1. Goals for the Beowulf lectures
Examine poetic features of Beowulf
Look at mixture of pagan and Christian elements
Present a reading arguing for a three-part structure of the poem
Examine “the heroic” in the poem

2. I. Beowulf–Contexts A. Linguistic – Old English B. Historical
1. Romans ( C.E.)
2. Germanic Tribes – Angles, Saxons, Jutes
3. Danish invasions (9th century)
4. Norman invasion – 1066
C. "Cultural"
1. Tribal affiliation
2. Sutton Hoo

3. The London Stone
England was a roman provice from Strong roman influence—think “Bath”. 5th century Roman legions left the island. This is the London stone, place in London that Romans used to meausre distances in britannia. Stone of Brutus, founder of London—we’ll see him in SGGK

4. London Stone, circa 2005

5. I. Beowulf–Contexts A. Linguistic – Old English B. Historical
1. Romans ( C.E.)
2. Germanic Tribes – Angles, Saxons, Jutes
3. Danish invasions (9th century)
4. Norman invasion – 1066
C. "Cultural"
1. Tribal affiliation
2. Sutton Hoo
Romans pull out and in come the Germanic tribes, Angles, Saxons and Jutes. The general history is that they pushed the native Celts into the far corners of the idland—Wales, Corwall, Scotland. They stayed until the Danes conquered the whole island in 9th c. And then finally Norman invasion. What is Anglo-Saxon culture. Tribal affiliation. Unit—not a nation state.
Life centered around a hall like heorot, kign and his men. Counselors—we sometimes refer to them by Latin name—comitatus, king is generous, his men owe him loyalty
Complicated geneologies reflected in BW. Look at 58 lviii
Tribes important to us are the Danes and the Geats

6. Invasions

7. Sutton Hoo Belt Buckle
These are images of treature from Sutton Hoo, 1939 in the yard of a mrs. Pretty; think of treature ships.7 th c burial site; found 41 items of solid gold, not sure exactly what ship was for, but they found these artifacts and also things from Near East and Greece. There were tradiing contacts
Buckle—5 in .ong weighs almost a pound, hollow, but also thicker and heavier than it loks, try to imagine the gold wealtheow gives

8. Sutton Hoo Helmut
Reconstruction, based on what they found iron and it also had a visor, you can strap it to your head with leather pieces and had space fo padding inside; little boars over the eyebrows,
Originally burnished with gold, silver and gilded ornaments

9. Sutton Hoo Buckles

10. Sutton Hoo Buckles

11. Sutton Hoo Hinge Clasp

12. Sutton Hoo Bowls

13. Sutton Hoo Purse

14. Sutton Hoo Purse Details

15. Sutton Hoo Sceptre

16. Sutton Hoo Shield

17. Sutton Hoo Shield

18. Sutton Hoo Shield Detail

19. Other Old English texts
Caedmon
Bede
“The Battle of Maldon”
“The Dream of the Rood”
“The Wife’s Lament”
Old English riddles

20. Old English Riddle
I am man’s treasure, taken from the Woods, Cliff-sides, hill-slopes, valleys and downs.
By day wings bear me in the buzzing air, Slip me under a sheltering roof-sweet craft. Soon a man bears me to a tub.
I am binder and scourge of men, bring down the young, ravage the old, sap strength. Soon he discovers who wrestles with me My fierce body-rush.
I roll fools flush on the ground. Robbed of strength, reckless of speech, a man knows no power over hands, feet or mind.
Who am I who bind Men on middle-earth, blinding with rage And such savage blows that dazed? Fools know my dark power by daylight.

21. II. Beowulf as Oral Formulaic Poem
Performed from memory as part of an oral tradition using a style that facilitated this type of poetic performance
A. Type scenes l. 3020
B. Alliteration (opening)
C. Kenning (1341; 1966)
D. Caesura (46)

22. III. Christian/Pagan Mix
How did we get this MS?
Monastic transmission
Quid Hinieldus cum Christo?
Grendel and Cain (l. 85 ff; 104 ff.)
Pagan worship scene (l. 175ff)

23. Values of this poem? Beowulf never kills his kin l. 2736
Unferth l. 587
Hathkin and Hrethel
World of fratricide/world of Heorot

24. IV. Light and Darkness Imagery
A. Monsters in a strange, dark land
85; 158; 755;1407
B. Inversion of social order
144

25. V. Beowulf: Two parts or Three?
Tolkien argues that the poem is in two parts
1936—”Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics”
Looking at the “digressions” in the poem, I will argue that it actually breaks into three parts, a reading that acknowledges the importance of Grendel’s mother

26. VI. “Digressions” A. The Opening B. Foreshadowings
C. Flashbacks/insertions
Reading critically—literary critical method

27. VI. Digressions A. Opening passage 1. Genealogy
2. Circular structure/life cycle
3. Representing a “good king”
4. Ironic Foreshadowing line 20

28. VI. Digressions Lines 81 , 1016 B. More Foreshadowing—
Future Destruction of Heorot
Lines 81 , 1016

29. VI. Digressions C. The Fight at Finnsburg/Lay of Finn (1062)
1. Sung to Hrothgar’s court after Grendel’s defeat
2. Story of failed alliance by marriage
3. Linked to situation of Queen Wealtheow/Grendel’s mother
Line 1167 ff

30. VII. Gender in Beowulf
A. Connected figures in Wealtheow/Grendel’s Mother
B. Refutation of Tolkien thesis
C. Status of women in Anglo-Saxon culture
D. The monstrous feminine

31. Gender in BW Connected figures in Wealtheow/Grendel’s Mother
Both defined as mothers and connected passionately to their sons
Line 1215 ff
Line 1255 ff

32. VII. Grendel’s Mother
Tolkien’s thesis doesn’t recognize importance of Grendel’s mother Grendel’s mother is at the center of the poem (Niles) Her part takes up 13% (400 lines)—almost as much as Grendel

33. Women in Anglo-Saxon society
Women in Anglo-Saxon society were limited in their roles, but not powerless
Scandinavian saga
Carol Clover: the importance of power vs. gender in societal hierarchies

34. Grendel’s Mother as monster
The concept of abjection (Kristeva)
“that which is expelled from a society in order to define cultural borders” (Trilling 3)
Abjection and the maternal
Abjection—me and not me
Kristeva (Powers of Horror)

35. Grendel’s Mother
She represents horror at maternal power (and women who crosses boundaries (female power, the human/not-human)
But unlike Grendel, Grendel’s mother’s actions are very understandable within feud culture and her emotional ties to her son make her like the Danes
Grendel’s mother could be seen as an inversion of Wealtheow or Hildeburgh
(Trilling)

36. Monstrous Mother

37. Heroic maternal

38. Grendel’s Mother Represents a fundamental threat to the society
Notable that Beowulf arms so thoroughly to meet her, dispatches her so immediately and doesn’t bring her head back as a trophy
Is she a greater threat than her son? Why?
Line 1282—how can we read this?

39. The heroic in Beowulf A. Defining good king in opening lines
B. Hrothgar’s parting speech to Beowulf (l.1699 ff.)
C. Heremod as counter-example (l. 1708)
D. Beowulf’s decision to fight dragon alone—
Is it heroic?
Line 2529 ff

40. The Hero
Is being a good king the same thing as being a hero?