The Songs of Ancient Heroes

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The Songs of Ancient Heroes
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Essential Questions

• How was the literature formed as a result of the
  influences within the Anglo-Saxon time period?

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From 449-1066 there were 7 invaders to the
country of England
1. Iberians- Iberian peninsula (Spain/Portugal) not a lot is known about them 5. Saxons- Germanic invaded the same time as the Angles
2. Celts- Ireland/ Scotland Arthurian legend Hadrians wall, currently divides Scotland from England Brython Britain Druids (inter- mediaries prior to Christianity), Stonehenge? 6. Vikings- Fierce warriors Valhalla days of the week 1. Sunnen (Grk Helios) 2. Monan (moon) 3. Tiwes (relation to Grk Zeus)
3. Romans-ruled England for more than 300 years withdrew 409. What influences did they leave behind? 4. Woen (chief Norse) 5. Thor (thunder) 6. Friga (Norse goddess) 7. Saeter (Saturn)
4. Angles- Germanic Angla- land England 7. Normans- French, William the Conqueror (Tudor) defeats Edward the Confessor _at_ Battle of Hastings 1066 AD
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2 Social Classes

• The Earls/ Chieftains-rulers and were related to
  the founder of or most recent survivor of the
  tribe (the chieftain of his clan)
• The Churls- made up of ancestors who had been
  captured by the tribe or clan. This sets up a
  strange relationship with the Earls. Churls
  protected Earls (chieftan) with their fierce
  loyalty so that, in turn, the Earls could provide
  protection and food.
• Thane-Anglo-Saxon warrior
• Comitatus- the name given to this relationship
  where the warrior is loyal to the death as he
  protects the chieftan
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of the
  comitatus relationship?

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Womens Roles in the Anglo- Saxon life

• Had rights but were curtailed severely after the
  Norman Conquest in 1066.
• Inherited and held property, even controlled it
  after they were married.
• Christianity offered opportunities for women to
  control abbesses (mother superior of nuns)
• Largely domestic though

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The Warm Mead Hall- The Cold World

• All lived together in the Mead Hall
• Fame and success were gained through comitatus
  and success was measured with gifts from the
  chieftain to the devoted warrior.
• The people were concentrated on the life in front
  of them with the hopes of becoming immortal
  through the ranks of battle and heroism. Wyrd
  supplemented a belief in gods to determines ones
  fate.

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Comitatus- a distinct and life- committing
loyalty to a leader
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Rewards

• For loyalty to a leader or king there were rewards

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Wyrd a belief in fate, so fight to the bitter
end!
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The fates
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Singing of Gods and Heroes

• Scops (literally shaper) or bards were poets
  responsible for entertainment in the great mead
  halls. They told heroic epics and elegies (the
  origins of the oral literary tradition).
• These scops were as important as a skilled
  warrior. Why?
• Where would they have positioned themselves in a
  battle?

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Two types of poems the Scops told

• Epic- a long, narrative poem about the deeds of a
  hero and how that hero identifies the culture of
  the time period.
• 1) folk epic- passed down from generation to
  generation through oral tradition
• 2) literary epic- written in modern times
  reflecting that culture
• Elegy-a long, mournful poem about the loss of
  someone or something.

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The Epic

1. Epic plot must be of national crisis proportion
   and must involve the survival of a people or a
   civilization
2. Epic setting must encompass a large area
3. In elevated language to match the formality of
   the epic hero or subject
4. Divine or supernatural intervention usually
   appears
5. Narrates story of an epic hero-larger than life
6. On a quest/journey
7. Faces trials (internal and external
   flaws/conflicts)
8. Has help (often supernatural)
9. Overcomes trials
10. Prizes/rewards

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Epic Conventions

• Invocation to a muse or guiding spirit for
  inspiration of the tale
• Statement of the epic argument, theme, or task
• In medias res is typically how epics are told
• Epic similes are incorporated to support
  amplified style of writing and to complement
  certain important characters

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Remembering the Tales of Heroism

• Kennings- compound word MADE OF 2 NOUNS- whale
  way, ring giver, road runner
• Caesura- a dramatic pause in poetry
• Epithet-renaming of an object or person based on
  association (usually Son of ___, brother of ____)

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Other Poetic Devices

• Alliteration repetition of initial consonant
  sounds (head-hunter)
• Assonance repetition of vowel sounds
• Consonance repetition of consonant sounds
  (stroked its silvery strings)

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A Battle Against Death

• For the non-Christian, Anglo-Saxon warrior, the
  only way to defeat death and achieve immortality
  was within battle and the search for fame and its
  reverberation within the scops poetry.
• What type of warrior does this create and how
  does it affect the culture?

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Monasteries Christian Strongholds

• The cultural and spiritual influences of
  monasteries existed alongside the heroic ideals
  and traditions of the older, Pagan, Anglo-Saxon
  world. In essence, Monks rewrote literature
  preserving heroic and Christian ideals. Ex.
  Beowulf
• Thus, when the stories of the scops were written,
  they had a mixture of pagan elements and
  Christianity.
• Why would Old Testament stories be a good source
  of exchange for the heroic, pagan tales?

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A mix of Pagan and Christian ideologies a hope
to return home