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BEOWULF

BEOWULF. An Introduction to the English Folk Epic. The Anglo Saxon Period 440 AD-1066 AD. Britons: Celtic people, original inhabitants of Britain 449 AD: the first people from North German plain settled in Kent Jutes: from Jutland in Denmark Angles and Saxons followed Britons were no match

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BEOWULF

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  1. BEOWULF An Introduction to the English Folk Epic

  2. The Anglo Saxon Period 440 AD-1066 AD • Britons: Celtic people, original inhabitants of Britain • 449 AD: the first people from North German plain settled in Kent • Jutes: from Jutland in Denmark • Angles and Saxons followed • Britons were no match • King Arthur, Whales • Brought Old English • A/S England – military society born in warfare • 1066 AD: Norman Invasion ends A/S society

  3. Anglo Saxon Civilization • Admired men of courage • Loyalty to leader and tribe • Person of rank received with courtesy • Ruler was generous to followers • Believers in an impersonal fate • Aware of short life span: ubi sunt

  4. Christianity • Christianity came to Britain in AD 314 • St. Augustine – 597 AD • First archbishop of Canterbury

  5. Folk Epics are tales of a national HERO But what is heroic?

  6. Characteristics of a Pagan Hero • Good Fighter • Loyal • Persevering (Never Gives Up) • Wins “Fame” (in Songs in a Mead Hall)

  7. Pagan Characteristics, cont. • Little Regard for Danger or Self: Brave • Battle as a Way of Life • Personal Vengeance as Familial Requirement • FATE: Revenge and/or Death

  8. Characteristics of a Christian Hero • Recognizes God as Creator • Humility in the presence of God’s Power • Altruism in Action

  9. Christian Characteristics cont. • Contrast between Good and Evil Rulers • Personal Vengeance transmuted into Fighting Evil • Good is Rewarded and Evil is Punished (Evil in the World)

  10. Beowulf Historical Background

  11. During a time of Old English Warriors Called the “Dark Ages” - - a time of Barbarians

  12. VIKINGS INVADE

  13. DARK AGES DOES NOT MEAN NO ART VIKINGS LOVED GOLD, JEWELRY, WEAPONS, AND RINGS

  14. Author/Composer • Likely an educated Christian, possibly a monk

  15. Author/Composer • Wove together many oral traditions with consummate skill • Sanitized slightly the pagan traditions • Produced a single tale

  16. Manuscript History • First English literary masterpiece • Beowulf was probably composed between 700 A.D. and 900 A.D • The place of its composition was probably Northumbria • Northumbria was home to Roman Catholic monks who excelled in learning and literature • First transmitted orally for one to three centuries

  17. Manuscript History • Although its author did not write it down, two English scribes did so in about 1000 A.D • Saved from looting of monasteries under Henry VIII

  18. Manuscript History • Saved from fire in Sir Henry Cotton’s Library in 1731 • Danish scholar translated it in 1787; first published in 1815

  19. Part of the Original Manuscript

  20. BEOWULF Setting

  21. Danish kingdom ruled by Hrothgar, situated on the island of Zealand (site of present-day Copenhagen, Denmark) • A mead hall was a communal gathering place for feasting and drinking mead • an alcoholic beverage made of water and fermented honey • Mead was a popular drink in Denmark and other Scandinavian countries during the Middle Ages because grapes, a crop that thrives in warmer southern climates, were not readily available to make wine.)

  22. Important Terms • Heroic Ideal: A/S culture governed by ideals of bravery, loyalty and generosity • Comitatus: loyalty to king and king to men • Wyrd: Old English for fate • Wergild: “manprice”

  23. BEOWULF Structure and Style

  24. Style of the Folk Epic • Lyric • Epic • Narrative

  25. Literary Devices • Scops used harp to add beats to poetry • Four Lifts per line; with a caesura “chosen champions cheerlessly grieved for the loss of their lord, leader and defender. They called him of captains, kings of the known world,” • Allusions • two or more words having the same initial sound

  26. Literary Devices, cont. • Kennings: bardic formulae, used as appositives, for example, • "bone-house," refers to the human body • "whale's road," refers to the sea • "sky's candle," refers to the sun.

  27. Themes • Good vs. evil • Not moral but about fate and reputation • Good will fight knowing that eventually they will be defeated • Identity • Boasting = resume • Strength and skill • Highly valued even in enemies • Skill slightly devious

  28. More Themes • Wealth • Glory and treasure - immortality • Religion • Christianity vs. paganism • Wyrd and providence • Violence • Loyalty, vengeance and feud • Courage • Fortitude and wisdom

  29. More Themes • Mortality • Ubi Sunt • Supernatural • Monsters • Tradition and customs • Comitatus • Wyrgild • boasting

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