It tells the story of the heroic beowulf and of his battles, first with the monster grendel, who has laid waste to the great hall of the danish king hrothgar, then with grendels avenging mother, and finally with a dragon that threatens to devastate his homeland. The date of composition is a matter of contention among scholars. The best option that helped me understand completely was reading sparks notes after each chapter. You can hear heaney read his translation of beowulf online. Originally written in old english, this translation by francis barton gummere updates it to modern english. Even more perplexing is the question of values and beliefs in the poem. Beowulf audible audiobook unabridged robertson dean narrator, robert k. Beowulf, in heroic fashion, bests grendel in combat, then follows grendel back to his lair to finish the job. Michael alexanderrecently retired from the chair of english literature at the university of st andrews. The book beowulf starts in the land of danes, the king named hrothgar decides to. Beowulf is the iconic work of literature in old english. Gordon author, translator author, blackstone audio, inc. It is one of the most important works of old english literature.
An integrated history of the ancient mediterranean. Beowulf stands as one of the first and greatest works of english literature. Beowulf free full audiobook online listen authors unknown language west saxon dialect of old english date c. Warriors revenge, beowulf, tolkiens monsters, thor. In gardners version of the epic, instead of lauding the helmeted hero, beowulf, the.
For penguin he has translated, the earliest english poems, the canterbury tales the first fragment, as well as a prose translation of beowulf. Shakespeare, and the bestselling and awardwinning falstaff, which the times called one. His verse translations of the earliest english poemsand beowulfhave sold over half a million copies in penguin, for whom he has also edited. Beowulf and wiglaf travel to grendels mothers cave, where beowulf enters alone. This is a short but beautiful book, and the gummere translation really captures the feel of the old english. Librivox recording of stories of beowulf told to the children, by henrietta elizabeth marshall. It survives in a single manuscript known as the nowell codex. Composed toward the end of the first millennium of our era, beowulf is the elegiac narrative of the adventures of beowulf, a scandinavian hero who saves the danes from the seemingly invincible monster grendel and, later, from grendels mother. In gardners version of the epic, instead of lauding the helmeted hero, beowulf, the spotlight shines on grendel. Listen to the beowulf being read in original old english. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg.
Score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. Beowulf is commonly known as the oldest surviving long poem in old english, consisting of an impressive 3182 alliterative lines. Listen to poems about love, war, faith, and heroism from centuries past. The brave warrior, beowulf, comes to the aid of king hrothgar when he hears that grendel, a horrible monster, is terrorizing the inhabitants of hart hall. It was first written in the anglosaxon era, but was probably part of an oral tradition. Beowulf tells the story of a mysterious young warrior who saves the speardanes from the terrible monster grendel and his venomous mother. Translation by michael alexander, first published on 1973 is very skillfully put together and admirable. The oldest long poem in old english, written about a. A great story to be listened to, this audio book is well read by tad e.
Grendel, a monster from the darkness, is climbing from his pool and killing all who stay in king hrothgars great hall. A new telling by robert nye and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. List of books and articles about beowulf online research. Caedmons hymn, the dream of the rood, the wanderer, the battle of brunan burg, a wifes lament, and selections from beowulf. The individual chapters by eighteen scholars offer both a rapid survey of scholarly trends in the study of beowulf and a more sustained exploration of selected problems. Beowulf is an epic poem, a type of poem that includes a long narrative structure and heroic story elements. Germanic paganism and the christianity of the early middle ages sprung one of the worlds supremely great pieces of literature. Long a mainstay of english literature 101 courses at universities around the world, it is not only one of the oldest.
Heaneys performance reminds us that beowulf, written near the turn of another millennium, was intended to be heard not read. The world of beowulf is the world of heroic epic, with its legendary fights among largerthanlife figures, both human and monstrous, its scenes of feasting in great beer halls presided over by kings, its accounts of bloody feuds trapping men and women alike. The main character, beowulf, proves himself a hero as he battles against supernatural demons and beasts. Beowulf translation by seamus heaney highbridge audio. Beowulf was composed by an anonymous anglosaxon poet. Tolkien, author of the lord of the rings, delivered a famous lecture to the british academy in 1936 in which he maintained that.
Beowulf is the greatest surviving work of literature in old english, unparalleled in its epic grandeur and scope. And while such credentials translate to one of the most important works ever composed in old english, there is no general consensus as to when this epic poem was actually composed, with dates ranging from 7th to 11th century ad the original manuscript was. Wikipedia book beowulf version 2 download m4b 76mb download cover art download cd case insert. The story of heroic beowulf and his battles with the monster grendel and also with grendels mother not to mention the dragon is rather awesome. Robert nye author robert nye 19392016 was a british poet, novelist, journalist, and critic whose books include merlin, the memoirs of lord byron, mrs. Seamus heaney reads his exquisite translation of beowulf. Ad by two scribes and preserved in the british library in the collection of sir robert cotton. Beowulf initially fails to slay the dragon, but is spurred on when wiglaf stabs below the dragons head, where beowulf finds his dagger strong enough to harm the beast. Download this important work of anglosaxon literature and the oldest surviving epic poem of old english. When beowulf arrives at hrothgars hall, he discovers that the hall is beset by grendel, an evil creature that kills and pillages with impunity.
Francis barton gummere translates this beautiful poem. Hi, i dont get paid for any of my channels content and it takes a very long time to make audio book videos, i get many messages thanking me for helping the blind have easy access to books they. Beowulf unabridged beowulf unabridged audiobook, by c. These free notes consist of about 52 pages 15,501 words and contain the following sections.
Swede nephew of king hygelec whos very brave and comes to help hrothgar defeat grendel. As the dragon flies back to heorot, it is met by a group of bowmen who attack it. This audio book is the translated by irish poet and nobel laureate seamus heaney and he also narrates the audio book which runs 2 hrs. Beowulf is the conventional title of an old english heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of anglosaxon literature. The monster grendel terrorises the scyldings of hrothgars danish kingdom until beowulf defeats him. Heres where youll find analysis about the book as a whole, from the major themes and ideas to. Hear the epic battle between the hero beowulf and the monster grendel, and then grendels mother. The complete book, free the tale of beowulf sometime king of the folk of the weder geats translated by william morris and a. Online shopping from a great selection at books store. New york times best seller and whitebread book of the year, nobel laureate seamus heaneys new translation of beowulf comes to life in this gripping audio. Heaneys performance reminds us that beowulf, written near the turn of another millennium, was intended to be heard not read composed toward the end of the first millennium of our era, beowulf is the. The theme of tribal violence and its consequences is central to the old english poem beowulf, which heaney famously translated into a rich new idiom suited for a postcolonial age but still consonant with the distinctive poetic rhythms of its language. When he turns his talents to retelling beowulf, the earliest epic in british literature, the result is a work that combines extensive knowledge with a marvelous strain of pure fun.
The name beowulf lingers in our collective memory, although today fewer people have heard the tale of the germanic heros fight with grendel, the dreadful monster of the mere, as recounted in this anglosaxon epic. Each chapter begins with a brief summary of its contents followed by an annotated chronology of the most important books and articles on the particular topic it treats. Visit us at booth 106 at the book exhibit and receive a 20% discount. This book was an assigned reading book for my english class and the majority of the time those books arent my favorite to read, however, this book wasnt bad. Its composition by an anonymous anglosaxon poet is dated between the 8th and the early 11th. This edition of beowulf makes the poem more accessible than ever before. Stories of beowulf told to the children internet archive. Beowulf version 2 unknown, translated by francis barton gummere 1855 1919 beowulf was composed by an anonymous anglosaxon poet.
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