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Old English (Anglo-Saxon) Period (450-1066): Major English Class 11
Old English Period
Anglo-Saxon Literature or Old English Literature
The old English language is also called Anglo-Saxon literature. It was the earliest form of English. It was spoken from about 600 to 1100 AD. The greatest old English poem is "Beowulf," which belongs to the 7th century. It is a story of about 3,000 lines, and it is the first English epic.
In this epic, a brave young man named Beowulf fights against a terrible creature, Grendel. He kills the creature and saves Hrothgar, king of the Danes, and his men. In later days, Beowulf, now king of his people, has to defend his country against a fire-breathing creature. He kills the creature, but is badly wounded and dies. This epic ends with a sorrowful description of Beowulf's funeral fire. This old English poetry gives us an interesting picture of life in those old days. Among other old English poems are Genesis A, Genesis B, Exodus, Daniel, Christ, Satan, and so on. Genesis A is dull and little more than old history taken from the Bible and put into poor old English verse. Genesis B deals with the beginning of the world and the fall of the angels. The other three are taken straight from the Bible.
We know the names of two old English poets, Caedmon and Cynewulf. We know about the life of Caedmon, but nothing about his work. But we know nothing about the life of Cynewulf, who has written four poems: Juliana, The Fates of the Apostles, Christ, and Elene. These poems are religious and probably written in the second half of the 8th century. Some other old English poems include Andreas, Guthiac, The Dream of the Rood, and so on. Old English lyrics include Deor's Complaint, The Husband's Message, The Wanderer, and The Wife's Complaint.
Old English prose came later than old English verse. The most interesting piece of old English prose is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, an early history of the country. King Alfred contributed to the old English prose by translating several Latin books into Old English. Aelfric employed the best prose style in old English. His works, "Homilies" and "Lives of Saints," were mostly religious.
Anglo-Saxon epic "Beowulf" Or Beowulf
"Beowulf" is the greatest old English or Anglo-Saxon epic that belongs to the 7th century. It is composed of 3,000 lines, and its author is unknown. In this epic, a brave young man, Beowulf of southern Sweden, goes for the help of Hrothgar, king of the Danes. A terrible creature named Grendel, who lives in a lake, visits Hrothgar's great hall, Heorot, and kills and eats the people there. One night, Beowulf fights bravely against the creature and kills it. Its mother again visits the hall in search of revenge, but Beowulf chases her and kills her at the bottom of the lake.
In later days, Beowulf becomes the king of his people. He has to defend his country against a fire-breathing creature. Though he fights bravely and kills the creature, he is badly wounded and dies. This epic ends with a sorrowful description of Beowulf's funeral fire.
This epic gives us an interesting picture of life in those old days. It tells us of the fierce fights, brave deeds, and suffering of the people. Each line of the epic has two main beats, and there is no rhyme. Instead of rhyme, each half line is joined to the other by alliteration. Things are described indirectly and in combinations of words.
Old English Prose:
Old English prose came later than old English verse. But some early prose works—for example, the oldest "Laws"—were written in prose at the beginning of the 7th century. The most interesting piece of old English prose is the 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle', which is about the early history of England. King Alfred had a great influence on this work. He also translated many Latin books into Old English and contributed a lot to improving the education of his people.
Aelfric was another important Anglo-Saxon prose writer whose works, such as 'Homilies' and 'Lives of Saints', were religious. His prose style and alliterative sentences were the best in Old English. He wrote out the meaning of the first seven books of the Bible in Old English.
Old English / Anglo-Saxon Verse / Poetry
The old English language is also called Anglo-Saxon literature. It was the earliest form of English. It was spoken from about 600 to 1100 AD. The greatest old English poem is "Beowulf," which belongs to the 7th century. It is a story of about 3,000 lines, and it is the first English epic.
