September 29, 2015In your journal, respond to the following:

•What is a hero? Explain your definition and give examples.•Why is a reputation important? What factors influence a reputation?•What does it mean to be loyal? Tell about a time you were loyal or someone was loyal to you.

Journal must be at least 2/3 of the page!

A-Z ListSolo Listing (5 minutes). Use the following questions to generate responses:1.Major works that you have read while in high school

2.Major authors you have read while in high school (Homer, Shakespeare…)

3.Any poetic technique, literary device, or figurative language an author uses for effect (simile, metaphor…)

4.Ways that we analyze literature. What are we reading for? (theme, author’s purpose…)

**Once time is called, underline the last word you wrote for each letter. Count your total words.**

A-Z List Reading

2. Collaborative Listing (10 minutes). Leader starts, work clockwise Each person share their words. Everyone adds words to their list.

**When time is called, count the extra words added.

September 30, 2015

Complete the “Revenge Opinionnaire” you received at the door. Write your answers on the next free page in your journal.

Look over your “Revenge Opinionnaire”

What is your position on revenge?

Translating the Poem VanBenthuysen, “The Seafarer” – Lines 18a-33a

Þǣr ic ne gehȳrde būtan hlimman sǣ

īscaldne wǣg. Hwīlum ylfete19 song

20 dyde ic mē tō gomene, ganetes20 hlēoþor

ond huilpan21 swēg fore hleahtor wera,

mǣw22 singende fore medodrince.

Stormas þǣr stānclifu bēotan;23 þǣr him stearn24 oncwǣð

īsigfeþera; ful oft þæt earn25 bigeal,

25 ūrigfeþra26; ne27 ænig hlēomǣga

fēasceaftig ferð frēfran28 meahte.

For þon him gelȳfeð lyt, sē þe āh līfes wyn

gebiden in burgum, bealosīþa hwōn,

wlonc ond wīngāl, hū ic wērig oft

30 in brimlāde bīdan sceolde.

Nāp nihtscūa; norþan snīwde;29

hrīm hrūsan bond; haegl fēol on eorþan,

corna caldast.

Anglo-SaxonandBeowulfBackground

Background Information

1.Beowulf is the oldest poem in the English language, so everything written since Beowulf stems from it in some way.

2. The story of Beowulf encompasses common themes that we still see in English literature today: Loyalty, Reputation, Revenge, etc.

Background Information

Beowulf is the oldest surviving English poem. It’s written in Old English (or Anglo-Saxon), which is the basis for the language we speak today.

Some of the historical contexts are real, yet the main character and the story are fictional. Some of the Swedish and Danish royal family members were actually real.

The only copy of the manuscript was written sometime around the 11th century A.D. (1000’s), however…

The actual poem probably dates from the 8th century (700’s) or so, and…

The story may be set even earlier, around 500 A.D.

There are a lot of Christian references in the poem, but the characters and setting are Pagan…this means a monk probably translated it.

Pagan= a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions.

Period Dress

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

Anglo-Saxon Culture

Anglo-Saxon Culture• Accumulated treasures amount to success

• Fame and fortune zealously sought after

*Battle was the favorite pastime

• Loyalty to one’s leader crucial

• King was the strongest warrior

-not heredity; it depended solely on being able to win battles, gain lands, treasures, and slaves to give to his supporters.

• Importance of pagan, Germanic, and Christian ideals to people whose lives were often hard and uncertain

• Religion was not spiritual – it was a means of success for material things (victory, harvest)

• Home was of great importance and it was sought after to protect.

• Heroism and Heroic deeds were very important to the people.

Anglo-Saxon Culture

Anglo-Saxon Culture• Fierce, hardy life of warrior

and seamen

• Strength, courage, leadership abilities appreciated (Code of Conduct)

• Boisterous yet elaborately ritualized customs of the mead-hall

• Expected the hero to boast

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

Epic Poem• Long narrative poem that recounts the

adventures of a hero. (This story was probably passed down orally for centuries before it was first written down)

• Elevated and poetic language• Does not sermonize• Invokes a muse • Begins in media res (in the middle of things)

• Mysterious origin, super powers, vulnerability, rite of passage

• Examples: Odyssey by Homer, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings by Tolkien

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.

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

More Kennings

Other kennings from Beowulf:

“bone-house” = body

“gold-friend of men” = generous prince

“ring-giver” = lord

“flashing light” = sword

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”

How we date BeowulfSome Important Dates:

521 A.D. – death of Hygelac, who is mentioned in the poem

680 A.D. – appearance of alliterative verse

835 A.D. – the Danish started raiding other areas; after this, few poets would consider them heroes

SO: This version was likely composed between 680 and 835, though it may be set earlier

Setting: Beowulf’s time and place

Although Beowulf was written in English, it is set in what is now Sweden, where a tribe called the Geats lived.

The story may take place as early as 400 or 500 A.D.

STOP

Setting: Beowulf’s time and place

Europe today Insert: Time of Beowulf

Terms: Scop

A bard or story-teller.

The scop was responsible for praising deeds of past heroes, for recording history, and for providing entertainment

Term: Comitatus

Literally, this means “escort” or “comrade”

This term identifies the concept of warriors and lords mutually pledging their loyalty to one another

thane

A warrior

mead-hall

The large hall where the lord and his warriors slept, ate, held ceremonies, etc.

Terms: Thane and Mead-Hall

Mead Hall

Wyrd = Fate

- This idea crops up a lot in the poem, while at the same time there are Christian references to God’s will.

Term: Wyrd

Terms: Elegy and Homily

An elegy is a poem that is sad or mournful. The adjective is elegiac.

A homily is a written sermon or section of the poem that gives direct advice.

Main Characters

Beowulf• Epic hero• Geat (from southern

Sweden)• Nephew of Higlac

(King at story’s start)• Sails to Denmark to

help Hrothgar

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

Grendel• Referred to as demon

and fiend• Haunts the moors

(swampy land)• Descendant of Cain• Feasts on 30 men the

night of 1st attack

Grendel’s Mother• Referred to as she-

wolf• Lives under a lake• Challenges Hrothgar

when she kills one of his best men

Fire Dragon• Lives in Beowulf’s

kingdom• Wakes up when thief

steals cup• Guards countless

treasures