| Beowulf is the work of the Anglo-Saxons, who came to England in the _____ century. | fifth |
| They settled in _____ England. | East coast of |
| a minority that did not have much impact on the DNA of the people of the island, had had a profound influence on the ______ _of the culture. | society and language |
| Beowulf is set in two countries: __________ and __________. | Denmark, Sweden |
| It is the perennial story of the __________ of a leader who battles monsters to save his people from Evil. | hero’s quest |
| The tale was spread by the so-called ____________. | oral tradition |
| and those who best delivered the tale were ____ ______ who played the role of tribal historians. These people are also called _______. | scops, bards |
| The story of Beowulf actually begins with a brief recounting of _____, who had humble beginnings and who was literally washed up on the shores only to become the great king of his people. | shield sheathing |
| It is believed to have originated in the ___________________ century, and, through the oral tradition, shaped into the story that was eventually written down. | sixth |
| A major clue came in the year ______________________________ at a place called ________________________, where the greatest ______________________________ in England’s history took place. | 1938, Sutton Hoo, archaeologist’s discovery/ old legend of royal tombs and hidden golds |
| Archaeologists excavated mysterious ___________ and uncovered the ghost of an Anglo-Saxon ______ with an undisturbed ________________________. | mounds, great ship, burial chamber |
| This is relevant to our understanding of Beowulf because both the start end of the epic prominently feature ____________. | a royal ship funeral |
| The most magnificent find was a ______________ that revealed close connections to the Beowulf poem because it had markings that corresponded to descriptions in the poem. | ceremonial helmet |
| Scholars were able to trace the story of Beowulf to this area of England because the __________________ of certain characters in Beowulf correspond to those of this royal family. | family names |
| Grendel and his mother lived in the marshes, which today are referred to by the common noun ___________________. | Fens |
| The actual warfare of the original characters – warriors who fought literal monsters – was reflected by the “______________________ ____ ” that Christians imagined priests, bishops, nuns, and everyday Christians fought in a land where evil, if not actual monsters, posed great dangers. | spiritual warfare |
| According to Michael Wolf, “the _________________ was palpable,” and the threats it posed echoed those dangers that the literal monsters of the tale posed. | unseen world |
| One of the “Christian touches” that added to the power of the story was that the evil Grendel was given a Biblical connection: he was depicted as a descendant of ________________________________, a son of ________________________ and __________________ who committed the first ________________ (of his brother, ____ ______). | Cain, Adam, Eve, Primordial Crime, killing |
| Grendel is further “biblicized” in the tale when he is referred to as “______________________” and “__________ _____” (the modern English translation will suffice). | the old enemy/ fee and manner Kunis, the fiend of mankind |
| Linguistic tidbit: even today, the English language has been affected by this 1500 year-old tale; one word for a marsh is “___________.” | Grindle’s |
| The marsh as a source of evil continued through the centuries. The frightening legend of the so-called Devil Dog/Hellhound, or “_____________________________________,” spread throughout areas of England. | Black Schuck |
| Don’t dare to look_______________of this fiend, because you will die! | fiery eyes |
| Blacksmiths, or forgers, were often viewed as people who had magical powers because many early Britons saw iron as a _______________________________________________ because it literally came ________________ ________. | gift from the Gods, from meteors (heaven) |
| The smith used this otherworldly substance and combined it with the four elements of ______________, ____________________, __________, and _______________ to create a weapon imbued with the power of the gods. | earth, fire, wind, water |
| The great early English historian _____________________wrote his book _______________, which shed light on the early Anglo-Saxon culture and the development of the Christian Church in England up to that point. | Bede, Venerable |
| The key idea in his book was ____________________ from Pagan to Christian. | conversion |
| In fact, one contemporary book of the era laments that “the _____________________” should be read/heard – not the “_____________________________________” because “what do the [Pagan heroes] have to do with ______________?” | word of God, Pagan poems, Christ |
| In fact, one writer of the era declared that “the heart of God is narrow and cannot include both” meaning ___________________________ and the _______________________________. | the work of Church Father, poems of the Pagan poets |
| One of the most famous stories of the era, “_________________,” talks about the crucifixion of Jesus from the point of view of _______________________. | dream of the rood, the tree |
| This poem combined the iconic Pagan figure of the _______________, which tells its story | Pagan tree of life |
| In this story, Jesus is no longer tortured by his angst during the crucifixion; instead the poem portrays him as one who possesses the qualities of the ____________________________ who is unafraid and willing to die for his people. | pagan warrior/ Anglo Saxon hero |
| This new combination helped make Christianity even more palatable to them, for, like the new Christian story, the old Pagan past was, as Michael Wood says, “_________________-_____________________.” | still god-given |
| According to Nobel Prize-winning poet _________________________, who published a best-selling translation of Beowulf in the year ___ __________, Beowulf’s final battle against the dragon reflects the ruminative and resigned tone of the last days of the life of Jesus, whose humanity allowed him to feel resignation and fear as his crucifixion approached. | Seamus Heaney, 1999 |
| Unlike the evil figures from Cain’s descendants (Grendel and his mother), the dragon is not a __________________________________ figure who wants to damage Beowulf. | malignant |
| According to this poet, both Beowulf and the dragon are “caught ___________________,” and encountering their fates. | on a web |
| According to this poet, the first two battles (against Grendel and his mother) are _____________tests, while the third one is a ______________test. | warrior, spiritual |
| He says that Beowulf fully comprehends that even though he will probably lose this battle, he must “live up to _____________”; in other words, he must do his best, even if he must lose in the end. | your own best possibilities |
| This poet labels the young Beowulf a “________________” seeking physical glory. | brave cowboy |
| In contrast, the older Beowulf has been “schooled by _____________” into “becoming a ____________.” | pains of the world, a soul |
| Wood concludes that “If [he] had to make a small bet,” he would say that the manuscript of Beowulf was written at _______________ in _______________England. | Momsbury, Welshire |
in search of beowulf
February 25, 2020