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Beowulf

Beowulf, a predestined hero with a mysterious origin, embodies cultural ideals as he faces supernatural challenges and follows a code of conduct. This epic poem, composed in the 7th or 8th century, recounts the adventures of Beowulf and his battles against Grendel, Grendel's Mother, and a fire dragon. With its chant-like effect, alliteration, and other elements of Anglo-Saxon poetry, Beowulf reflects the fierce and hardy life of warriors in Anglo-Saxon culture. This epic hero's strength, courage, loyalty, and desire for fame make him the embodiment of Anglo-Saxon ideals and codes of conduct.

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Beowulf

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  1. Beowulf

  2. The Epic Hero • Predestined heroism • Mysterious origin • Vulnerability • Rite of passage • Embodies cultural ideals

  3. The Epic Hero • Actions consist of responses to catastrophic situations in which the supernatural often intervenes. • Code of conduct forces him to challenge any threat to society • Destiny discovered through a series of episodes punctuated by violent incidents interspersed with idyllic descriptions.

  4. Epic Poem • Long narrative poem that recounts the adventures of a hero. • Elevated language • Does not sermonize • Invokes a muse • Begins in media res • Mysterious origin, super powers, vulnerability, rite of passage

  5. Background Information • 30,000 lines of Anglo-Saxon poetry survive today • 3, 182 (10%) of the lines are from Beowulf • Setting - Denmark and Sweden • Author - Unknown, probably a monk • Composed in the 7th or 8th century • Oldest surviving English poem

  6. Elements of Anglo-Saxon Poetry • Chant-like effect of the four-beat line • Alliteration (“Then the grim man in green gathers his strength”) • Caesura-pause or break in a line of poetry (“Oft to the wanderer weary of exile”) • Kenning-metaphorical phrase used instead of a name (“battle-blade” and “ring-giver”) • Epithet-description name to characterize something (“keen-edge sword”) • Hyperbole-exaggeration

  7. Anglo-Saxon Culture • Belief in fate (Wyrd) • Accumulated treasures amount to success • Fame and fortune zealously sought after • Loyalty to one’s leader crucial • Importance of pagan, Germanic, and Christian ideals to people whose lives were often hard and uncertain

  8. Anglo-Saxon Culture • Fierce, hardy life of warrior and seamen • Strength, courage, leadership abilities appreciated • Boisterous yet elaborately ritualized customs of the mead-hall • Expected the hero to boast

  9. Anglo-Saxon Hero • Strong • Courageous • Loyal • Desires fame • Generous

  10. Anglo-Saxon Ideals Codes of Conduct • Good defeats evil • Wergild--restitution for murder or expect revenge from victim’s relatives • Boasts must be backed with actions. • Fate is in control • Fair fights are the only honorable fights

  11. Title of Epic Poem • Anglo-Saxon word Beo means “bright” or “noble” • Anglo-Saxon word wulf means “wolf” • Beowulf means bright or noble wolf • Other sources say Beo means “bear”

  12. Beowulf • Epic hero • Geat (from southern Sweden) • Nephew of Higlac (King at story’s start) • Sails to Denmark to help Hrothgar

  13. Hrothgar • Danish king • Builds Herot (banquet hall) for men • Tormented by Grendel for 12 years • Loses many men to Grendel • Joyless before Beowulf’s arrival

  14. Grendel • Referred to as demon and fiend • Haunts the moors (swampy land) • Descendant of Cain • Feasts on 30 men the night of 1st attack

  15. Grendel’s Mother • Referred to as she-wolf • Lives under a lake • Challenges Hrothgar when she kills one of his best men

  16. Fire Dragon • Lives in Beowulf’s kingdom • Wakes up when thief steals cup • Guards countless treasures

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