The Anglo Saxon Time Period Beowulf and the Riddles

The Anglo Saxon Time PeriodBeowulf and the Riddles English 12CP Pace

The island of Great Britain is no stranger to invasions. The area of Great Britain/England is a vastly different place now then it once was. The Invaders Chart 2000 BC Groups from the Iberian peninsula (modern-day Spain and Portugal) 600 BC Celts (from different parts of Europe) 55 BC Romans (from Italy) 449 AD Anglo-Saxons (from modern Germany) 793 AD Vikings (from modern Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) 1066 AD Normans (from modern France)

The Anglo Saxon time period dates from 449-1066. The Anglo-Saxon region is today’s Great Britain. The Celts are considered to be the island’s native inhabitants. At the time the weather (cold, windy, rainy) and location kept the island isolated from the rest of the world.

In 449 Germanic invasions began. The purpose behind these invasions was conquest and settlement, in other words, expansion. The conquerors (listed below) divided the land into seven kingdoms that formed an alliance called the Heptarchy. *The kingdom of Kent in the Southeast went to the Jutes (a.k.a. Vikings or Danes). *The kingdoms of Sussex, Essex, and Wessex in the West went to the Saxons. *The kingdoms of East Anglia, Mercia, and Northumbria in the North went to the Angles.

The Angles were dominant in the early history and so the island was called “Angle-land” or England. The people become known as the English.

The Anglo-Saxons brought with them a new belief in wyrd or fate/karma. Wyrd was the primitive goddess of fate, according to Norse mythology.

There was a brief period of resistance from the Celts, whose leader at the time was said to be the legendary King Arthur. Celts are traditionally thought of as tall, blonde warriors. The religion of the Celts was a form of animism, which comes from the Latin word for spirit. They saw spirits everywhere, in everything: rivers, trees, stones, ponds, thunder, etc. This belief or mythology has influenced many famous writers, including Thomas Mallory and William Butler Yeats.

Thomas Mallory, gathered together the Celtic legends about a warrior named Arthur. In 1485 Mallory produced a piece of literature called Le Morted’Arthur, which was about the king who ultimately became the very embodiment of English values. The Celts eventually left all together and went to Ireland and Wales.

In 55 B.C. Julius Caesar invaded Britain. This invasion provided armies and organization that prevented further serious invasions. The Romans built roads and a great defensive wall. During Roman rule, Christianity gradually took hold under the leadership of European missionaries. The old Celtic religion began to vanish.

When the Romans left Great Britain in 409 A.D., they left many great contributions such as: walls, roads, villas, and public bath houses; but they left Great Britain without a central government. This meant Britain was a country of separate clans. The result was weakness and this led to successful invasions by non-Christians from the Germanic regions. The Anglo-Saxons arrive and soon to follow the Danes/Vikings.

Under the Anglo-Saxons the country was divided into several independent principalities, each with its own “king.” It was not until King Alfred the Great that there was a true King of England. Under his reign there was a reemergence of Christianity. A battle goes on for many years between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes. This battle continued until both were defeated in 1066 by William, Duke of Normandy.

Anglo-Saxon Culture/Life The Anglo-Saxons were not barbarians even though they are frequently depicted that way. Warfare was the order of the day. As the epic Beowulf shows, law and order were the responsibility of the leader. Fame and success, even survival, were gained only through loyalty to one’s leader. Success was measured in gifts from the leader.

Despite the influence of Christianity, a dark, fatalistic religion had come with the Anglo-Saxons from Germany. It had a lot in common with what we think of as Norse or Scandinavian mythology. Odin (a.k.a. – Woden), the Norse god of death, poetry, and magic played an important role in the lives of the Anglo-Saxons. He was considered to be the father of the gods.

Another significant symbol in Anglo-Saxon mythology is the dragon, which seems always, as in Beowulf, to be the protector of a treasure.

The Anglo-Saxon communal hall, besides offering shelter and a place for holding council meetings, also provided space for storytellers. These communal halls were called mead halls; not only were these buildings used for meetings, but more often than not they were used for feasting and nightly gatherings. Skilled storytellers or bards sang of gods and heroes. Bards, also known as scops were seen as important individuals. They were considered honored members of their society.

In the death-shadowed world of the Anglo-Saxons, the poets or scops provided one element of hope, or at least a temporary escape from reality. Stories provided escape from daily life. Anglo-Saxon tribes were pagan (many gods). They worshipped Odin and were extremely superstitious. They believed in doing their best and leaving the rest up to wyrd. Anglo-Saxons did not believe in an afterlife.

