Beowulf & Old English

The Manuscript Epic poem dates between: – 700 oral presentation – 1000 written in Old English 3000 lines written on treated animal skins & membranes. Ink made from oak-gall & lamp-black. Decorated with paint made from minerals such as gold & lapis. Only one Anglo-Saxon manuscript of Beowulf exists from which all modern translations of Beowulf have been composed.

The Manuscript Owned by British Library in London. Originally created by two scribes dated about 1000 CE. One scribe thought to be Christian & altered poem to use as a tool for converting others. Originally found in The Library of Sir Robert Cotton ( ) damaged in fire pasted into frames for protection.

What Does Old English Look Like? Old English (OE) was spoken from OE alphabet derived from runic alphabet OE alphabet did not have the letters J, K, Q, Z OE had 4 letters our alphabet does not: – thorn, eth, ash, wyn(n)

OE Sounds Thorn = “th” as in thorn, thistle Eth = “th” as in the, this, that Ash = “a” as in Cat Wynn = “W” as in word, watch

What does Old English Sound Like? Professor Alexander Arguelles How Do You Say That in Old English?

Poetics in the Poem Alliteration – repetition of stressed sounds, especially consonants from beginning of words. – Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Compounding – combining of two words to make a new word. – Mead-benches, boy-child, hall-troops Kenning – special forms of compounding that are metaphoric in meaning. – Hronrad = “whale’s road” = sea

Poetics in the Poem Versification – lines separated by a strong pause called caesura: Example: Hwæt! We Gar-Dena in geardagum, þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon, hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.

The Story Tells the story of a noble warrior, Beowulf Beowulf fights three battles: – Vs. Grendel – Vs. Grendel’s mom – Vs. a dragon Beowulf’s kingdom/home = Sweden (Geats) Hrothgar’s kingdom/home = Denmark (Danes) Story takes place in 6 th century & based on historical facts and people although Beowulf is not real. – Use this web site to complete the handout. Part 1 = Young Man Proving Self Part 2 = Old, Great King protecting his kingdom

Preparing to Read We will begin reading one of the oldest writings to survive from the Anglo-Saxon time period, Beowulf. Because this epic poem is written in Old English, we will be reading a translation. Even though our translation is written in Modern English, it will also be helpful to have a basic understanding of the epic poem’s plot by reading a summary before jumping into the translation. It will also be helpful to know some of the traditions of the Anglo-Saxon Geat and Dane cultures in order to understand why characters react as they do.

Preparing to Read Whenever we study literature the goal is not only to understand the story but to also gain a glimpse of the culture and compare/contrast this with what we call ‘human nature’. This leads to an essential question: Why is it that people who read Beowulf can still view him as a hero? What valued qualities of a human being were important both during the Anglo-Saxon time and in our own time?

Preparing to Read Another topic that will be explored is the implementation of Christianity. As Christianity gained strength, did poets add elements of Christianity to the telling of Beowulf to help spread the general beliefs of a new religion? Can you find any evidence of this in our translation?

Preparing to Read To begin this study, we will use a web site entitled “Beowulf for Beginners” As you explore the pages of this web site, look for the answers to the questions on the handout. Answers are to be written using pen, but do not need to be written in complete sentences (no formal register needed). The information will be used to generate a final test over the Old English Unit. So don’t think that because formal register is not required the information is not important.