Anglo-Saxon culture 450 -1066 AD

Came to what we call Great Britain Area in 5th century AD (400s) Invaders

Anglo-Saxon Culture Germanic warrior society that emphasized bravery, honor, and glory in battle Patriarchal (male-dominated) society based on kinship, comitatus, and fraternity (definitions to come)

Kinship The relationship between an individual and other members of the tribe/family (especially the kind) One’s ancestry through the father’s line Basically, family ties were very important

Comitatus Germanic power arrangement King had agreement with his thanes, or knights. Thanes swore loyalty to the king In exchange, the king would given them land, money, war gear, and other benefits

Fraternity The close social bonds among the men of the tribe

Anglo-Saxon warrior’s motivation Glory for one’s king Glory for one’s ancestors Glory for one’s tribe Glory for one’s self

Violence and revenge killing Violence: part of everyday life The bonds of fraternity demanded that the death of a tribe member by an outsider by avenged Revenge was a big part of life

Songs composed orally – for entertainment, but also kept history alive. Kings would entertain friends in mead halls, named for the drink mead made from fermented honey. Mead-hall symbol of king’s power, considered safest place in kingdom

Religion Polytheistic society (worshipped many gods) Worshipers of pagan gods and goddesses Wyrd: fate, or destiny as determined by the gods But also among the earliest converts to Christianity

Christian Ethics meet Pagan Beliefs Faithfulness Generosity Courage. . . Pagan beliefs Grim view of life (something bad is going to happen) Fate (can’t stop what’s going to happen)

Lyric poem Express intense, personal emotions/feelings Could be set to music

Caesura Complete pause in the middle of a line of poetry

Enjambment The running together of two lines of poetry You don’t pause at the end of the line; it keeps going

Kenning A form of compounding in Old English New compound word or phrase to describe an object or activity The result is something like a riddle because often the two words seem unlike Whale-home Bone-house Battle-sweat Sky-candle

Alliteration & Assonance Alliteration: the repetition of initial consonant sounds in accented syllables Assonance: the repetition of vowel sounds SOUNDS, not necessarily letters