By: Ramazan Cav

BACKGROUND Written between 450

and 1066 A.D. Written in Old

English a.k.a. Anglo-Saxon

Author is Unknown Believed to have

been first written down in the 10th/11th centuries by monks in monasteries

BACKGROUND 450 – 1066 were

the years of the Norman-French conquests of England

The Germanic tribes who took over England in the 5th century brought Old English with them

BACKGROUND Sir Robert Bruce

Cotton found the manuscript and placed it in his collection in his library

Beowulf was bound with four other stories in a combined codex known as Cotton MS.Vitellius A.xv

Cotton MS.Vitellius A.xv was the 15th item on the first shelf of his Emperor Vitellius cabinet

He named all his cabinets after Roman Emperors and paced items in specific places to keep everything organized

Fire => Present Day In 1731, Sir Robert

Bruce Cotton’s library caught on fire damaging almost everything in his collection

The Beowulf manuscript turned brittle due to the heat and many of it was unreadable

The survival of the manuscript was in doubt and it was taken to the British Museum where ultraviolet light and other technologies recovered the missing writing

THE STORY Beowulf is a Scandinavian prince who travels to the lands

of the Geats to help King Hrothgar get rid of a monster that has terrorized his lands for 12 years

After ripping off Grendel’s arm, Grendel runs home and dies

Unfortunately for the King, Grendel’s mother comes to avenge her son’s death and kills Hrothgar’s most trusted advisor and closest friend

Beowulf follows her home and

kills her using a magical sword

THE STORY CONTINUED http://www.beowulfmovie.com/index.html#video

BEOWULF’S DEMISE 50 years have passed and in that time, Beowulf left

Hrothgar and returned home to become king After a servant in his kingdom stole a golden cup

from a cave, a fire dragon awoke to ravage the land Beowulf in his old age fought one last time believing

he can defy fate once more He used his sword to cut the dragon in half but he

was wounded in the fight Before Beowulf died, he named Wiglaf, as successor

to the throne, a young warrior who helped to kill the dragon

THESIS Beowulf is a product of its time and place but somehow manages to include themes and motives that are relevant and important in today’s society. Because of this it has served as a writing basis for

many authors to come.

THEMES

Directly From Story Loyalty Honor and Pride Strength

Outside Influences Many religious

Aspects Right and Wrong Fate Good vs. Evil

LOYALTY Relationships were very important in Beowulf The loyalty between a king and his Thanes was key The king sent his thanes to serve in his army, to fight

and protect his land, peoples, and name Rewards were expected for success and failing to do

so lost the loyalty of followers Loyalty to family = Wergelds; avenging the death of

family members and relatives by killing the murderer => never ending family feuds

HONOR and PRIDE Men fought for the

honor of their kings Beowulf fought for

pride and glory Beowulf fights with

honor, he didn’t not use a weapon against Grendel because Grendel had no weapon

Beowulf was not born with the strength but worked very hard to become powerful

Courage played a big role in Beowulf as he fought with monsters never encountered before

STRENGTH Strength of individuals, kings, and kingdoms played a

crucial role in the story Power was not given to people through hereditary

rights but given to those who kept fighting and winning

The power of a kingdom over any of its neighbors was as strong as the king in battle

Beowulf was not about the portrayal of war but the ability to keep the peace through powerful kings

He thought it was better to confront a challenge face to face than to run and hide

OUSTIDE INFLUENCES There are themes in Beowulf that go

beyond its time and place Religious aspects such as fate, good and

evil, right and wrong and even a god or multiple gods show that these were outside influences on the story

Anglo-Saxons were pagans when they arrived in England but through war Christianity seeped into England and influenced the story

RELIGIOUS ASPECTS Beowulf was always trying to defy fate and choose his

destiny He believed that his courage can save a doomed man

from fate Beowulf refers to an almighty force in the heavens

many times and it is believed that he refers to a God The almighty God also comes with those of opposite

yet equal presence; demons, which Grendel is believed to be

Good and evil is clearly seen as a hero is always needed and that hero is someone who represents all that is good in society

BEOWULF’S CHANGES

Beginning Beowulf was young

and eager to fight Ready for any

chance to prove himself

He faced Grendel prepared to die

He fought Grendel’s mother as a way to end the struggle

Ending Beowulf became

older and grew weaker

As a king he did not want to risk losing his kingdom

He did not want to fight the dragon but he had to protect his people and lands

Conclusion Beowulf was the first

English masterpiece Earliest epic The story’s analogies

bridge Christian and pre-Christian Germanic worlds

Influenced authors like J.R.R. Tolkien and William Morris