english literature

Beowulf OLD ENGLISH POEM – ANALYZING THE LITERATURE, PART 3

Analyzing the Literature

• Epic: a long narrative poem, sometimes developed orally, that celebrates a hero’s deeds.

• Epics from different languages and time periods do not always have the same characteristics. For example, Homer’s epics The Iliad and The Odyssey do not use some of the literary elements used in Beowulf.

A Guide to Life

• The earlier folktales and Beowulf were combined to include the Christian beliefs.

• This is why there is a blending of old Celtic beliefs with the new Christian beliefs.

• The poem shows the struggle between the old gods and the new Christian God.

• The bravery, loyalty, and evil in Beowulf taught the Anglo-Saxons the values that their culture wanted them to have.

Actions of the Hero

• All epics, however, concern the actions of a hero, who can be described as

• being of noble birth or high position, and often of great historical or legendary importance

• exhibiting character traits, or qualities, that ref lect important ideals of society

• performing courageous, sometimes superhuman, deeds that ref lect the values of the era

• performing actions that often determine the fate of a nation or group of people

Epic Conventions

In addition, most epics share certain conventions, which ref lect the larger – than-life events that a hero might experience.

• The setting is vast in scope, often involving more than one nation. • Denmark and Sweden

• The plot is complicated by supernatural beings or events and may involve a long and dangerous journey through foreign lands. • The Lord of the Rings features characters whose journey through many lands is

impeded by supernatural forces.

• Dialogue often includes long, formal speeches delivered by the major characters.

--Beowulf includes many such speeches.

More Epic Conventions

• The theme ref lects timeless values, such as:

--courage and honor, and encompasses universal ideas, such as good and evil or life and death.

**One of the reasons Beowulf was so popular in England is that it addresses these ideas that the English, in turn, could take on as part of their national identity.

• The style of the epic includes formal diction (the writer’s choice of words and sentence structure) and a serious tone (the expression of the writer’s attitude toward the subject).

Even More Epic Conventions

• Beowulf uses kennings.

• Kennings is a figurative, usually compound expression used in place of a name or noun, especially in Old English and Old Norse poetry

• For example, storm of swords is a kenning for battle.

The Use of the Hero

• Legendary hero: a larger-than-life character

whose accomplishments are celebrated in traditional tales.

The hero should have characteristics that his culture values.

For example, Beowulf is boastful, strong and victorious but his loyalty, bravery and honor teach us how the Anglo-Saxons viewed the world.

What heroic characteristics does our modern culture value?

Themes

• Good vs Evil

• Light vs Darkness

• Men vs Monsters

• Treasure

• Christian vs Pagan Religions

• The feud

• Fate

• Courage

Social Life

• Beowulf reveals a way of life ruled by simple laws

• Eating

• Drinking

• Fighting

• Hunting

• Listening to the Scop during the feasts

Features of the Time

• The generosity of the lord/king

• The fidelity of the subjects

• The sense of honor

• The duty to help people in need

• Violence

Values of the Warrior

• Loyalty and kinship

• The need to take revenge

• Physical strength and courage

• The search for glory in his life

• Their main tools were the weapons personalized with names, a precious heritage

• Fate

The Presence of Nature

• Cold Scandinavian countries

• Unpleasant winters

• Spring hailed with joy

• Rough and stormy northern sea

• Biting winds

• Black pools

• Gloomy marshes

• Forests and caves

The General Atmosphere

• Gloomy

• Fierce

• Melancholic

• Solitary

• A strong sense of doom

• Stoic resignation

Christian Elements

• Beowulf = good struggling against evil

• He prays to the Creator of all things, the ruler of the Heavens

• God’s Will (free will) vs Fate (Wyrd)

• References to the Old Testament

• Herot = symbol of the world

• The Danes = mankind

• The lake = hell

• Grendel’s mother = the devil

• The sword = the cross

Pagan Elements

• Belief in many gods

• Vengeance and Feud

• Desire for Fame

• Pride (Boasting is seen as sinful in the Christian faith)

• Beowulf ’s superhuman exemplifications and heroism

• Battles again evil monsters

• Seeks earthly fame over eternal deliverance from God

• Obsession with earthly possessions

Motifs

• A motif is a recurring narrative element with symbolic significance.

• Biblical and Christian Allusions

• Pagan Customs

• Social Customs

• Traits of the Warrior

• Beowulf Boasts

Why read Beowulf?

• It’s a very creative, imaginative, poetic masterpiece.

• It gives us insight into the origins of the British people, the culture, who, through seafaring conquests, founded the world we currently live in.

• It gives us insight into the origins of our language.

• It gives us insight into all people everywhere and throughout time (time, birth, death, fame/success/glory, honor, friendship, conf lict, home, country, adventure, spirituality – all of these things transcend English literature and matter to all people)

What’s Next

• Read the Epic of Beowulf, take notes, and prepare for the essay exam.