What year does Beowulf take place in?
It deals with events of the early 6th century CE and is believed to have been composed between 700 and 750. Although originally untitled, it was later named after the Scandinavian hero Beowulf, whose exploits and character provide its connecting theme. Where does Beowulf take place?
What happens to Beowulf after he arrives in Sweden?
After learning of the Danes’ trouble, young Beowulf, a prince of the Geats in what is now southern Sweden, arrives with a small band of retainers and offers to rid Heorot of its monster. Hrothgar is astonished at the little-known hero’s daring but welcomes him.
Is there any historical evidence of Beowulf?
There is no evidence of a historical Beowulf, but some characters, sites, and events in the poem can be historically verified. The poem did not appear in print until 1815. It is preserved in a single manuscript that dates to circa 1000 and is known as the Beowulf manuscript (Cotton MS Vitellius A XV) .
When did Beowulf first appear in print?
The poem did not appear in print until 1815. It is preserved in a single manuscript that dates to circa 1000 and is known as the Beowulf manuscript (Cotton MS Vitellius A XV) . BeowulfBeowulf preparing to cut off the head of the monster Grendel, illustration from Hero-Myths & Legends of the British Race, 1910.
What is the first event in Beowulf?
Beowulf, along with a group of Geatish warriors, sails across the sea to the land of the Danes to fight the demon Grendel. Beowulf is graciously received by King Hrothgar and Queen Wealhtheow, who gratefully accept his offer of help. When Grendel attacks Heorot Hall, Beowulf meets him in hand-to-hand combat.
Where was Beowulf written and where was the setting?
Beowulf is set in Scandinavia, sometime around the year 500 A.D, in the territories of two tribal groups, the Geats and the Scyldings, who really existed and really lived in those areas during the period of the poem.
When and where was Beowulf first told?
“It's what the poem was meant to be 1,300 years ago,” said Rozenski. “Beowulf” most likely originated in the 700s as spoken word and was recounted or sung from memory at dinnertime, around the fire, or in mead halls.
Where does Beowulf take place and why?
The story is set in pagan Scandinavia in the 6th century. Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead hall in Heorot has been under attack by the monster Grendel. After Beowulf slays him, Grendel's mother attacks the hall and is then defeated.
Where is Beowulf's homeland?
Beowulf takes place in 6th century Denmark and Sweden. The Geats (Beowulf's tribe) inhabited the southern part of Sweden) and Hrothgar and his glorious mead-hall Heorot were from the Danish island, Sjaelland.
What is the setting of Beowulf quizlet?
What is the setting of Beowulf? Takes place in the Danes (nation of Denmark). The time is 5th or 6th century in Scandinavia.
Where did the story of Beowulf originate?
Beowulf is part of English literature, because though it is set in Denmark and Sweden, the Germanic (or Anglo-Saxon) people from this region migrated to the British Isles in the 5th Century CE and ingrained themselves in the region, making their history an important part of English history.
How does Beowulf start?
Anglo-Saxon scholars will invariably be familiar with the opening of the epic poem Beowulf, which starts with the word "Hwæt!". You can see the word in question above (the second letter is a wynn, pronounced w-), and you can view the whole manuscript online on our Digitised Manuscripts site.
What is Beowulf?
Beowulf is a heroic poem, considered the highest achievement of Old English literature and the earliest European vernacular epic. It deals with eve...
Where does Beowulf take place?
Beowulf takes place in early 6th-century Scandinavia, primarily in what is known today as Denmark and Sweden.
Who was Beowulf written by?
The author of Beowulf is unknown. It is possible that the poem was composed by and transmitted between several different poets before it was preser...
What does Beowulf present to Hrothgar?
Upon his return to Heorot, Beowulf presents to King Hrothgar Grendel’s decapitated head and the jeweled hilt of the sword he used to kill Grendel’s...
Was Beowulf real?
There is no evidence of a historical Beowulf, but other characters, sites, and events in the poem can be historically verified. For example, the po...
Overview
Historical background
The events in the poem take place over most of the sixth century, and feature no English characters. Some suggest that Beowulf was first composed in the 7th century at Rendlesham in East Anglia, as the Sutton Hoo ship-burial shows close connections with Scandinavia, and the East Anglian royal dynasty, the Wuffingas, may have been descendants of the Geatish Wulfings. Others have associated t…
Summary
The protagonist Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, king of the Danes, whose great hall, Heorot, is plagued by the monster Grendel. Beowulf kills Grendel with his bare hands, then kills Grendel's mother with a giant's sword that he found in her lair.
Later in his life, Beowulf becomes king of the Geats, and finds his realm terrori…
Authorship and date
The dating of Beowulf has attracted considerable scholarly attention; opinion differs as to whether it was first written in the 8th century, whether it was nearly contemporary with its 11th century manuscript, and whether a proto-version (possibly a version of the Bear's Son Tale) was orally transmitted before being transcribed in its present form. Albert Lord felt strongly that the manuscript represents the transcription of a performance, though likely taken at more than one …
Manuscript
Beowulf survived to modern times in a single manuscript, written in ink on parchment, later damaged by fire. The manuscript measures 245 × 185 mm.
The poem is known only from a single manuscript, estimated to date from around 975–1025, in which it appears with other works. The manuscript therefore dates either to the reign of Æthelred the Unready, characterised by st…
Editions, translations, and adaptations
Many editions of the Old English text of Beowulf have been published; this section lists the most influential.
The Icelandic scholar Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin made the first transcriptions of the Beowulf-manuscript in 1786, working as part of a Danish government historical research commission. He made one himself, and had another done by a professional copyist who knew no Old English (an…
Sources and analogues
Neither identified sources nor analogues for Beowulf can be definitively proven, but many conjectures have been made. These are important in helping historians understand the Beowulf manuscript, as possible source-texts or influences would suggest time-frames of composition, geographic boundaries within which it could be composed, or range (both spatial and temporal) of influence (i.e. when it was "popular" and where its "popularity" took it). The poem has been relate…
Dialect
Beowulf predominantly uses the West Saxon dialect of Old English, like other Old English poems copied at the time. However, it also uses many other linguistic forms; this leads some scholars to believe that it has endured a long and complicated transmission through all the main dialect areas. It retains a complicated mix of Mercian, Northumbrian, Early West Saxon, Anglian, Kentish and Late West Saxon dialectical forms.