DOCSLIB.ORG

Nonhuman Voices in Anglo-​Saxon Literature and Material Culture

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Nonhuman Voices in Anglo-​Saxon Literature and Material Culture i NONHUMAN VOICES IN ANGLO- SAXON LITERATURE AND MATERIAL CULTURE ii Series editors: Anke Bernau and David Matthews Series founded by: J. J. Anderson and Gail Ashton Advisory board: Ruth Evans, Nicola McDonald, Andrew James Johnston, Sarah Salih, Larry Scanlon and Stephanie Trigg The Manchester Medieval Literature and Culture series publishes new research, informed by current critical methodologies, on the literary cultures of medieval Britain (including Anglo- Norman, Anglo- Latin and Celtic writings), including post- medieval engagements with and representations of the Middle Ages (medievalism). ‘Literature’ is viewed in a broad and inclusive sense, embracing imaginative, historical, political, scientific, dramatic and religious writings. The series offers monographs and essay collections, as well as editions and translations of texts. Titles Available in the Series The Parlement of Foulys (by Geoffrey Chaucer) D. S. Brewer (ed.) Language and imagination in the Gawain- poems J. J. Anderson Water and fire:The myth of the Flood in Anglo- Saxon England Daniel Anlezark Greenery: Ecocritical readings of late medieval English literature Gillian Rudd Sanctity and pornography in medieval culture:On the verge Bill Burgwinkle and Cary Howie In strange countries: Middle English literature and its afterlife: Essays in Memory of J. J. Anderson David Matthews (ed.) A knight’s legacy: Mandeville and Mandevillian lore in early modern England Ladan Niayesh (ed.) Rethinking the South English legendaries Heather Blurton and Jocelyn Wogan- Browne (eds) Between earth and heaven: Liminality and the Ascension of Christ in Anglo-Saxon literature Johanna Kramer Transporting Chaucer Helen Barr Sanctity as literature in late medieval Britain Eva von Contzen and Anke Bernau (eds) Reading Robin Hood: Content, form and reception in the outlaw myth Stephen Knight Annotated Chaucer bibliography: 1997– 2010 Mark Allen and Stephanie Amsel Roadworks: Medieval Britain, medieval roads Valerie Allen and Ruth Evans (eds) Love, history and emotion in Chaucer and Shakespeare: Troilus and Criseyde and Troilus and Cressida Andrew James Johnston, Russell West- Pavlov and Elisabeth Kempf (eds) Gesta Romanorum: A new translation Christopher Stace The Scottish Legendary: Towards a poetics of hagiographic narration Eva von Contzen iii Nonhuman voices in Anglo- Saxon literature and material culture JAMES PAZ Manchester University Press iv Copyright © James Paz 2017 The right of James Paz to be identifi ed as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Published by Manchester University Press Altrincham Street, Manchester M1 7JA www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk British Library Cataloguing- in- Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 1 5261 0110 5 hardback ISBN 978 1 5261 1599 7 Open Access First published 2017 This electronic version has been made freely available under a Creative Commons (CC-BY- NC-ND) licence, thanks to Open Access funding from The University of Manchester. A copy of the licence can be viewed at https://creativecommons. org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ The publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for any external or third- party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Typeset by Out of House Publishing v For my parents vi vii Contents List of figures viii Acknowledgements ix Introduction: On Anglo- Saxon things 1 1 Æschere’s head, Grendel’s mother and the sword that isn’t a sword: Unreadable things in Beowulf 34 2 The ‘thingness’ of time in the Old English riddles of the Exeter Book and Aldhelm’s Latin enigmata 59 3 The riddles of the Franks Casket: Enigmas, agency and assemblage 98 4 Assembling and reshaping Christianity in the Lives of St Cuthbert and Lindisfarne Gospels 139 5 The Dream of the Rood and the Ruthwell monument: Fragility, brokenness and failure 175 Afterword: Old things with new things to say 216 Bibliography 221 Index 233 viii Figures 1 Gold hilt plate from the Staffordshire Hoard (© Birmingham Museums Trust) 51 2 Franks Casket, front panel (© The Trustees of the British Museum) 99 3 Franks Casket, right panel (© The Trustees of the British Museum) 111 4 Franks Casket, left panel (© The Trustees of the British Museum) 