BeowulfBeowulf is the longest surviving poem of Anglo-Saxon England. Beowulf, a young warrior of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, king of the Danes, in his time of need. He first fights the hellish Grendel, then struggles with Grendel's no less fearsome mother in her hall beneath the cold waters of the mere. More than fifty years later Beowulf, now king of the Geats, must face his final challenge in the shape of a huge and terrifying dragon. But Beowulf is not just an adventure story. Other tales of war, feuding, and loss in less mythical worlds are interwoven with the main plot in such a way as to force readers to ask questions about the heroic code; equally thought-provoking are the juxtaposition of virtuous and vicious characters, the presence of some women who are helpless victims and others who exert a strong influence on men, and above all the fact that the characters are pagan while the poet is clearly (though not insistently) Christian. Marc Hudson's thoughtful modern English version combines readability with detailed attention to both the spirit and the meaning of the original poem. |
Common terms and phrases
aetheling alliteration ancient Anglo-Saxon Dictionary audience barrow battle Beowulf poet Beowulf spoke blade blank verse Breca Brodeur Cambridge Chickering Christian combat compounds courage creature Danes Danish death deeds demon diction dragon Ecgtheow edited English Studies feast feud Finn fire Frisian gaze Geatish Geats Germanic glory gold Grendel Grendel's mother grief hall hand Healfdene heard Heardred heirloom helmet Hengest Heorot Heremod hero heroic Higelac Hildeburh hoard Hrethel's Hrothgar Ibid J. R. R. Tolkien king kinsman Klaeber language London lord meaning Modern English Monsters Morgan Norse Old English Poetry Old English verse Onela Ongentheow original Oxford pagan passage phrase poem poem's poet's poetic prince protector Raffel reader rhythm Saxon Scyldings Scylfings shield ship slaughter speech strength structure suggests Sutton Hoo sword syntax thanes Tolkien tradition trans translator of Beowulf translator's treasure tribe Unferth University Press variation war-gear warriors Wealhtheow Weders Weohstan Wiglaf words wyrd wyrm Yeats