Chapter 2: Old English

Old English (Anglo Saxon) Period (600-1485)

iterature is essentially a reflection of the life of the people who makes it. Realizing this, in order to understand the history of certain literature, it is essential to know something about the people who have produced it. So, it is necessary to start the survey of the beginning of English literature by perceiving the English composition. The first settlers of the British island were the Celts, a branch of Indo-Europe who had lived in Western EuropeItaly, France, and Germanyas early as the sixth or seventh century B.C. Towards the end of the fifth century B.C., the Franks, a group of origin tribes from Germany and Italy conquered the Celts. Some of the Celts stayed in Western Europe and were absorbed by the Franks and some other migrated and occupied the British island and called themselves the Celts of England or Britons. In 43 AD, under the reign of Claudius, the Roman Empire conquered and colonized the entire British island except Scotland. Under the Romans rule, Britain was converted into Christianity. The Roman built roads, villas, bath and made London as an important trading center. In 410 the Roman legion in occupation of Britain were withdrawn for service at home. The island was left nothing behind, except a few roads and buildings. Celts of England were unable to resist the invasions of Angles, Saxons and Jutes who came from the Northern Germany and were the same kindred of Teutonic. During the invasions, some of

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Chapter 2: Old English

the Britons were exterminated and other retreated to Cornwall, Wales, and some other migrated to France Bretagne, in north peninsula of French. The Angles who firstly settled along the eastern coast of the island became the most powerful. They named of the whole country Angle-Land or England. The language they used, called Anglo Saxon, was also very dominant. Later on, the language was developed to be the Middle English (11001500) and the Modern English (1500now). The Englishman of today is essentially Teutonic in character and temper, while Celtic strain is stronger in Scotland and is dominant in Wales, because the Wales are the only thorough descendant of Celtic. The three invaders (Angles, Saxons and Jutes) were formerly barbarians who worshipped heathen gods. Some of the names of the days are put from their gods name, e.g. Wednesday from Wooden, Thursday from Thor, Tuesday after Tive, and Friday after Friga. Although they brought with them the common Germanic metre; but of their earliest oral poetry, probably used for panegyric, magic, and short narrative, little or none survives. Since the Celtic neighbors of Wales hated them too much, they did not Christianize them. However, in the 7th century, a branch of the missionary under St. Augustinus from Rome arrived in Kent. The ruler, King Aethelberht I of Kent, embraced Christianity in 597 and allowed them to build their first cathedral in Canterbury. The ruler also permitted the missionaries preach freely. A generation later, the north of England was Christianized by the Irish mission under St. Patrick and Columba. The missionaries spread not only Christianity among the people, but also introduced the Roman alphabet to replace the rune, or symbolic cuts and scratches on woods and stones. This was a very important step for the development of English literature. With this new facility, people could record the oral stories into written works. This gave us the old continental Anglo-Saxon stories, like Beowulf. It also opened the way for the production of English literature on English soil, like the writing of Caedmon (a monk in Whitby monastery who wrote Paraphrase, a work containing stories of Genesis, Exodus, and some parts of Daniel). Moreover, the Roman alphabet enabled the establishment of centers of learning, i.e. Canterbury in the South, York and Yarrow in the North. They became great centers of Christianity and secular learning in the 7th and 8th centuries. There were three great scholars who played a great importance in Europe at that time: Theodore of Yarrow, Arch Bishop of Canterbury, and Allevin of York. Allevin was the one invited by Charlemagne to educate the people of his empire (French). The glorious period of English learning did not last long, for England was invaded in the end of the 8th century by Norman or Scandinavian from Norway, Sweden and Denmark. The Englishmen called them Danes. They were pirates and plunders who destroyed churches, monasteries, libraries and schools. Soon most of the whole England almost over-run, except the South where Alfred the Great, the greatest king of the Wessex, made a stout resistance. At the battle of Etahnadune in 878, Alfred defeated the Danish leader, Gutrin, and converted him to Christianity. The Danes left the South and West to Alfred and
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4 Alfred the Great