115 5 The Ruthwell monument, north (now east) side, upper and lower stones: vine scroll and runic inscription (© Corpus of Anglo- Saxon Stone Sculpture, photographer T. Middlemass) 199 6 The Ruthwell monument, north (now east) side, lower stone: vine scroll and runic inscription (© Corpus of Anglo- Saxon Stone Sculpture, photographer T. Middlemass) 200 The author and publishers are grateful to all of the institutions and individuals listed above for permission to reproduce the images for which they hold the copyright. ix Acknowledgements My initial ideas for this book took root in 2008, when I was still based at King’s College London. I was extremely fortunate to find an excellent mentor in Clare Lees: her support and enthusiasm for imaginative research, balanced with insightful criticism and com- mitment to high scholarly standards, have played no small part in the successes of this book. I acknowledge any of its shortcomings as my own. Sarah Salih and Robert Mills (now at UCL) also deserve thanks for providing helpful insights and suggestions on work in progress, and I am very grateful to Catherine Karkov (Leeds) for reading and commenting on an earlier version of this book. The Centre for Late Antique and Medieval Studies (CLAMS) provided me with an intellectual home for over four years, as well as with a warm and friendly testing ground for new ideas. Our Old English reading group kept me focused on the language and poetry of my primary texts. I would like to thank the tight-knit cluster of Anglo- Saxonist postgraduate students who participated in this group, some of whom are now lecturers and tutors at King’s or other institutions: especially (but not exclusively) Carl Kears, Hana Videen, Josh Davies, Kathryn Maude, Rebecca Hardie and Victoria Walker. I acknowledge my alma mater, Aberystwyth University. Special thanks are due to Diane Watt, now at the University of Surrey, whose classes in Old English first stimulated my interest in this field and whose advice was crucial in making the step from under- graduate to postgraduate study. My spell as a lecturer at the University of Leeds (January to July 2014) was brief but I shared fruitful conversations with Alaric Hall and his (former) doctoral student, Helen Price, whose own work on ecomaterialism and Old English poetry I found very illuminating. Since September 2014, I have been lecturing full- time at the University of Manchester. The collegiality and support of my new colleagues have enabled newgenprepdf x x Acknowledgements me to balance teaching and research duties and helped me to set- tle into my role as an early career academic while completing my first book. I am especially thankful to my fellow medievalists, Anke Bernau and David Matthews, for their welcoming attitude and sound mentorship. Of course, research is not separate from but always informed by teaching. Therefore, I acknowledge the many undergraduate students who have studied Old English under me at Manchester to date: particularly those who signed up for my third- year, research- led course on Anglo- Saxon ‘Things that Talk’. Their thoughtful responses in class and often exciting writ- ten work prompted me to rethink certain aspects of this book in productive ways. I am indebted to the anonymous peer reviewers for Manchester University Press, whose observations, queries and criticisms of the first draft of this book have helped me to refine its structure and writing style and to tighten and refresh its theoretical framework. The most important thanks of all are owed to my family, par- ticularly my parents, who steered me through many moments of academic and personal self-doubt. I hope that I have repaid your faith in me. 1 Introduction: On Anglo- Saxon things How many things, Files, doorsills, atlases, wine glasses, nails, Serve us like slaves who never say a word, Blind and so mysteriously reserved. (Jorge Luis Borges, ‘Things’)1 Næfre hio heofonum hran, ne to helle mot, ac hio sceal wideferh wuldorcyninges larum lifgan. Long is to secganne hu hyre ealdorgesceaft æfter gongeð, woh wyrda gesceapu; þæt is wrætlic þing to gesecganne. [It never reaches heaven, nor to hell, but it must always live within the king of glory’s laws. Long it is to say how its life- shape spins on after- wards, the twisted pattern of fate; that is a wondrous thing to speak.] (Exeter Book Riddle 39)2 Anglo- Saxon things and theory Things could talk in Anglo- Saxon literature and material culture. Many