1. Beowulf Vocabulary:
Kenning: A metaphorical compound noun or phrase: ‘whale’s road’ for ‘ocean’
Litotes: Understatement, in which something is affirmed by the negation of its opposite: ‘he was less than helpful’ for ‘he was not helpful at all’
Allusion: A reference to something from another literary work or historical event: when the Beowulf poet refers (or alludes) to different Anglo-Saxon heroes or Biblical characters

2. More vocab
Metonymy: A thing is substituted with something closely associated with it: ‘crown’ for ‘royalty’ or ‘The White House’ for ‘the President’
Synecdoche: Substituting the name of a thing with the name of a part of the thing: ‘wheels’ for ‘car’ or ‘threads’ for ‘clothing’
Alliteration: Repetition of the same consonant sounds : ‘Hot- hearted Beowulf was bent upon battle’ This was also a way to help remember the lines in an oral poem

3. Yet more vocab
Didactic: Intended to instruct of teach: ‘So should a king act,’ phrases with the word ‘should’ in general
Scop: Old English poet or bard:
Hwæt: The first word in Beowulf, means something like “So,” “Listen,” or “Hey.” An attention getter.

4. Important Characters Beowulf Hrothgar Wealhtheow Unferth Wiglaf
Humans:
Beowulf
Hrothgar
Wealhtheow
Unferth
Wiglaf
Monsters
Grendel
Grendel’s Mother
Dragon (wyrm)