Chapter 2: Old English

retained the North and East of England which were called The Lock Dane Law. King Alfred codified laws, built up a strong army and navy to oppose Viking raiders and invited scholars from Europe and even Wales to the capital city, Winchester, to assist him in his revival of learning. The most important work of his age is The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a kind of national history. Alfred instructed a list to be made of the main events of each year. It is believed to have been partly written by him. One of the results of the list is the history of England from the time of the Roman occupation to the Norman invasion. Old English Literature The language of the earliest English literature came from many different places. The literature itself and its subjects were in fluenced by different countries, and by different places, peoples and cultures, but the question of what is English about English literature is still a big question today, as more and more writers use the English language. Thee subjects of the first literature are subjec ts that are familiar even now: war, religion, personal sadness and happiness. As it was aforementioned above, it was the Christian monks in the monasteries who first wrote down the words of the early literature they were the only people who could read and write, and for many centuries they guarded culture and learning. But only a few fragments remain of all the writing that the monks kept. They reflect the two cultures, of Christianity and of heroic actions, with the occasional personal voice coming throu gh. Most of the texts from this period are anonymous, but one or two names are attached to texts. The very first fragment is called Caedmon's Hymn [hymn = religious song]. There is a legend that Caedmon, an illiterate shepherd in Northumbria, in the far north of England, was inspired in a dream to compose a short hymn in praise of the creation. So, his Hymn is the first song of praise in English literature. Of course, the monks at nearby Whitby soon heard of this poetic shepherd, and in about 670, Caedm on entered their monastery, and his short poem entered history: Nu we sculon herigean heofonrices Weard, Meotodes meahte ond his modgepanc Now we must praise of heaven's kingdom the Keeper Of the Lord the power and his wisdom Two features of most Old English poetry are immediately clear: the gap in the middle of each line, called the caesura, which modern editors use to show the rhythm of the verse, and the alliteration (the letter h in the first line). Both of these influence the sound of the poem, reminding us that the poetry was spoken long before it was written down. Another name from the early medieval period is Deor, but we know nothing about him. We do not know the author of the poem Deors Lament but the narrator, Deor, is a writer and singer of songs who has no job, and he thinks of other unfortunate men, returning always to the refrain:

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Chapter 2: Old English

ps ofereode; pisses sw mg. Of that there was an end; so there may be of this. This is not only a poem about a man who is searching for work, but one of the first texts to talk of the passing of time, and of personal suffering. Deors Lament is probably from the beginning of the eighth century, many years after Caedmon. Another important name from these centuries is Cynewulf, whose major works are entitled The Christ, Juliana, The Life of Saint, and The Dream of the Rood. He may also have come from Northumbria, and two of the texts he wrote are found in a book called the Exeter Book, where Deors Lament is also written. The Exeter Book, and a similar book written in England but now kept in Vercelli in Itaiy, the Vercelli Book, are among the few examples which remain of the work of monks in preserving texts from the Dark Ages. Cynewulfs four poems are all religious in tone, and celebrate the li ves of saints and other similar topics. Among them, The Dream of the Rood, is the most interesting. The word rood means cross in Old English. In the poem the cross speaks of itself about its adventures from the time it is cut off from a tree in the forest until it receives Jesus Christ who is crucified on it. This poem is found not only in the Vercelli Book, but also on a standing stone in Ruthwell in southern Scotland. The poem is also important for two reasons. First, it is the first of a kind of poem whi ch became very popular in later literature, the dream-vision. Second, it shows a great range of words to describe the cross of Christ, and a range of images which later poems developed. BEOWULF AND LONG POEMS Several poems are preserved in the Exeter Book. Two other personal but anonymous poems are: The Wanderer and The Seafarer [sailor]. These are elegiac poemsthe speaker is always alone, and his memory becomes very important. They are memories of old legends, old battles, and old heroes. Although we kno w very little about the period, we do find ideas and themes which are common in all literature, and memories are a major part of the writing. The main heroic text is called Beowulf the name of the hero of the long anonymous poem. It describes events which are part of the periods memory: invasions and battles, some historic, some legendary. The epic is set around the sixth century, but was probably not written down until the eighth century. Beomulf is the first hero in English literature, the man who can win battles and give safety to his people over a long period of time. Beowulf, which is about 3,000 lines, is a story about a brave young man from southern Sweden. Beowulf goes to help Hrothgar, King of the Danes,who cannot defend himself or his people against a terrible monster called Grendel. One night Beowulf attacks Grendel and pulls off the arm of the monster. Grendel returns to the lake where he lives, but dies there. Beowulf is then attacked by the mother of Grendel and Beowulf follows her to the bottom of the lake and kills her, too. Fifty years later, Beowulf has to defend his own people against a dragon , which breathes fire. Although he kills the dragon, Beowulf himself is injured in the fight and