of these Anglo- Saxon things are still with us today and are still talkative. Nonhuman voices leap out from the Exeter Book riddles, telling us where they came from, how they were made, how they do or do not act. In The Husband’s Message, runic letters are borne and a first- person speech is delivered by some kind of wooden artefact. Readers of The Dream of the Rood in the Vercelli Book will come across a tree possessing the voice of a dreaming human in order to talk about its own history as a gallows and a rood. In Andreas, in the same manuscript, we read about stone angels, emerging from the wall into which they have been carved, speaking and walking and raising the dead. Beyond the manuscript 2 2 Nonhuman voices in Anglo-Saxon literature and material culture page, we have artefacts that use their voices to remind us of their makers and owners. ‘Beagnoþ’, says the rune- marked seax found in the River Thames and now kept in the British Museum.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Beowulf and Grendel (2005)
    Masarykova univerzita Filozofická fakulta Katedra anglistiky a amerikanistiky Bakalářská diplomová práce 2020 Nikola Krčová Masaryk University Faculty of Arts Department of English and American Studies English Language and Literature Nikola Krčová The Depiction of Beowulf in Film and Television Series Adaptations Bachelor’s Diploma Thesis Supervisor: prof. Mgr., Milada Franková, CSc., M.A. 2020 I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography. …………………………………………….. Author’s signature I would like to thank my family for supporting me and sharing their opinions with me. I would also like to thank my supervisor prof. Mgr. Milada Franková, CSc., M.A., for her guidance. Table of Contents Introduction........................................................................................................................... 1 The Original Story of Beowulf............................................................................................. 4 Beowulf and Grendel (2005)............................................................................................... 13 Beowulf (2007).................................................................................................................... 19 Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands (2016)......................................................................... 25 Conclusion........................................................................................................................... 31 Bibliography.......................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Rhetorical Code Studies Revised Pages
    Revised Pages rhetorical code studies Revised Pages Sweetland Digital rhetoric collaborative Series Editors: Anne Ruggles Gere, University of Michigan Naomi Silver, University of Michigan The Sweetland Digital Rhetoric Collaborative Book Series publishes texts that investigate the multiliteracies of digitally mediated spaces both within academia as well as other contexts. Rhetorical Code Studies: Discovering Arguments in and around Code Kevin Brock Developing Writers in Higher Education: A Longitudinal Study Anne Ruggles Gere, Editor Sites of Translation: What Multilinguals Can Teach Us about Digital Writing and Rhetoric Laura Gonzales Rhizcomics: Rhetoric, Technology, and New Media Composition Jason Helms Making Space: Writing, Instruction, Infrastrucure, and Multiliteracies James P. Purdy and Dànielle Nicole DeVoss, Editors Digital Samaritans: Rhetorical Delivery and Engagement in the Digital Humanities Jim Ridolfo diGitalculturebooks, an imprint of the University of Michigan Press, is dedicated to publishing work in new media studies and the emerging field of digital humanities. Revised Pages Rhetorical Code Studies discovering arguments in and around code Kevin Brock University of Michigan Press ann arbor Revised Pages Copyright © 2019 by Kevin Brock Some rights reserved This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Note to users: A Creative Commons license is only valid when it is applied by the person or entity that holds rights to the licensed work. Works may contain components (e.g., photo- graphs, illustrations, or quotations) to which the rightsholder in the work cannot apply the license. It is ultimately your responsibility to independently evaluate the copyright status of any work or component part of a work you use, in light of your intended use.
