History of English

Culture
         
and Literature
Lecture Notes
  October 5th
  
Periods of English Lit.
Old English

+ The departure of the Romans in 410 left the British population open to the
inroads of the invaders from the north.
+ 55 BC JULIUS CEASER-407
+ 450-1100  Old English- Anglo Saxons
The language of Beowulf and Alfred the Great
Influenced by Celtic, Norse, Latin and German.
Amalgamation of languages.  
Transitions happen during this period. Linguistic, cultural and political
  
+ The traditional start of the Old English period is 449. This is the date
given by Bede, one of the most prominent scholars of Anglo-Saxon
England, in his Latin Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum (“The
ecclesiastical history of the English people”, completed in 731).
+ Old English is the language of the Germanic inhabitants
of England, dated from the time of their settlement in

  the 5th century to the end of the 11th century. 

+ Old English itself has three dialects: West Saxon,
Kentish, and Anglian. West Saxon was the language of
Alfred the Great (871-901) and therefore achieved the
greatest prominence
+ In the course of time, Old English underwent various
changes such as the loss of final syllables, which also
led to simplification of the morphology. Upon the
conquest of England by the Normans in 1066, numerous
words came to be adopted from French and,
subsequently, also from Latin.
Language/ Linguistics 
+ In theory, Old English was a "synthetic" language, meaning inflectional endings signalled
grammatical structure and word order was rather free, as for example in Latin; modern English,
by contrast, is an "analytic" language, meaning word order is much more constrained.
+ Nouns: cynn 'kin', hand, god, man(n), word.
+ Pronouns: hē, ic 'I', mē, self, wē.
+ Verbs: beran 'bear', cuman 'come', dyde 'did', sittan 'sit', wæs 'was'.
+ Adjectives: fæst 'fast', gōd 'good', hālig 'holy', rīce 'rich', wīd 'wide'.
+ Adverbs: ær 'ere', alle 'all', nū 'now', tō 'too', ðǣr 'there'.
+ Prepositions: æfter 'after', for, in, on, under.
+ Articles: ðæt 'that', ðis 'this'.
+ Conjunctions: and, gif 'if'.
  •AT
+   the same period :
+ •Augustine, a monk,  in 597 Christianity- sent by Pope Gregory I
+ •King of Kent allows him to settle down and convert people to
Christianity.
+ •King marries a Christian woman from France (Princess Bertha) and
he converts. Many nobles follow him.
+ •Augustine establishes monasteries.
+ •Romans originally brought Christianity to Britain
+ After Romans left, many pagans returns to North&South 
King Alfred/ Beawulf
Monks bring Roman alphabet which had a tremendous impact on
English language. 
King Alfred is a significant figure who was a great military man. Defats
the Vikings. Builds a navy. Unify all the people in the southern region. 
Educated people through monasteries- vernacular language used 
Wanted English to be the Standard 
  
+ •The two most important events in the history of England took place
before the Norman Conquest (Beginning of middle English). It was in
the period that the Anglo-Saxons and Jutes came to England
marauding bands and made English history possible. 
+ •The second great event is the conversion to Christianity.
+ •Most English poetry in the early Anglo-Saxon period is associated
with these two events.
    

+ •Our knowledge of literature of this period depends on FOUR groups

of manuscripts. 
The manuscripts collected by Sir Robert Cotton- Beowulf 
The Exeter book given to Exeter Cathedral by Bishop Leofric- seven
short peoms of great human interest: DEOR, WULF AND
EADWACER, THE WIFE’S LAMENT, THE HUSBAND’S
MESSAGE, THE RUIN, THE WANDERER, AND THE SEAFARER.
Vercelli Book found in Milan in 18222
Manuscript in the Bodleian Library at Oxford given by Dutch scholar
Francis Dujon
BEOWULF 