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Chapter 2: Old English

dies. The poem has a sad ending, but the poem is a statement of heroic values and Beowulf dies a hero. Here Wiglaf reminds Beowulf of his greatest days: Leofa Biowulf, lst eall tela, swaa Du on geoguDfeore geara gecwde, pt Du ne alte be De lifigendum dom gedreosan; Beloved1 Beowulf, keep well the vow 2 that you swore long ago in the days of your youth, not to allow your glory 3 to diminish4 as long as you lived. 1 2 3 4 dear promise fame get smaller When Beowulf dies Wiglaf has to continue the example for the next generation. The story of Beowulf is part myth, part history, but the hero is remembered as the man who can win battles and give safety to his people over a long period of time. Questions of the passing of time through the generations, and of what it means to be a human being, are central. The Battle of Maldon is another long poem about battles and heroes. But it is much more factual, describing a real battle rather than telling a fictional story of war. Both The Battle of Maldon and Beowulf are written in rich and powerful language, full of new words, new tones and new rhythms, and with many images of light, colour, and action.

A page from the heroic poem Beowulf. This page was written in about the year AD 1000
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Chapter 2: Old English

PROSE Many of the earliest books were histories, rather than imaginative writings. They give us a lot of the information we have of this period. The major figure of this era is Bede, known as the Venerable Bede, a monk, theologian, historian, and chronologist who lived between 673 and 735. He wrote many books, mostly about the Bible, but he best known today for his Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (Ecclesiastical History of the English People). Bede's works fall into three groups: grammatical and scientific, scriptural commentary, and historical and biographical. His earliest works include treatises on spelling, hymns, figures of speech, verse, and epigrams. His first treatise on chronology, De temporibus (On Times), with a brief chronicle attached, was written in 703. In 725 he completed a greatly amplified version, De temporum ratione (On the Reckoning of Time), with a much longer chronicle. Both these books were mainly concerned with the reckoning of Easter. His earliest biblical commentary was probably that on the Revelation to John (703?709); in this and many similar works, his aim was to transmit and explain relevant passages from the Fathers of the Church. Although his interpretations were mainly allegorical, treating much of the biblical text as symbolic of deeper meanings, he used some critical judgment and attempted to rationalize discrepancies. Among his most notable are his verse (705716) and prose (before 721) lives of St. Cuthbert, bishop of Lindisfarne. These works are uncritical and abound with accounts of miracles; a more exclusively historical work is Historia abbatum (c. 725; Lives of the Abbots). In 731/732 Bede completed his Historia ecclesiastical. Divided into five books, it recorded events in Britain from the raids by Julius Caesar (5554 BC) to the arrival in Kent (AD 597) of St. Augustine. For his sources he claimed the authority of ancient letters, the traditions of our forefathers, and his own knowledge of contemporary events. Bede's Historia ecclesiastica leaves gaps tantalizing to secular historians. Although overloaded with the miraculous, it is the work of a scholar anxious to assess the accuracy of his sources and to record only what he regarded as trustworthy evidence. It remains an indispensable source for some of the facts and much of the feel of early Anglo-Saxon history. As it has been explained above, Alfred was not only a great king but also a great literary figure. His reign, from 871899 was a time of great literary production. He is usually regarded as the founder of English prose. Prompted by his desire to educate his people, he himself translated that great work of Bede to vernacular. He also ordered many translations of religious and historical texts. This helped to bring the West Saxon dialect into a strong position as the language of literature and history. Another great figure in the prose of Old English literature is Aelfric, a monk from Winchester in the south of England. He was an important translator as well as a writer. His works include Catholic Homiliees [homilies = religious talk] ( 9 9 0 - 2 ) , and Lives of the Saints (993-8). He uses real spoken English, and all the features of Old English literature are found in his work. As the greatest figure in the prose of this period, he brought excellence of style into the language, and wide knowledge to all his works. The themes of Old English literature are security, both for the individual and society, and in religious faith. This literature gave comfort, or provided reflection.
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Chapter 2: Old English

Usually the poems were sung in the hall of a castle, and these songs and poems were passed on from generation to generation before they were written down. Thus, the spoken tradition led to the first tradition of written literature. At the same time, Old English was beginning to develop into a different language, called Middle English, closer to the nglish we know today.

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