    [Show full text]
  • Neil Macgregor, a History of the World in 100 Objects
    TERMINUS tom 15 (2013), z. 2 (27), s. 275–282 doi:10.4467/20843844TE.13.016.1573 www.ejournals.eu/Terminus NCEIL MA GREGOR, A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN 100 OBJECTS, FIRST PUBLISHED IN PRINT IN OCTOBER 2010 BY ALLEN LANE IMPRINT OF PENGUIN BOOKS, PP. 640 Edition used for the review: Kindle Edition, 6 October 2011, Penguin KAJA SZYMAńSKA Uniwersytet Jagielloński, Kraków Only stable, rich and powerful states can commission great art and architectu- re that, unlike text or language, can be instantly understood by anyone – a gre- at advantage in multilingual empires. Neil MacGregor1 The book A History of the World in 100 Objects is a result of a multi-plat- form BBC and British Museum joint enterprise released in 2010. It of- fered an innovative look at history and the role of a museum, and was a great success in popularising knowledge, and history in particular. The whole project involved 550 heritage partners and comprised several me- dia outlets: a six-month long series of daily broadcasts by BBC Radio 4, a website through which individual users and other institutions could also contribute, uploading objects of their own choice, and finally, the book to which this review specifically relates. The radio programme drew 4 million listeners and podcast downloads amounted to over 10 million during the 1 N. MacGregor, loc. 3542/9008. Publikacja objęta jest prawem autorskim. Wszelkie prawa zastrzeżone. Kopiowanie i rozpowszechnianie zabronione. Publikacja przeznaczona jedynie dla klientów indywidualnych. Zakaz rozpowszechniania i udostępniania w serwisach bibliotecznych 276 Kaja Szymańska following year (only just over 5.7 million from the UK).
    [Show full text]
  • Bibliography
    Bibliography Many books were read and researched in the compilation of Binford, L. R, 1983, Working at Archaeology. Academic Press, The Encyclopedic Dictionary of Archaeology: New York. Binford, L. R, and Binford, S. R (eds.), 1968, New Perspectives in American Museum of Natural History, 1993, The First Humans. Archaeology. Aldine, Chicago. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Braidwood, R 1.,1960, Archaeologists and What They Do. Franklin American Museum of Natural History, 1993, People of the Stone Watts, New York. Age. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Branigan, Keith (ed.), 1982, The Atlas ofArchaeology. St. Martin's, American Museum of Natural History, 1994, New World and Pacific New York. Civilizations. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Bray, w., and Tump, D., 1972, Penguin Dictionary ofArchaeology. American Museum of Natural History, 1994, Old World Civiliza­ Penguin, New York. tions. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Brennan, L., 1973, Beginner's Guide to Archaeology. Stackpole Ashmore, w., and Sharer, R. J., 1988, Discovering Our Past: A Brief Books, Harrisburg, PA. Introduction to Archaeology. Mayfield, Mountain View, CA. Broderick, M., and Morton, A. A., 1924, A Concise Dictionary of Atkinson, R J. C., 1985, Field Archaeology, 2d ed. Hyperion, New Egyptian Archaeology. Ares Publishers, Chicago. York. Brothwell, D., 1963, Digging Up Bones: The Excavation, Treatment Bacon, E. (ed.), 1976, The Great Archaeologists. Bobbs-Merrill, and Study ofHuman Skeletal Remains. British Museum, London. New York. Brothwell, D., and Higgs, E. (eds.), 1969, Science in Archaeology, Bahn, P., 1993, Collins Dictionary of Archaeology. ABC-CLIO, 2d ed. Thames and Hudson, London. Santa Barbara, CA. Budge, E. A. Wallis, 1929, The Rosetta Stone. Dover, New York. Bahn, P.
