A Brief History of English Literature

Beowulf is the earliest surviving epic poem written in a modern European language. It was written in Old English sometime before the tenth century A.D. The poem describes the adventures of Beowulf, a Scandinavian warrior of the sixth century. Beowulf is described as a perfect hero who fights for his people and gets rid of

The Anglo-Saxon poem, Beowulf, was originally told orally then later was written down anonymously in the Old English language. It is not known who or whom wrote this poem down. What we do know is that Beowulf is the oldest surviving epic poem of the English language; the original has suffered irreparable damage in a fire. “The poem dates back to 1000 AD”

With more than three thousand lines, Beowulf is the longest epic poem written in Old English.( “Beowulf.” The British Library, The British Library, 9 Dec. 2014, www.bl.uk/collection-items/beowulf). Beowulf has three major battles. His first major battle occurs when he travels to the land of the Danes from his home in Geats after hearing that the King of the Danes, Hrothgar and his people are being attacked on a nightly basis by a monster named Grendel. This has been going on for twelve years at the great mead hall that Hrothgar built as a place where the Danes meet to drink, eat, sing and enjoy themselves. Grendel is a demon who is a descendant of Cain. Hearing the music and noise that the Danes make angers Grendel who is an outcast. No one is able to defeat Grendel.

Heroes are forgotten, but legends never die. England’s “ mother poem” was written by an anonymous Christian monk during the Anglo-Saxon period. It was composed circa 700 A.D. and 1,000 A.D. Beowulf is a poem that shares Christian and Pagan references. Consisting of three literary devices of imagery, tone, and style , thus making it the “ mother poem” of England.

13. ‘01 Discuss the political and social consequences of the Protestant Reformation in the first half of the sixteenth century.

Beowulf is an epic poem whose earliest surviving copy was written in 1000 A.D. The story consists of three thousand one hundred and eighty two lines that follow the life of the title character. The original author of the epic poem is unknown mainly because it started as a verbal tale passed down orally through the ages. Finally someone wrote it down in a document now called the Nowell Codex. The epic tale is centered on Beowulf and his actions in an adventure to repay a debt owed by his father to Hrothgar, a Danish king. A gargantuan monster that is terrorizing Hrothgar’s mead hall is Beowulf’s target and Beowulf sails across the sea to aid his father’s

The Protestant Reformation was an event which occurred within the Catholic Church during the 16th century. This Reformation was prompted by Martin Luther’s ‘95 theses’ which were a list of 95 criticisms towards the church. The Reformation formed another branch of Christianity called Protestantism which is comprised of many different Christian denominations including Anglican, Presbyterian, and Lutheran. The Protestant Reformation is considered a vital part of the Christian Church’s history and in order to explain why, this essay will look at three key parts of the reformation: the events which lead to Luther nailing his 95 theses on the door of the church, the event itself, and the consequences on the Catholic Church, the Protestant Church, and Western Society.

Beowulf is one of the oldest epic poems from the 6th century from Scandinavia. Beowulf’s story was originally told in old English during the years of 500 to 1100. Beowulf’s legacy lives on by being retold and read about all his greatest battles. All of his battles where great and he fought all these with confidence and truth.

Beowulf, an epic poem, was written by an anonymous author who described the Anglo-Saxon era. During this era, Anglo-Saxon heroes were classified as courageous, generous and faithful. In the poem, the character Beowulf is classified as an Anglo-Saxon hero. People of the Anglo-Saxon era spoke what is now known as Old English.

American literature 1865-1914 is an American literary time period that began in 1865 and ended in 1914. This time period was flourished by three distinct features and the first of these features is: The Aftermath of the Civil War. It is estimated that a total of 620,000 Americans were killed in the Civil War, and for what? At the time, we were an America that was divided by one huge issue that ran supreme and it was slavery and the unequal treatment of African Americans. At this time the nation needed to figure a way to unite the North who were against slavery and the South who were for slavery. As Abraham Lincoln says in our Bedford Anthology of American Literature: “No one man has authority to give up the rebellion for any other man, we simply must begin with, and mould from, disorganized and discordant elements,” (4). He is saying that we must not start a new, but rather we need to start from what we had and mould and shape our country into one. Prior to the Civil War, America was not a whole, it was ruled by states’ rights and was divided on countless issues, and when referring to America, people said the United States are… It wasn’t until under President Lincoln, and concluding the Civil War that the United States began to be referred to as the United States is.. Honest Abe, brought our nation together as one, but the racial tension that remained was something one man can never fix. The literature around this time period was dominated by ideas and feelings circled

The intent of this paper is to evaluate the distinct character and quality of the expressions of the Protestant Reformation. This paper will discuss Lutheran Reformation, The Anabaptist, and The English Puritans as well as the Catholic Reformation also known as the Counter Reformation. It is the hope that after the reader has had the opportunity to view each of the characteristics and the expressions of each of the reformation the reader will have a better understanding of each and will be able to articulate the differences of each.

Beowulf is one of the most important pieces of English literature. The epic poem is said to be a great representation of the Anglo-Saxon era. Written by an anonymous monk between 800 and 1000 A.D., Beowulf displays Anglo-Saxon practices, beliefs, values, and religion. Beowulf is not only a fascinating story, but also a primary source for the time period. Serving as a primary source document, scholars can have a deep understanding of the Anglo-Saxon culture. They can learn about the Old English language, their customs and beliefs, and what they valued. This is why Beowulf is one of the most important pieces of English literature.

 We must dismiss, of course, from mind the notion that Beowulf is a “narrative poem,” that it tells a tale or intends to tell a tale sequentially. The poem “lacks steady advance”: so Klaeber heads a critical section in his edition.

“We could keep on arguing for a hundred years and it wouldn’t get us anywhere! Until you can get rid of my verse I will not admit defeat.” (Documents on the Continental Reformation, p.97) When people are liberated with the power to think for themselves and own their own ideas, differences in opinion will occur. When we look at the Protestant Reformation we will see that key individuals such as Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli, even though they are protesting similar things, develop differences upon the way, especially in the way they interpret Scripture. These differences, in any movement, will ultimately affect the outcome and the development of the Protestant movement that started in 1517 with Luther. This essay aims to examine these differences between Luther and Zwingli and find out how the Protestant movement was affected by their differing opinions. Firstly, Luther and Zwingli’s reformations will be observed individually and what they each stood for and then we will discuss their major differences and the influence they had on the Protestant movement.

The Anglo-Saxon poem “Beowulf” takes the reader back into a time long past; one of family, fate, and fealty. Beowulf offers a glimpse of a society struggling between two different paths, one path being the assimilation into the new Christian traditions and the other is the fast fading past of glorified warriors and family ties. In the poem, the reader can see the attempts of the poet to convey the values and stories of Judeo-Christianity in a society of Anglo-Saxon paganism. The poet illustrates the infiltration of the Christian teachings and how they might have appeared within the lives of the people through the literary devices of symbolism, allegory, and allusion.