Our weekdays are named after the pagan gods. For example: Tuesday comes from the god TIU, associated with sky and war Wednesday comes from WODEN, the father of all the gods (ODIN) Thursday comes from THOR, god of thunder Friday comes from FRIGGA, the goddess of love and honor

Besides the storytelling, another element of hope was supplied by Christianity. Monasteries served as a stronghold of Christianity and centers of learning. Monks probably recorded (and rewrote) the works of popular literature such as Beowulf, which is why the epic poem comes across with pagan images and Christian images. The pagan symbols and images were original, but the Christian ones were most likely added by the monks after the fact. Monks wrote in the vernacular, or the language of the people; however, Latin remained the language of “serious” study in England. King Alfred instituted the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, which were a lengthy running history of England. Partly because of Alfred’s efforts, English began to gain respect as a language.

Conventions of Anglo-Saxon literature: Stories were told orally – not written down until much later in the time period Scops also performed riddles in the mead halls as intellectual exercises. Stories were typically melancholy, dark, stern, haunted by the sea and shortness of life, shows eagerness to perpetuate heroic acts. Fatalistic.

There are three types of Anglo-Saxon literature: Epic poems – long narrative poems that tell the great deeds of a larger than life hero, who had all the values of his society. Lyric poems (a.k.a. elegies) – shorter, subject was sometimes death or great loss, which reflected the Anglo-Saxon bleak, fatalistic view. They placed huge importance on gaining fame while alive, so that their name would live on after they were no longer alive. Fame was the only way to be remembered after death. Riddles – these described ordinary objects

Beowulf = epic poem A relatively short epic poem (approx. 3200 lines) Written in old English; combination of early folk legends from Celts and Scandinavians. Many agree that a monk most likely wrote down the oral epic, hence the biblical elements. Exact date of composition is not known; identity of poet not known either Beowulf is a genuine Scandinavian name. His character exemplifies the Anglo-Saxon hero: strong, fearless, bold, loyal to leader, stoic in acceptance of fate

The central theme in Beowulf is the conflict between good and evil. Beowulf represents the values of the heroic age, specifically this is called the German code of comitatus, which is the honor system that existed in Scandinavian countries in the 5th and 6th centuries between a king or feudal lord and his warriors. The code of comitatus is at the heart of the Beowulf epic.

Another Anglo-Saxon custom is that of wergild, which literally means “man payment.” Battles were often settled by wergild. Example: The United Kingdom comes to the United State’s aide during a horrific war with France. Years later it would be expected for the United States to help the United Kingdom if they were ever in a tight spot or needed assistance. Wergild could be passed from generation to generation. For example, Susan’s grandmother taught my illiterate mother how to read. Now my mother teaches Susan’s children how to read. Wergild is payback; repaying a favor

Important literary devices in Beowulf: Alliteration – the repetition of the beginning sounds in words The crafty and cunning cat crept along the alleyway. Kenning – special kinds of metaphors that use compound words, prepositional phrases, or possessives to name a person, place, thing or event indirectly. Whale-road = the sea blood-sucker = vampire Poseidon’s face = a wave the sky’s jewel = the sun giver of education – teacher piece of crap = old car

Literary devices (cont’d) Caesura – a pause in a line of poetry, especially to allow its sense to be made clear or to follow the rhythms of natural speech, often near the middle of the line. Examples: “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” - Alexander Pope “Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene.” - from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet Elegy – a song or poem expressing sorrow, especially for one who is dead; a pensive or reflective poem that is usually nostalgic or melancholy

Literary Terms (cont’d) Archetype – characters, images, plot patterns, rituals, and settings that appear in literature and are repeated through the ages. Examples: Job from the Bible = a struggling man; a man who seems to have the world against him – this type of character can be seen in other works of literature. Another example of a “Job” type character would be Tom Robinson from To Kill a Mockingbird. Therefore this character is an archetype – it sets a pattern. Epic hero – someone who takes on a quest to achieve something tremendously valuable to him or her or to his or her society. (Note to self: epic heroes usually have a tragic flaw, which usually leads to his or her own death.)

To be considered an Anglo-Saxon hero, one must indulge in: Boasting – if you don’t tell others how great you are, they might not find out – A-S heroes brag! Feasting – “Eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow you may die!” In other words, the Anglo-Saxons realized life was short, so enjoy it. Hand-to-hand combat – Trust no weapon except your own strength Loyalty – Above all else, be true and faithful to your king! Pride – Break any humble bones in your body – there’s nothing wrong with being proud of yourself (hence the boasting) Responsibility – Honor all promises, even if you die trying to do so. A dead hero is better than a living coward. Courtesy – Be polite at all times! There is strength in good manners. Fatality – Death comes when it chooses. Man is but a pawn of fate in the large order of the world.

THE END

The Anglo Saxon Time Period Beowulf and the Riddles