    [Show full text]
  • “The Symmetrical Battle” Extended: Old Norse Fránn and Other Symmetry in Norse-Germanic Dragon Lore
    The Macksey Journal Volume 1 Article 31 2020 “The Symmetrical Battle” Extended: Old Norse Fránn and Other Symmetry in Norse-Germanic Dragon Lore Julian A. Emole University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://www.mackseyjournal.org/publications Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, Classical Literature and Philology Commons, European Languages and Societies Commons, German Linguistics Commons, Indo-European Linguistics and Philology Commons, Medieval Studies Commons, and the Scandinavian Studies Commons Recommended Citation Emole, Julian A. (2020) "“The Symmetrical Battle” Extended: Old Norse Fránn and Other Symmetry in Norse-Germanic Dragon Lore," The Macksey Journal: Vol. 1 , Article 31. Available at: https://www.mackseyjournal.org/publications/vol1/iss1/31 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Johns Hopkins University Macksey Journal. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Macksey Journal by an authorized editor of The Johns Hopkins University Macksey Journal. “The Symmetrical Battle” Extended: Old Norse Fránn and Other Symmetry in Norse-Germanic Dragon Lore Cover Page Footnote The title of this work was inspired by Daniel Ogden's book, "Drakōn: Dragon Myth & Serpent Cult in the Greek & Roman Worlds," and specifically his chapter titled 'The Symmetrical Battle'. His work serves as the foundation for the following outline of the Graeco-Roman dragon and was the inspiration for my own work on the Norse-Germanic dragon. This paper is a condensed version of a much longer unpublished work, which itself is the product of three years worth of ongoing research.
    [Show full text]
  • The Origins of Beowulf Between Anglo-Saxon Tradition and Christian Latin Culture
    The Origins of Beowulf Between Anglo-Saxon Tradition and Christian Latin Culture Autor: Rubén Abellán García Tutor: Agustí Alemany Villamajó Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona 2019-2020 Index 1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 2 1.1. The structure and transmission of Beowulf. ......................................................... 2 1.2. Literacy context during the creation period of Beowulf ....................................... 3 1.3. Historical Oral-formulaic and literacy research in Old studies ............................. 3 2. Latin Tradition in Beowulf ........................................................................................ 5 2.1. Latin syntax in Beowulf ...................................................................................... 5 2.2. Literary devices .................................................................................................. 6 2.2.1. Alliteration ...................................................................................................... 7 2.2.2. Formulas .......................................................................................................... 7 2.2.3. Compounding and Kennings ............................................................................ 8 2.2.4. Rhymes............................................................................................................ 8 2.2.5. Litotes and irony .............................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Nonhuman Voices in Anglo-​Saxon Literature and Material Culture
    James Paz - 9781526115997 Downloaded from manchesterhive.com at 10/04/2021 03:02:37AM via free access i NONHUMAN VOICES IN ANGLO- SAXON LITERATURE AND MATERIAL CULTURE James Paz - 9781526115997 Downloaded from manchesterhive.com at 10/04/2021 03:02:37AM via free access ii Series editors: Anke Bernau and David Matthews Series founded by: J. J. Anderson and Gail Ashton Advisory board: Ruth Evans, Nicola McDonald, Andrew James Johnston, Sarah Salih, Larry Scanlon and Stephanie Trigg The Manchester Medieval Literature and Culture series publishes new research, informed by current critical methodologies, on the literary cultures of medieval Britain (including Anglo- Norman, Anglo- Latin and Celtic writings), including post- medieval engagements with and representations of the Middle Ages (medievalism). ‘Literature’ is viewed in a broad and inclusive sense, embracing imaginative, historical, political, scientific, dramatic and religious writings. The series offers monographs and essay collections, as well as editions and translations of texts. Titles Available in the Series The Parlement of Foulys (by Geoffrey Chaucer) D. S. Brewer (ed.) Language and imagination in the Gawain- poems J. J. Anderson Water and fire:The myth of the Flood in Anglo- Saxon England Daniel Anlezark Greenery: Ecocritical readings of late medieval English literature Gillian Rudd Sanctity and pornography in medieval culture:On the verge Bill Burgwinkle and Cary Howie In strange countries: Middle English literature and its afterlife: Essays in Memory of J. J. Anderson David
    [Show full text]
  • Student-Centered, Interactive Teaching of the Anglo-Saxon Cult of the Cross Christopher R
