Beowulf Story Map

Beowulf Story Map

Poetry Elements

Since Beowulf is an epic poem, there are various poetry elements present throughout.

simile~ "all my soldiers should be as he was, their hearts as brave and as wise!" (page 54)

imagery~ "windy cliffs...where mist steams like black clouds" (page 55)

rhyme~ "they could see water crawling with snakes, fantastic serpents swimming in the boiling lake" (page 57)

contrast~ "no hole in the ground, no towering tree" (page 56)

personification~ "Hrothgar's helmet would defend him" (page 58)

Kenning

A kenning is a metaphorical phrase or compound word used to name a person, place or thing indirectly.

Whale-road- A term for the sea or ocean

Shepherd of Evil - This is often used for Grendel

Meghan Howard, Danielle Shay, Remi Shea, Camden Fraser, & Rumen Dzhulev

Epithets

An epithet is an adjective or descriptive phrase that adds to the quality of our understanding of the person or thing mentioned.

The characters in Beowulf are often given epithets to better describe their characters in the context of the story. For example (1.) Unferth is described as brother-killer. (2.) Beowulf is given many epithets including Prince of the Weders, Son of Ecgtheow, the Geatish Hero, and Lord of the Seamen.

Universal Ideas

Beowulf's story is full of universal ideas

portrayed through his actions and themes in the poem. Some of these universal themes and ideas include the classic, good versus evil, courage and the idea of being brave for your people, loyalty to not only your friends and family but those who have called on you for help, aspects of religion and how we should respect other religions even if they are not the same beliefs we have and the idea of fate and how things can be destined to happen.

Formal speech 5-10 lines

¨Remember, Hrothgar, Oh knowing king, now

When danger is near, the warm words we uttered,

And if your enemy should end my life Then be, oh generous prince, forever The father and protector of all whom I leave Behind me, here in your hands, my beloved Comrades left with no leader,their leader Dead. And the precious gifts you gave me, My friend, send them to Higlac.¨

Thank you!

Supernatural Complications

Supernatural elements are present all throughout Beowulf's adventures. This includes the 2 demons or monsters that were Grendel and his mother, the idea that Beowulf had some kind of superhuman strength and could not be defeated, the battle with a dragon for treasure as well as the serpents and incredible sea monsters that Beowulf fights in the lake. All of these contribute to the idea that because Beowulf has these superhuman abilities, he almost needs supernatural monsters as opponents.

Travels of Beowulf

Heroes of High Status

Heroes are important within the story. Beowulf himself is the main hero of the epic. His bravery and strength save his people from Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon. It is clear from the beginning of this story that Beowulf possesses the traits of a hero as he goes throughout his journey helping people.

• Herot
• Denmark- The land of the Danes
• Lair
• The dragon's cave with treasure
• Beowulf's Tower

Fateful Actions

• By killing Grendel, Grendel's mother became angered which caused Beowulf to battle her
• When the thief steals something from the dragon's hoard, it wakes him. Beowulf, now an old man, goes on to fight the dragon and dies in battle.

5 highlighted events w/ pics

-Beowulf along with some Geatish soldiers sets sail across the sea.

- Beowulf fights Grendel and tears his arm from its socket.

-Beowulf tracks down Grendel's mother and kills her with his sword.

-After Hygelac is killed in battle, Beowulf becomes the king of the Geats.

-Beowulf kills the dragon, but receives a mortal wound in the fight.