The Transmission of "Beowulf"

The Transmission of
Author :
Publisher : Cornell University Press
Total Pages : 315
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781501708275
ISBN-13 : 1501708279
Rating : 4/5 (75 Downloads)

Book Synopsis The Transmission of "Beowulf" by : Leonard Neidorf

Download or read book The Transmission of "Beowulf" written by Leonard Neidorf and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2017-05-16 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beowulf, like The Iliad and The Odyssey, is a foundational work of Western literature that originated in mysterious circumstances. In The Transmission of Beowulf, Leonard Neidorf addresses philological questions that are fundamental to the study of the poem. Is Beowulf the product of unitary or composite authorship? How substantially did scribes alter the text during its transmission, and how much time elapsed between composition and preservation? Neidorf answers these questions by distinguishing linguistic and metrical regularities, which originate with the Beowulf poet, from patterns of textual corruption, which descend from copyists involved in the poem’s transmission. He argues, on the basis of archaic features that pervade Beowulf and set it apart from other Old English poems, that the text preserved in the sole extant manuscript (ca. 1000) is essentially the work of one poet who composed it circa 700. Of course, during the poem’s written transmission, several hundred scribal errors crept into its text. These errors are interpreted in the central chapters of the book as valuable evidence for language history, cultural change, and scribal practice. Neidorf’s analysis reveals that the scribes earnestly attempted to standardize and modernize the text’s orthography, but their unfamiliarity with obsolete words and ancient heroes resulted in frequent errors. The Beowulf manuscript thus emerges from his study as an indispensible witness to processes of linguistic and cultural change that took place in England between the eighth and eleventh centuries. An appendix addresses J. R. R. Tolkien’s Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary, which was published in 2014. Neidorf assesses Tolkien’s general views on the transmission of Beowulf and evaluates his position on various textual issues.

A Beowulf Handbook

A Beowulf Handbook
Author :
Publisher : U of Nebraska Press
Total Pages : 492
Release :
ISBN-10 : 0803212372
ISBN-13 : 9780803212374
Rating : 4/5 (72 Downloads)

Book Synopsis A Beowulf Handbook by : Robert E. Bjork

Download or read book A Beowulf Handbook written by Robert E. Bjork and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 1997-01-01 with total page 492 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The most revered work composed in Old English, Beowulf is one of the landmarks of European literature. This handbook supplies a wealth of insights into all major aspects of this wondrous poem and its scholarly tradition. Each chapter provides a history of the scholarly interest in a particular topic, a synthesis of present knowledge and opinion, and an analysis of scholarly work that remains to be done. Written to accommodate the needs of a broad audience, A Beowulf Handbook will be of value to nonspecialists who wish simply to read and enjoy Beowulf and to scholars at work on their own research. In its clear and comprehensive treatment of the poem and its scholarship, this book will prove an indispensable guide to readers and specialists for many years to come.

Heroic Identity in the World of Beowulf

Heroic Identity in the World of Beowulf
Author :
Publisher : BRILL
Total Pages : 436
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9789047425021
ISBN-13 : 9047425022
Rating : 4/5 (21 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Heroic Identity in the World of Beowulf by : Scott Gwara

Download or read book Heroic Identity in the World of Beowulf written by Scott Gwara and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2009-01-31 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Readers of Beowulf have noted inconsistencies in Beowulf's depiction, as either heroic or reckless. Heroic Identity in the World of Beowulf resolves this tension by emphasizing Beowulf's identity as a foreign fighter seeking glory abroad. Such men resemble wreccan, "exiles" compelled to leave their homelands due to excessive violence. Beowulf may be potentially arrogant, therefore, but he learns prudence. This native wisdom highlights a king's duty to his warband, in expectation of Beowulf's future rule. The dragon fight later raises the same question of incompatible identities, hero versus king. In frequent reference to Greek epic and Icelandic saga, this revisionist approach to Beowulf offers new interpretations of flyting rhetoric, the custom of "men dying with their lord," and the poem's digressions.

Handbook of Medieval Culture. Volume 1

Handbook of Medieval Culture. Volume 1
Author :
Publisher : Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages : 706
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9783110267303
ISBN-13 : 3110267306
Rating : 4/5 (03 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Handbook of Medieval Culture. Volume 1 by : Albrecht Classen

Download or read book Handbook of Medieval Culture. Volume 1 written by Albrecht Classen and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2015-08-31 with total page 706 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A follow-up publication to the Handbook of Medieval Studies, this new reference work turns to a different focus: medieval culture. Medieval research has grown tremendously in depth and breadth over the last decades. Particularly our understanding of medieval culture, of the basic living conditions, and the specific value system prevalent at that time has considerably expanded, to a point where we are in danger of no longer seeing the proverbial forest for the trees. The present, innovative handbook offers compact articles on essential topics, ideals, specific knowledge, and concepts defining the medieval world as comprehensively as possible. The topics covered in this new handbook pertain to issues such as love and marriage, belief in God, hell, and the devil, education, lordship and servitude, Christianity versus Judaism and Islam, health, medicine, the rural world, the rise of the urban class, travel, roads and bridges, entertainment, games, and sport activities, numbers, measuring, the education system, the papacy, saints, the senses, death, and money.

A History of Western Society, Volume 1

A History of Western Society, Volume 1
Author :
Publisher : Macmillan
Total Pages : 640
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780312640590
ISBN-13 : 0312640595
Rating : 4/5 (90 Downloads)

Book Synopsis A History of Western Society, Volume 1 by : John P. McKay

Download or read book A History of Western Society, Volume 1 written by John P. McKay and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2010-10-13 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now from Bedford/St. Martin's, A History of Western Society is one of the most successful textbooks available because it captures students' interest in the everyday life of the past and ties social history to the broad sweep of politics and culture. The tenth edition has been thoroughly revised to strengthen the text's readability, heighten its attention to daily life, and incorporate the insights of new scholarship, including an enhanced treatment of European exploration and a thoroughly revised post-1945 section. With a dynamic new design, new special features, and a completely revised and robust companion reader, this major revision makes the past memorable and accessible for a new generation of students and instructors.

Beowulf

Beowulf
Author :
Publisher : Courier Corporation
Total Pages : 70
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780486111100
ISBN-13 : 0486111105
Rating : 4/5 (00 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Beowulf by :

Download or read book Beowulf written by and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2012-03-01 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Finest heroic poem in Old English celebrates the exploits of Beowulf, a young nobleman of southern Sweden. Combines myth, Christian and pagan elements, and history into a powerful narrative. Genealogies.

The Historicity of Beowulf

The Historicity of Beowulf
Author :
Publisher :
Total Pages : 898
Release :
ISBN-10 : MSU:31293010872632
ISBN-13 :
Rating : 4/5 (32 Downloads)

Book Synopsis The Historicity of Beowulf by : Robert Allan Ploegstra

Download or read book The Historicity of Beowulf written by Robert Allan Ploegstra and published by . This book was released on 1974 with total page 898 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: