An Introduction to the English Folk Epic

 Where does the word “barbarian” come from?  Just what WERE the Dark Ages? What made them “dark?”

A Story About a

A.D. The helmet has become a symbol of the Sutton Hoo burial; it survived as a mass of small pieces, and was only reconstructed after years of painstaking work in the British Museum Laboratory.

DARK AGES DOES NOT MEAN NO ART VIKINGS LOVED GOLD, JEWELRY, WEAPONS, AND RINGS

Art resulted in stories, some of which were told in manuscripts that were beautifully decorated and colored.

Many of the artworks pictured in this presentation were a part of a discovery at Sutton Hoo, a Medieval burial ground.

Folk Epics are tales of a national HERO But What Is

Characteristics of a Pagan Hero Good Fighter Loyal Persevering (Never Gives Up) Wins “Fame” (in Songs in a Mead Hall) Good Fighter Loyal Persevering (Never Gives Up) Wins “Fame” (in Songs in a Mead Hall)

Pagan Characteristics, cont. Little Regard for Danger or Self: Brave Battle as a Way of Life Personal Vengeance as Familial Requirement FATE: Revenge and/or Death Little Regard for Danger or Self: Brave Battle as a Way of Life Personal Vengeance as Familial Requirement FATE: Revenge and/or Death

Characteristics of a Christian Hero Recognizes God as Creator Humility in the presence of God’s Power Altruism in Action Recognizes God as Creator Humility in the presence of God’s Power Altruism in Action

Christian Characteristics cont. Contrast between Good and Evil Rulers Personal Vengeance transmuted into Fighting Evil Good is Rewarded and Evil is Punished (Evil in the World) Contrast between Good and Evil Rulers Personal Vengeance transmuted into Fighting Evil Good is Rewarded and Evil is Punished (Evil in the World)

Historical Background

Part History Part Fiction The Poem

Author/Composer Likely an educated Christian, possibly a monk Wove together many oral traditions with consummate skill Slightly sanitized the pagan traditions Produced a single tale Likely an educated Christian, possibly a monk Wove together many oral traditions with consummate skill Slightly sanitized the pagan traditions Produced a single tale

Manuscript History Authored in 1,000 B. C. Saved from looting of monasteries under Henry VIII Saved from fire in Sir Henry Cotton’s Library in 1731 Danish scholar translated it in 1787; first published in 1815 Authored in 1,000 B. C. Saved from looting of monasteries under Henry VIII Saved from fire in Sir Henry Cotton’s Library in 1731 Danish scholar translated it in 1787; first published in 1815

Structure and Style

Macrostructure Begins and ends with a FUNERAL (Scyld Scefing and Beowulf) Arrival and Departure of a HERO Youthful Adventure/Kingly exploits Good and Evil Characters Contrasted Begins and ends with a FUNERAL (Scyld Scefing and Beowulf) Arrival and Departure of a HERO Youthful Adventure/Kingly exploits Good and Evil Characters Contrasted Macrostructure

Example: Death of Grendel and Aeschere Seeming irrelevant digressions collections Allusive incidents and characters Suggestive of past and future Complexity often lost on modern reader Example: Death of Grendel and Aeschere Seeming irrelevant digressions/ collections Allusive incidents and characters Suggestive of past and future Complexity often lost on modern reader Microstructure

Style of the Folk Epic Lyric Epic Narrative Lyric Epic Narrative A poem, such as a sonnet or an ode, that expresses the thoughts and feelings of the poet. A lyric poem may resemble a song in form or style. A long, serious poem that tells the story of a heroic figure. Two of the most famous epic poems are the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer

Characteristics of Style Elegiac tone Concentration on feelings Extra epithets delay narration and focus the point of view Elegiac tone Concentration on feelings Extra epithets delay narration and focus the point of view A poem that laments the death of a person, or one that is simply sad and thoughtful. Like “Richard the Lion-hearted” for Richard I

Literary Devices Scops used harp to add beats to poetry Four Lifts per line; with a caesura Understatement/Litotes Allusions Scops used harp to add beats to poetry Four Lifts per line; with a caesura Understatement/Litotes Allusions A natural pause or break in a line of poetry, usually near the middle of the line. There is a caesura right after the question mark in the first line of this sonnet by Elizabeth Barrett Browning: “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” What is an allusion? What do we mean when we say, “THAT’S an understatement ! ”

Literary Devices, cont. Exalted Vocabulary Ritual Objects Kennings: bardic formulae, used as appositives, for example, “swan-road” Exalted Vocabulary Ritual Objects Kennings: bardic formulae, used as appositives, for example, “swan-road” A phrase used instead of the simple name of a thing, characteristic of Old Teutonic, and esp. Old Norse, poetry. Examples are oar-steed = ship, storm of swords = battle.