1. The Anglo-Saxon Period 449-1066

2. Living on Britain were Britons and Picts (Celtic people) Living on Ireland were Gaels Romans came, conquered Britons, drove Picts to Scotland Britain became province of Roman empire Britons depended on Romans, but they left, leaving Britain a target for invasion

3. Angles, Saxon, and Germanic people began settling on Britain They formed a confederation of 7 kingdoms called Heptarchy This area became known as Angle-land or England The term Anglo-Saxon refers to these people and their culture Anglo-Saxons believed in wyrd or fate They became more agricultural and civilized largely due to the influence of Christianity

4. Old English very different from what we know as English https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K13GJk GvDw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K13GJk GvDw Harsh sound Written phonetically No silent letters Grammatically complex Flexible word order Adopted new words based on need

5. Anglo-Saxon writing system is runic alphabet Literature composed and transmitted orally Oral poets = scops (sounds like skops) Epic poem Lyric poem riddles

6. Missionaries spread faith among Picts and Angles 597  Roman missionary established monastery at Canterbury 690  mostly all of Britain Christian

7. 790’s  Danes (Vikings) invaded England King of Wessex (Alfred the Great) forced them to truce Alfred’s reign was high point in Anglo-Saxon history When he died, Danes tried again to rule William, duke of Normandy, led last successful invasion of Britain (Norman Conquest) 1066  William the Conqueror crowned king of England

8. As Christianity spread, so did literacy Introduction of Roman alphabet Some poems written down, but copied by hand so only fraction of Anglo-Saxon poetry survived Most famous survivor is Beowulf Also Exeter Book (lyrics and riddles) Most poems anonymous Most scholars wrote in Latin 891  Alfred compiled Anglo Saxon Chronical and encouraged translations to English

9. Oral poets = master improvisers Had to compose verse in head while singing or chanting it Drew on existing songs and legends for their material Oral poetry features repetition of words, phrases, lines Ex. Stock epithets Ex. kennings

10. A long narrative poem that celebrates a hero’s deeds Stock epithets = adjectives that point out special traits Kennings = poetic synonyms that substitute nouns

11. The hero is male, of noble birth, and has historical/legendary importance Hero’s traits reflect society’s ideals Hero performs courageous deeds that reflect values of era Actions of hero determine fate of nation Setting is vast, involves more than one nation Poet uses formal diction and serious tone Major characters give long, formal speeches Plot is complicated by supernatural Poem reflects timeless values (ex. Courage, honor) Poem deals with universal themes (ex. Good vs. evil, life vs. death)