In this epic, a brave young man, Beowulf, fights against a terrible creature, Grendel. He kills the creature and saves Hrothgar, king of the Danes, and his men. In later days, Beowulf, now king of his people, has to defend his country against a fire-breathing creature. He kills the creature, but is badly wounded and dies. This epic ends with a sorrowful description of Beowulf's funeral fire. This old English poetry gives us an interesting picture of life in those old days. Among other old English poems are Genesis A, Genesis B, Exodus, Daniel, Christ, Satan, and so on. Genesis A is dull and little more than old history taken from the Bible and put into poor old English verse. Genesis B deals with the beginning of the world and the fall of the angels. The other three are taken straight from the Bible.
We know the names of two old English poets, Caedmon and Cynewulf. We know about the life of Caedmon, but nothing about his work. But we know nothing about the life of Cynewulf, who has written four poems: Juliana, The Fates of the Apostles, Christ, and Elene. These poems are religious and probably written in the second half of the 8th century. Some other old English poems include Andreas, Guthiac, and The
Dream of the Rood, and so on. Old English lyrics include Deor's Complaint, The Husband's Message, The Wanderer, and The Wife's Complaint.
SHORT NOTES
Old English (Anglo-Saxon) Period (450-1066)
Beowulf:
This heroic epic poem, "Beowulf," is the first English epic poem that was written in the 7th century. This is the greatest Old English or Anglo-Saxon epic poem. This epic poem has been composed in 3000 lines, and its writer is unknown. This epic has been composed without rhymes. Each line of this epic poem has two main beats. There is the use of alliteration to join half-lines. The things are discussed quite indirectly and in the combination of words.
The story of this epic poem presents the story of a brave warrior named Beowulf and his glorious tasks. He is the prince of Geatland in southern Sweden. He comes to Denmark to save King Hrothgar and his people from the lake monster Grendel. Grendel often visits King Hrothgar's great hall, Heorot, to kill the people of Denmark.
One night, Beowulf waits alone for Grendel in the hall, secretly. When Grendel arrives there, Beowulf fights with him quite courageously. In the terrible fight, Beowulf pulls his arm off. Grendel escapes from there and hides in his lake. He dies there. Grendel's mother becomes quite furious and comes to the hall to take revenge. Beowulf fights with Grendel's mother quite bravely this time too. Finally, Grendel's mother also escapes being defeated. But Beowulf chases her to the bottom of the lake and kills her there. King Hrothgar becomes so pleased with Beowulf and rewards him with lots of treasures. Victorious Beowulf moves to his native place, Geatland, and becomes king of the Geats. He ruled there for 50 years, being a careful king of his people. After 50 years, he fights again with a terrible, fire-emitting dragon. He fights with the dragon for the safety of his people. In the fight, he kills the dragon but gets badly wounded and dies. He dies for the welfare of his people. The poem ends with a sorrowful description of the Beowulf funeral.
Anglo-Saxon:
The Old English language is also called Anglo-Saxon. It was the earliest form of English. This Old English was spoken from about 600–1100 A.D. At that time, different invaders from Germany came and settled in Britain. The Angles settled in the eastern region and the Saxons in the south and west. These two tribes contributed a lot to the development of the Anglo-Saxon language and culture. During this period, Latin books were translated into Old English, and people could read and understand them.
Old English Lyrics:
One of the important Old English lyrics is 'Deor's Complaint' in which Deor is a singer who has lost his lord's favour. So, he complains, but he tries to comfort himself by remembering other sorrows of the world. The other old English lyrics include "The Husband's Message', 'The Wanderer, and 'The Wife's Complaint'.
Genesis A and Genesis B:
These are two important Old English religious poems. Genesis A is long, dull, and little more than old history taken from the Bible and put into old English verse. Genesis B is short, and it belongs to the beginning of the world and the fall of the angels. It is a good piece of writing in which the poet has described God's punishment of Satan and the place of punishment for evil in Hell.
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ALL NOTES OF COMPULSORY ENGLISH 11
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