pages 2-10 The Early Middle Ages / King Alfred / Beda / Beowulf

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 5

Work in pairs. Each pair takes a couple of the words below. Go to  https://www.etymonline.com/ and loop up the Old English roots of the following words:

man, wife, child, son, daughter, make, use, love, family, work, come, go, 

King Alfred of Wessex

Alfred the Great (849 - 899), king of Wessex. He prevented England from falling to the Danes and promoted learning and literacy. Compilation of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle began during his reign, circa 890.

1. The Old English Period lasted from:

1. 250-900
2. 350-1000
3. 450-1100
4. 550-1200

2. Which of the following groups did not invade England in the Old English period?

1. Saxons
2. Jutes
3. Franks
4. Angles

The hero of the story 

The monster that must be defeated

The name of the king Beowulf sets out to help

The second monster that Beowulf has to fight

The name of the mead hall that is being terrorised by the monster

The third monster that Beowulf has to fight

Heorot

Beowulf

Grendel

Grendel's mother

Hrothgar

A nameless dragon

Beowulf is …..

1. a sonnet
2. a frame story
3. an epic poem
4. an allegory

Beowulf is written in

1. Old English and alliterative verse
2. Middle English and alliterative verse
3. Old English and rhyme
4. middle English and rhyme

Alliterative verse means that ….

1. there is a set pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables
2. nobody understands what the poem is about
3. words in a sentence have the same vowels
4. words in a sentence begin with the same consonant

poetry

• people were illiterate. Only monks could read and write
• alliterations and regular rythm used for mnemonic reasons
• kenning
• variation

alliteration

two or more words within the same line begin with the same letter.

Meotodes meahte and his modgepanc

the Measurer's might and his mind-plans

kenning

a figurative name for a thing, usually expressed in a compound noun.

swan-road = sea

Beowulf

• Swedish prince
• Grendel
• Hrotgar's court (Denmark)
• ancient treasure guarded by dragon
• epic of Germanic hero
• religious