Beowulf

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Beowulf
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Journal

• How do you think the hero works in society?
  Choose ONE hero that you have seen represented in
  the MEDIAthats TV, music, in the news, etc.
  What are the qualities that make this individual
  a hero? What affect does this have on society or
  expression? This is a huge open-ended question!
  Go with your gut! Find someone or something that
  amuses you! You do not need to agree with this
  person as a hero!

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What is a hero?

• Do heroes still exist in our culture?
• What role do heroes play?
• What can a hero tell us about our society?

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Is Batman a hero?
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What about Wolverine?
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John McCain
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Why read Beowulf?

• First known English action fiction
• The only surviving epic of early Anglo-Saxon
  literature
• Thomas Jefferson saw Anglo-Saxon society,
  particularly the mythical heroes Hengst and
  Horsa, as emblems of American democracy.

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National Mythology

• A poem about Vikings and violence in Scandinavia
• Written by two unknown monks in England between
  600 and 1000 AD

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Epic

• A long narrative poem describing the adventures
  and deeds of heroic or legendary figures or the
  history of a nation
• What epics have you read or heard about? What
  kinds of characteristics does an epic have?

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Epic Conventions What makes an epic?

• The hero is larger than life, being of great
  (inter)national stature.
• The setting is vast in scope, covering large
  geographical distances
• The action consists of deeds of great valor or
  superhuman courage

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Epic Conventions

• Supernatural forces-- gods, angels and demons--
  interest themselves in the action and intervene
  at times
• An elevated or formal style
• The poet remains objective

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Additional Epic Conventions!

• Opens by stating the theme and often invokes a
  muse
• Narrative begins in medias res, meaning in the
  middle of things with the hero at a low point.
  Earlier events are told as flashbacks.
• Epic simile differs from the ordinary simile by
  being grand, ornate or extraordinary.

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Who is your epic hero?Muhammad Ali?
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What are examples of modern epics?How might
these characteristics apply?Share with your
table group!

• Examples Braveheart, Star Wars, Troy,
  Terminator, Troy, 300, Gladiator, Gone with the
  Wind, Glory

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Options

• Predict-a-Quote
• OR
• Jigsaw reading

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Day 2- Journal

• So young men build
• The future, wisely open-handed in peace,
• Protected in war so warriors earn
• Their fame, and wealth is shaped with a sword.
• Does war bring peace in society or does it just
  bring more war? Are fame and wealth
  satisfying in themselves? What current references
  resemble this quote from Beowulf?

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In Translation
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Chaucer

• Whan that aprill with his shoures soote
• The droghte of march hath perced to the root,
• And bathed every veyne in swish licour
• Of which vertu engendred is the flour
• Whan zephirus eek with his sweete breeth
• Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
• Tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
• Hath in the ram his halve cours yronne,
• And smale foweles maken melodye,
• That slepen al the nyght with open ye
• So priketh hem nature in hir corage
• Thanne longen folk to goon on prilgrimages,
• And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes

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Old English
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Prologue Chapter 1

• Details
• Shild- funeral, abandoned child, Danes-kingless
  miserable
• Hrothgar- Herot
• Grendel- descended from Cain

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Ideas/Questions

• Why does the book begin with a funeral?
• Why does Hrothgar build Herot? Why does Herot
  burn?
• Why does Grendel dislike the Danes?

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Hrothgar and Grendel

• Summary-
• A powerful monster living down in the darkness,
  growled in pain, impatient
• As day after day, the music rang loud in the
  hall, sung
• Of the ancient beginning of us all.

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Day 3
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Visual Beowulf

• Lego Beowulf
• List 5 elements of the plot in the order that
  they appear
• Describe one modernization to this Beowulf.
  Why is this significant?
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?v1SGJS0VN0hE