+ •The Angles brought the story of Beowulf with them to

England in the sixth century about 700 A.D. This was
about 70 years after the death of Mohammad (puh), and
in the same age as the beginning of the great Tang
Dynasty  in China.  The manuscript was written down
three hundred years later around 1000A.D.
+ •The story has nothing to do with England, but
Scandinavia.
+ Tradition of heroic and epic poem!
+ What is epic?
The date of the poem's composition is
 uncertain, but probably lies in the 7th
or 8th century on the basis of its
language. While the story in its
legendary monster aspects is not
factual, it is considered quite reliable
in its historical details, for example
concerning 6th century armor,
weaponry, burial customs, and the
names of Germanic tribal leaders. Set
in a factual background, it might
almost be considered historical
fiction.
Literary Style of Beowulf
+ In the manuscript the work appears -- at first glance -- to be prose. However, analysis
quickly shows that it is composed in Germanic alliterative verse, where
[reconstructed] lines consist of two sections and have four major stresses, of which the
third is most important. They are marked by alliteration; the consonants must be the
same to alliterate, but the vowels may alliterate with one another as in lines 3, 6, and
so on.
+ Extensive and rich usage of vocabulary
+ Pagan vs Christian values
+ Dramatic shift
+ https://lrc.la.utexas.edu/eieol/engol/10
Meadhall/ The Story 
+ The poem is set in Scandinavia. Beowulf, a hero of the Geats,
comes to the aid of Hroðgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead
hall in Heorot has been under attack by a monster known
as Grendel. After Beowulf slays him, Grendel’s mother attacks the
hall and is then also defeated. Victorious, Beowulf goes home to
Geatland (Götaland in modern Sweden) and later becomes king of
the Geats. After a period of fifty years has passed, Beowulf defeats
a dragon, but is fatally wounded in the battle. After his death, his
attendants bury him in a tumulus, a burial mound, in Geatland.
At the center of the poem are the three symbolic
  
fights each represents human psyche. The poem
begins with a history of the Danish kings,
starting with Shild (whose funeral is described in
the Prologue) and leading up to the reign of the
current king Hrothgar, Shild’s great-
grandson. Hrothgar is well loved by his people
and successful in war. He builds a lavish hall,
called Herot (or Heorot), to house his vast army,
and when the hall is finished the Danish soldiers
gather under its roof to celebrate.
+ However, provoked by the singing and
  carousing of Hrothgar’s followers,
Grendel, a monster in human shape who
lives at the bottom of a nearby swamp,
appears at the hall late one night and kills
thirty of the warriors in their sleep. For
the next twelve years the fear of Grendel's
potential fury casts a shadow over the
lives of the Danes. Hrothgar and his
advisers can think of nothing to appease
the monster’s anger.
   

+ Beowulf, prince of the Geats, hears about Hrothgar’s troubles, and

gathers fourteen of his bravest warriors, and sets sail from his home in
southern Sweden. The Geats are greeted by the members of Hrothgar’s
court, and Beowulf boasts to the king of his previous successes as a
warrior, particularly his success in fighting sea monsters. Hrothgar
welcomes the arrival of the Geats, hoping that Beowulf will live up to
his reputation. During the banquet that follows Beowulf‘s arrival,
Unferth, a Danish soldier, voices his doubts about Beowulf‘s past
accomplishments, and Beowulf, in turn, accuses Unferth of killing his
brothers. Before retiring for the night, Hrothgar promises Beowulf
great treasures if he meets with success against the monster.
+ That night, Grendel  appears at Herot, and Beowulf, true to his word,
wrestles the monster bare-handed. He tears off the monster’s arm at
  the shoulder, but Grendel escapes, only to die soon afterward at the
bottom of the snake-infested swamp where he and his mother live. The
Danish warriors, who had fled the hall in fear, return singing songs in
praise of Bewoulf's triumph and performing heroic stories in his
honour. Hrothgar rewards Beowulf with a great store of treasures and,
after another banquet, the warriors of both the Geats and the Danes
retire for the night.
+ Revenge: Grendel's mother plans
  a revenge
   for her son’s death. She
arrives at the hall when all the
warriors are sleeping and carries off
Esher, Hrothgar’s chief adviser.
Beowulf, rising to the occasion,
offers to dive to the bottom of the
lake, find the monster’s dwelling
place, and destroy her.  
+ They return to Hrothgar’s court, where the Danish king is duly
thankful, but warns Beowulf against the dangers of pride and the
  fleeting nature of fame and power. The Danes and Geats prepare a
great feast in celebration of the death of the monsters and the next
morning the Geats hurry to their boat, anxious to begin the trip home.
Beowulf bids farewell to Hrothgar and tells the old king that if the
Danes ever again need help he will gladly come to their assistance.
Hrothgar presents Beowulf with more treasures and they embrace,
emotionally, like father and son.
+ In the second part of the poem, set many years later, Higlac is dead,
  and
  Beowulf  has been king of the Geats for some fifty years. One day,
a thief steals a jewelled cup from a sleeping dragon, and the dragon
avenges his loss by flying through the night burning down houses,
including Beowulf‘s own hall and throne. Beowulf goes to the cave
where the dragon lives, vowing to destroy it single-handed. He is an
old man now, however, and his strength is not as great as it was when
he fought against Grendel. During the battle, Beowulf breaks his
sword against the dragon’s side and the dragon, enraged, engulfs
  
+ All of Beowulf‘s followers
flee except Wiglaf, who rushes
through the flames to assist
the aging warrior. Wiglaf
stabs the dragon with his
sword, and Beowulf, in a final
act of courage, cuts the dragon
in half with his knife.