    English Faculty Publications English Fall 2014 Student-Centered, Interactive Teaching of the Anglo-Saxon Cult of the Cross Christopher R. Fee Gettysburg College Follow this and additional works at: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/engfac Part of the Educational Methods Commons, European History Commons, Literature in English, British Isles Commons, Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority Commons, Medieval History Commons, and the Medieval Studies Commons Share feedback about the accessibility of this item. Fee, Christopher. "Student-Centered, Interactive Teaching of the Anglo-Saxon Cult of the Cross." Old English Newsletter 45.3 (Fall 2014). This is the publisher's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution. Cupola permanent link: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/engfac/51 This open access article is brought to you by The uC pola: Scholarship at Gettysburg College. It has been accepted for inclusion by an authorized administrator of The uC pola. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Student-Centered, Interactive Teaching of the Anglo-Saxon Cult of the Cross Abstract Although most Anglo-Saxonists deal with Old English texts and contexts as a matter of course in our research agendas, many of us teach relatively few specialized courses focused on our areas of expertise to highly-trained students; thus, many Old English texts and objects which are commonplace in our research lives can seem arcane and esoteric to a great many of our students. This article proposes to confront this gap, to suggest some ways of teaching a few potentially obscure texts and artifacts to undergrads, to offer some guidance about uses of technology in this endeavor, and to help fellow teachers of undergraduate Old English to develop ways to impart some transferable skills and modes of critical thinking to unsuspecting students.
    [Show full text]
  • Tom Bombadil
    JMR@KaZaA 1 THE ADVENTURES OF TOM BOMBADIL Old Tom Bombadil was a merry felow; bright blue his jacket was and his bloots were yellow, green were his girdle and his breeches all of leather; he wore in his tall hat a swan-wing feather. He lived up under Hill, where the Withywindle ran from a grassy well down into the dingle. Old Tom in summertime walked about the meadows gathering the buttercups, running after shadows, tickling the bumblebees that buzzed among the flowers, sitting by the waterside for hours upon hours. There his beard dangled long down into the water: up came Goldberry, the River-woman's daughter; pulled Tom's hanging hair. In he went a-wallowing under the water-lilies, bubbling and a-swallowing. 'Hey, Tom Bombadil! Whither are you going?' said fair Goldberry. 'Bubbles you are blowing, frightening the finny fish and the brown water- rat, startling the dabchicks, and drowning your feather-hat!' 'You bring it back again, there's a pretty maiden!' said Tom Bombadil. 'I do not care for wading. Go down! Sleep again where the pools are shady far below willow-roots, little water-lady!' Back to her mother's house in the deepest hollow swam young Goldberry. But Tom, he would not follow; on knotted willow-roots he sat in sunny weather, drying his yellow boots and his draggled feather. Up woke Willow-man, began upon his singing, sang Tom fast asleep under branches swinging; in a crack caught him tight: snick! it closed together, trapped Tom Bombadil, coat and hat and feather.
    [Show full text]
  • From Small States to Universalism in the Pre-Islamic Near East
    REVOLUTIONIZING REVOLUTIONIZING Mark Altaweel and Andrea Squitieri and Andrea Mark Altaweel From Small States to Universalism in the Pre-Islamic Near East This book investigates the long-term continuity of large-scale states and empires, and its effect on the Near East’s social fabric, including the fundamental changes that occurred to major social institutions. Its geographical coverage spans, from east to west, modern- day Libya and Egypt to Central Asia, and from north to south, Anatolia to southern Arabia, incorporating modern-day Oman and Yemen. Its temporal coverage spans from the late eighth century BCE to the seventh century CE during the rise of Islam and collapse of the Sasanian Empire. The authors argue that the persistence of large states and empires starting in the eighth/ seventh centuries BCE, which continued for many centuries, led to new socio-political structures and institutions emerging in the Near East. The primary processes that enabled this emergence were large-scale and long-distance movements, or population migrations. These patterns of social developments are analysed under different aspects: settlement patterns, urban structure, material culture, trade, governance, language spread and religion, all pointing at population movement as the main catalyst for social change. This book’s argument Mark Altaweel is framed within a larger theoretical framework termed as ‘universalism’, a theory that explains WORLD A many of the social transformations that happened to societies in the Near East, starting from Andrea Squitieri the Neo-Assyrian period and continuing for centuries. Among other infl uences, the effects of these transformations are today manifested in modern languages, concepts of government, universal religions and monetized and globalized economies.
