1. Anglo-Saxons Background Culture World View Pagan vs Christian
Poetry Characteristics

3. Anglo Saxons …Who Were They?
Great Britain – invaded and settled many times
Ancient people called Iberians
Celts (kelts)
Romans
Angles and Saxons
Vikings
Normans
Today’s “English” comes from all these invasions

4. Old English The Old English Period began in 449AD.
Marks the beginning of the ANGLO-SAXON INVASIONS and the “dark ages” of violent tribal wars.

5. Religion Brought to Britain their own PAGAN beliefs (polytheistic)
Norse religion; Thunor (Thor), the God of Thunder, shown
Christianity introduced by Celts earlier

6. Religious Conversion
St. Patrick and St. Augustine are two famous missionaries who brought Christianity to Great Britain.
Christianity offered a happy afterlife, a loving God, and ideas like forgiveness and hope that their religion had not.
Celtic Cross = Pagan Celtic Sundial + Christian Cross

7. PAGAN CHRISTIAN Monsters and supernatural beings Lof (Fame)
Warrior - Physical Strength
Courage
Pride (Heroic Boasts)
Revenge (Weregild)
Riches/Gold
Loyalty
Signs, Superstition, Wyrd (fate)
Valhalla
Sacrifice
“The Almighty”
Love
Compassion
Humility - “the meek shall inherit the earth”
Forgiveness “love your enemies”
Riches are in heaven, not on earth
Sacrifice
Heaven

8. Interesting Facts
Tuesday: Tiw's Day. Tiw, or Tyr, was a Norse god known for his sense of justice.
Wednesday: Woden's Day. Woden, or Odin, was a Norse god who was one of the most powerful of them all.
Thursday: Thor's Day. Thor was a Norse god who wielded a giant hammer.
Friday: Frigg's Day. Frigg was a Norse god equal in power to Odin.

9. Characteristics of AS Culture
Bravery in battle
Bards or scops (pronounced SHOPS) used to elevate heroes of the tribes; very important
Faith in God to intervene positively with fate
Influence of old pagan religion
Warfare!
Loyal dependency _

10. Mead Hall
MEAD HALL - the king lived in a great hall where warriors would gather and tell stories and drink mead; a place of safety

11. Anglo-Saxon World View
world view - how a person/group of people feels about and interacts with the world, nature, and God
Anglo-Saxon world view: grim, negative- they lived harsh lives full of war and hard work
Saw nature as the enemy; no concept of happy afterlife or loving God

12. WYRD Anglo-Saxon concept of FATE.
They believed their lives were ruled by FATE (or wyrd).

13. LOF
Because the Anglo-Saxons did not believe in an afterlife, they sought immortality through a concept called LOF (or FAME)

14. COMITATUS
Again, because life was so harsh, Anglo- Saxons made life meaningful through relationships with one another and the king.
Comitatus means COMPANIONSHIP- loyalty and love to your kinsmen, friends, and king

15. What made life worth living?
LOF (FAME) - for the afterlife
COMITATUS (COMPANIONSHIP) - for now

16. Characteristics of AS Poetry
Kenning - a metaphorical two word compound
Example: “whale-road”= the ocean
“soul-house”= the body
Epithet - replacing a character’s name with a descriptive phrase
Example: Grendel=“The Shadow of Death”
Caesura - a pause in the middle of a line indicated by a comma, semi-colon, or period
Alliteration - repetition of initial consonant sounds
Lines do not rhyme

17. Purpose for Characteristics
Euphony = pleasing to the ear; it sounds good!!
Memory = rhythm and repetition help it make things easier to remember- the scops had to tell all of their stories from memory so caesura and alliteration helped

18. Epics: The Basics
Definition: a long narrative poem that recounts the deeds of a hero and/or the story of a nation
THEME: Good vs. Evil
SETTING: Vast- over many years and different landscapes
HEROIC BOAST- when the hero brags to achieve fame and gain “Lof”
TONE: formal and serious

19. Kennings Assignment
A kenning is a literary device in which a poetic phrase substitutes for a noun. In the best kennings, one element of the phrase will create a striking, unexpected comparison.
Typically use a combination of two nouns
AS Examples:
sky-candle (the sun)
battle sweat (blood)
helmet bearers (warriors)
giver of gold (king)
dwelling place (home)
storm of swords (battle)

20. Kennings Assignment
Listed below are some modern kennings. Can you find examples of striking imagery, alliteration, consonance, rhyme, and assonance among them? Can you identify the concept each kenning represents? 1. gas guzzler 2. muffin top 3. rug rat 4. land line 5. eye candy 6. cancer stick 7. couch potato

21. Kennings Assignment
1. gas guzzler – a vehicle that has poor gas mileage ( alliteration, striking imagery)
2. muffin top – extra skin at the top of a pair of too-tight jeans (striking imagery)
3. rug rat – a mischievous child (alliteration, striking imagery)
4. land line – a traditional telephone (alliteration)
5. eye candy – a person or thing with visual appeal but little substance (striking imagery)
6. cancer stick – a cigarette (striking imagery))
7. couch potato – a person who gets little exercise (assonance and striking imagery)

22. Kennings Assignment
With a partner (or alone), create five kennings. Be sure to include poetic qualities (alliteration, imagery). You must include what your kenning represents, as well.
Typically uses a combination of two nouns
Must be school appropriate!

23. Multiple Choice Questions
In pairs (alone), create 5 multiple-choice questions from the notes you took today
You must have 4 choices (A, B, C, D)
Only one choice can be obviously wrong (funny)
You can write these on the back on your kennings assignment.
Circle the correct answer.