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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
An 8 page comparison of the Old English epic poem Beowulf and the thirteenth century romance, 'Tristan and Isolde.' The writer endeavors to demonstrate how each of these works demonstrated the culture and ideas of their era. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
8 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KE9_99beti.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
great changes in culture, and?inevitably?its great length translates into a lack of a single, dominant literary motif (Donaldson 1). This fact is demonstrated by examining two representative works, one from
the beginning of the medieval period?the Old English epic poem, Beowulf?and one from the thirteenth century?the medieval romance, Tristan and Isolde. Beowulf is believed to have been written in
the first half of the eighth century; however, the only existing manuscript was recorded in the late tenth century (Donaldson 30). Written in Old English (or Anglo-Saxon) the style
of the poem is allusive and the ideas, which are expressed, frequently appear to be remote and strange to a modern viewpoint (Donaldson 31). Nevertheless, as Donaldson points out,
the "somber grandeur of Beowulf is still capable of stirring the hearts of readers" (31). Although the poem is English in its language and origin, the characters in the
poem are not Englishmen, but rather Germanic ancestors, specifically two south Scandinavian tribes?the Danes and the Geats. Therefore, Donaldson concludes that the actual historical period in the poem is roughly
two centuries before the time that it was first written, which is following the initial invasion of the British isles by Germanic tribes in 449 (Donaldson 31). The one datable
fact mentioned in the poem is a raid on the Franks made by Hygelac, the king of the Geats in 520 (Donaldson 31). In the warrior society that Beowulf
invokes, the most important human relationship is between the warrior and his "thane," that is, his lord. The relationship is based primarily on feelings of trust and mutual
respect (Donaldson 32). A good lord, such as Beowulf, is described by phrases such as "dispenser of treasure" or "ring-giver" (Donaldson 32). In combating the monster Grendel, Beowulf tests his
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