    [Show full text]
  • Beowulf, Agon Two Answer Guide
    Beowulf, Agon Two Answer Guide Beowulf, Agon Two Answer Guide Below are several sample answers and resources you can use to help you craft your own answers to the questions in the Agon Two reading guide. 1. Reread ll. 1330-1340. Why do you think that Grendel’s Mother takes revenge on the Thanes of Heorot? Look back at the Anglo-Saxon terms from Agon One for help. Sample Answer: Grendel’s Mother takes revenge on the Thanes of Heorot because they did not pay the wergild for Grendel’s death, which is usually done to prevent a retaliation. After Beowulf mortally wounds Grendel, the monster returns to returns to his lair to die, presumably in front of his mother, which sends her into a vengeful rage. Hrothgar hints at this when he says that Grendel’s Mother was “driven to avenge her kinsman’s death” (l.1339). 2. Analyze Beowulf’s speech to Hrothgar in ll. 1383-1396. What, if anything, does this speech seem to say about the Anglo-Saxon view of legacy and the afterlife? Answer Tip: For some historical context to help with this answer, visit this website. 3. What is the significance of Beowulf’s sword, Hrunting? Answer Hint: Look at ll. 1459-1472. 4. Reread ll. 1529-1556. Does the narrator ultimately attribute Beowulf’s prowess as a warrior to Beowulf’s own skill or to God? Use direct quotes from the poem to support your claim. Answer Tip: Your answer to this question really depends on your own interpretation of the text and which force you believe has the biggest impact.
    [Show full text]
  • CTS Termcard: Easter 2014
    CTS Termcard: Easter 2014 For the Enemy is upon us… I’ve already said thanks to various people, but I’ll say them here again: last term was an excellent success, with a well-attended AGM (and a contested election!), a well-organised annual dinner, and Minas Tirith’s third Varsity Quiz win on the trot. Jamie, Mark, and my fellow quiz team members deserve particular thanks, so here they are! It is, alas, now exam term once more, and the dread hand of the Proctors reaches out to us all… yet, people of the City, hope is not lost. For, standing alone in the mist, the White Tower will keep having meetings as a bastion of safety in an ever-fearsome world. I’ve taken care to write this very much as an exam term timetable; you’ll note that more or less from week 5 through to 8 we’re pretty much just going for solid frivolities to keep the terror of exams away, whereas the discussions have coalesced earlier in the term. April 23: Of Ships and Seafarers The seas of Middle-Earth are a vital theme running through Tolkien’s legendarium; the Elves are drawn to them, the Orcs repulsed from them, the humans fascinated by them. In this meeting expect discussion of Earendil’s voyage, Fastitocalon, the Numenorean, Gondorian, and Elven navies, and of course Umbar and its dreaded corsairs! (“You are without a doubt the worst Dark Lord I’ve ever heard of.” “Ah. But you have heard of me…”) Time: 19:15 Place: N1A, Pembroke College April 30: Discovery and Destruction In this discussion we’ll look at Tolkien the environmentalist; what does science mean in Tolkien’s world, and should we be as quick as Tolkien himself is to reject the mechanisation that Saruman and Sauron are associated with? Is there significance in the fact that the two most relevant of the Valar are literally an old married couple? Expect all this, plus trees.
    [Show full text]