What is epic poetry Epic poetry is a

What is epic poetry? Epic poetry is a form of poetry that dates back to the Anglo Saxon period.

What are the tipical features of epic poetry? § It is calebrate the deeds of heroes § It tells about the valouse of a nation § It used a stile useful to have the people remember §It is generaly an oral form of poetry

In epic poetry it is worth to considering: § Caracterization §Setting (time and place) §The use of language

The most famouse epic poem of Anglo Saxon literature is : Beowulf The name beowulf recall the animal wolf.

Beowulf is a long epic poem of over 3000 lines probably composed during the 7 th century. The only surviving manouscript of the poem dates from the 10 th century and is written is Anglo Saxon. It is translate by Seamus Heany into a modern English in 2000.

Story of Beowulf tells about the brave actions of a mythical hero: Beowulf is strong, loyal, generous and corageous, he seems like a divinity. He was the mightiest man on earth. He goes to Denmark to fight and kill two supernatural creatures: Grendel and his mother who entered the king Hrotgar’s hall at night and slaughtered his tanes. When the country is plagued by a dragon , the hero kills the enemy but is also mortally wounded.

Reading the poem Beowulf you can understand the code of values of the society is organized according to a hierarchic structure: §King §Vassal §Warriors §Villains, seamen and sailors. The protagonist - Beowulf - is a courageous adventurous ", a royal vassal, tied to his king by loyalty and kinship. Was based on: §Courage §Loyalty of the followers to their king §Generosity of the king towards them

Debate of oral tradition Academics and critics are unsure whether the poem was composed and written as it is know today or if it gradually grew and took shape as it was trasmitted orally from generation to generation.

Form and metre • An Old English poem such as Beowulf is very different from modern poetry. Anglo-Saxon poets typically used: • alliterative verse, a form of verse that uses alliteration, that is the repetition of the initial consonant sound in two or more words in a line or consecutive lines. syllables the number of Syllables are not important per line. • rhythm was based on the number of stressed syllables , two in each half line.

kennings Kennings are also a significant technique in Beowulf. They are evocative poetic descriptions of everyday things, often created to fill the alliterative requirements of the metre. There are many kennings in Beowulf, and the device is typical of much of classic poetry in Old English, which is heavily formulaic. The poem also makes extensive use of elided metaphors.