular culture, where a diverse array of
larger-than-life characters appear . . .

• in movies

• in television shows

• in video games

• in fantasy novels

• in comic books

These characters, both male and female, are often
superhuman and easily recognizable as descendants
of the ancient heroes.
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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Lives On
Epics are a dramatic record of the personal and
collective human quest, as in

• Beowulfs journey from a self-seeking adventurer
  to a heroic but humble death

• Gilgameshs transition from arrogant king to
  returning pilgrim

• Achilles passage from pouting adolescent to
  experienced warrior

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The Epic Tradition
The Epic Lives On
The archetype endures

• The epic continues to be a universal and relevant
  symbol.

• Epics express some of the most deeply held values
  of humankind.

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Beowulf Introducing the Epic
? KEY POINT
Beowulf is

• one of the most important epics of Western
  literature

• a long narrative with monsters, gory battles, and
  a brave hero Beowulf

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Beowulf
Background
The epic poem Beowulf takes place in the
Anglo-Saxon period following the fall of the
Roman Empire.
Reconstructed Anglo-Saxon village in West Stow,
England, with communal hall on the left.
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Beowulf
Background
The story concerns a brave and strong hero who
hears tales of a fearsome beast that has laid
waste to a kingdom of Danes. The ancestry of
each character is emphasized throughout the epic.
Beowulf rips off the monster Grendels arm.
End of Section
16
Beowulf Introducing the Epic
Time
500
Beowulf describes the world of the early sixth
century.
600
However, the epic was not written down until some
time between 600 and 750.
750
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Beowulf Introducing the Epic
Sources
Beowulf is based on early Celtic and Scandinavian
folk legends.
Christian elements and geographic details suggest
the epic was written down by a Northumbrian monk.
End of Section
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Research

• http//www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.ht
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