1. BEOWULF Literary Concepts

2. SETTING Setting refers to the time and place in which the action of a story occurs

3. CONFLICT Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces Conflict drives the plot in narrative and dramatic writing

4. EXTERNAL CONFLICT Occurs when a character struggles against an outside force, such as another character, a group of people, society, nature, or a divine power

5. INTERNAL CONFLICT Occurs when the struggle takes place within a character’s mind – when trying to reach a decision or wrestling over a matter of conscience

6. EPIC A long narrative poem that recounts the adventures of a hero

7. CHAR. OF AN EPIC 1. The hero is a great leader strongly identified with a particular people or society 2. The setting is broad and often includes the upper and lower worlds

8. CHAR. OF AN EPIC 3) The hero is larger than life, does great deeds in battle and/or undertakes an extraordinary journey

9. CHAR. OF AN EPIC 4) Sometimes the gods or other supernatural or fantastic beings take part in the action 5) The story is told in heightened language

10. EPIC HERO The epic hero is the central figure in a long narrative that reflects the values and heroic ideals of a particular society

11. WHAT MAKES A HERO? http://wimp.com/makeshero/

12. CHAR. of an EPIC HERO 1) Superior human strength 2) Supremely ethical 3) Is on a quest 4) Brave

13. CHAR. of an EPIC HERO 5) During quest, must defeat monsters that embody dark, destructive powers 6) Glorified by the people he has saved

14. CHAR. of an EPIC HERO 7) Fights to destroy evil in classic battle of good vs. evil 8) Loyal

15. ALLITERATION The repetition of consonant sounds in words close to one another Example: “So Hrothgar’s men lived happy in this hall” (line 15)

16. CAESURA To help oral poets remember their lines, Old English verse has a strong rhythm marked by a pause or break near the middle of every line – a Caesura

17. CAESURA Example: “…loud in that hall, the harp’s rejoicing…” (line 4)

18. KENNINGS Specialized metaphors made of compound words. Anglo-Saxon poets created beautiful, evocative phrases to stand for common words

19. KENNINGS Writers use visual imagery to summon up mental pictures, or images, in a reader’s mind Descriptive, rather than figurative, in purpose

20. KENNINGS Examples: - Sea paths (sea) - Heaven’s high arch (sky) - Fiercest of demons (Grendel) Any modern-day kennings?

21. CHRISTIAN / PAGAN ELEMENTS Elements of both found Christian elements added by monk who wrote down the story of Beowulf