Anglo-SaxonandBeowulfBackground

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

• 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

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

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.

• Elevated language

• Does not sermonize

• Invokes a muse

• Begins in media res

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

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

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

The Poetry in Beowulf

1. Alliterative verse

a. Repetition of initial sounds of words (occurs in every line)

b. Generally, four feet/beats per line

c. A caesura, or pause, between beats two and four

d. No rhyme

The Poetry in Beowulf

2. Kennings

a. Compound metaphor (usually two words)

b. Most were probably used over and over

For instance: hronade literally means “whale-road,” but can be translated as “sea”

More Kennings

Other kennings from Beowulf:

“bone-house” = body

“gold-friend of men” = generous prince

“ring-giver” = lord

“flashing light” = sword

Setting: Beowulf’s time and place

Europe today Insert: Time of Beowulf

Some terms you’ll want to knowscop

A bard or story-teller.

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

thane

A warrior

mead-hall

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

Terms: Thane and 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

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

Works Cited

• Intro to Beowulf