I have Chosen Beowulf

From the books we have read, I have chosen Beowulf. It was a tale about an individual from the point of scholars known as the Anglo-Saxons. Most Anglo-Saxons were recognized as having no background or origin, so it was difficult to decipher what origin of the author. The development of this epic poem was between somewhere in the 8thcentury and 10thcentury. Though it is still debated about its published date, manuscripts were traced back to the 10thcentury. It was written sometime from (800 to 1000 AD).

Now it can observe that in some way it gives us some hints that in were in the time after the death of Christ. Such as it being presented to us before the tale of Judith which is the new testament around the time of (1010 AD) However, it also Beowulf is shown to have been non-Christian related due to the fact that Anglo-Saxons were introduced to it and during this time period were are coming out of a period of paganism and we can see that Beowulf was mentioning God from a Monotheistic standpoint. 

It was originally part of the medieval/ Old Englishtime era where we saw a common conception of a hero going on journeys for glory and prestige. The story of Beowulf was written during the migration of settlers from their homelands to England However it is not primarily plotted in the country of Britain. During this time span we see that there were warriors of German descent invading islands to wreak havoc amongst individuals.

This had resulted in many deaths, including the King of Beowulfs tribe. This event occurred in the age of 520 AD. In the story we can see the tale of Beowulfs character was set in the 6thcentury to the 8thcentury. Examples of this evidence could be the weaponry used during the time period, which were swords, the buildings were stonewall and pebbled and the helmet had a human face platelet. It can be seen that he was from a tribe called the Geats, which had resided in a portion of present day Sweden. He comes from a style of knight/soldier background. This is shown to be come in the past links of Scandinavia.     

From here it is illustrated that Beowulf had explored and me with another tribe called the Danes, which were in the mainland of Denmark. During his visit in Heorotit can be shown we are introduced to some other key settings such as the Mead Hall, which was a place where soldiers would feast but soon met their demise with the horrible beast Grendel.            

There we see Beowulf meeting the Danes King Hrothgar. He was fascinated with Beowulf that he offers him a challenge, in which he accepts. In regards to the setting, it changes for us due to the fact he travels across several other lands (Present day Germany,  Poland as well as other) , including his homeland. When he reaches his destination we can see that it is a dark layer that has swampy waters and cave architecture, in which he defeats Grendel. After he defeats Grendel he returns to his village and is declared king. His return home is cut short and he soon comes to another location, which includes him fighting a dragon.

The setting in this is a mountain valley in which there are rocks and a narrow sprawl. Eventually we can se the setting returning back to Beowulfs land  for his funeral. The author can use this setting as a way to show people, the savagery of how two tribes fought each other for glory or land. It illustrates that at the time period they didnt many means of transportation. For instance the Germanic Vikings would use ships to sail across waters in order to raid the tribes. With this it gives us a look at how the collapse of a kingdom can be without a warrior, even if he is from another tribe.

Overall the author can achieve the purpose of the when and where or when and where in Beowulf by giving us the backdrop of certain scenarios in which the character Beowulf engages with others and heads on a long journey. He also shows the rough conditions in a geographical standpoint of what he had to fight in. In closing the author can give us how an illustration on the fact that the tribes were small but, it still gives us great perspective that the lands they lived in may be somewhat small or moderate sized though it still shows the geographic landscape for others arent big enough.   

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