Essay On Medieval Bards

The poem of Beowulf focuses on the ideal Anglo-Saxon hero of Beowulf and explores the meaning of heroism. Throughout time, it is clear the definition of a hero has changed, there have been significant modification in what a hero’s morals are as well as their true intentions. Beliefs in today’s society pursue the idea that Beowulf would not be in the parameters of what we may consider a heroic individual.

During the Elizabethan era, knights were claimed to be the very best and served the Queen. The knights were a particular class during the era. They were known for their valor and courage during battles. Sometimes even the second sons of earls and lords result to becoming celebrated knights, as seen in some of Shakespeare’ plays, such as “Henry IV”. Knights were used to accomplish conspiracies and schemes traveling to distant countries and foreign lands for battles.

Beowulf is an old story that originated from the Anglo-Saxon time period. It was often told by a Scop, a man that memorized stories and told them to the entire tribe, and each story often had a message that was supposed to be given to the warriors or the king. These stories were often told to younger generations for it to be remembered, and every time it was passed down, it had some changes made to it. It was finally recorded by two monks. Since then, there have been many movies of Beowulf, with the most recent being made in 2007 as an animated movie with somewhat related plot, but it had many revisions to make the movie mostly different from the poem itself, and with those changes it shows how our society is different from the Anglo-Saxons. In the Beowulf movie and poem, there are similarities and differences in Beowulf himself, religion, and themes, which reveals themes that reflect both Anglo Saxon and modern societies.

The epic poem, Beowulf, was written by an anonymous author, but followed the same heroic character or person who is loyal, just like the Anglo-Saxons.

A variety of jobs existed during the Elizabethan era. There were some people who worked for the queen, others who worked with their hands, and lastly people who worked for royalty. These jobs that people did were really important out of the elizabethan era.

Beowulf is a classic Anglo Saxon poem about heroism. In fact one scholar notes, “Legends and superheros present us with something very local in its ethics. It's not messianic. It's far more tangible” (Rhys Ifans). Beowulf is considered a legend in the English Literature world. Batman is considered a superhero in the DC Comic industry. However, even though they’re from different times and put in different situations, they have as much in common as they have different, especially in courage, smartness and the willing to fight evil.

“Beowulf” is an old English heroic poem written in the Anglo-Saxon Era. While the battles of Beowulf were mesmerizing, the concept of defending the civilians throughout the whole poem was self- evident. Even so, the poem contains many types of archetypes; situational, character and symbolic.

The middle ages was a difficult time period that resulted in famine, death, and poverty. During this time period a new system of government rose called the feudal system. The feudal system was a system of government that had social classes with kings being at the top and the peasants at the bottom with the nobles and knights in the middle. In the system the nobles/knights offered protection to the peasants in return for manual labor. All the different social classes had different standards of life but they were all crucial to the organization of the feudal system.. It consists of the peasants, lords, nobles, and kings.

The novel, Beowulf, intertwines and twists many different motifs within its story. These include monsters, weapons, and feasting. One motif, storytelling, is woven throughout the tale, and has an essential role in Beowulf. With little or no access to the written word, storytelling was the ideal way to spread ideas for public consumption. Oral tales provide a view into Anglo Saxon beliefs, how their monarchy functioned, and their socio-political structure. These tales give modern historians and literary scholars concrete evidence to examine and understand Anglo Saxon life. In the day of Beowulf, storytelling functioned as principles to allow Anglo Saxon people to share and sculpt their future generations. Storytelling also played a large role in influencing civilians and leaders trust in others and each other. Stories could paint ideas and portraits of certain characteristics, even as either heroic or cowardly so as to manipulate civilians. In Beowulf, we learn the title character was widely respected. The stories of his triumph over the monsters spread throughout the land, affecting the other’s views on him as a loyal man and a hero through it all.

The protection of one another was very important to them. Document B: Anglo-Saxon Life: The Warm Hall, the Cold World, “ This pattern of loyal dependency was basic to Anglo-Saxon life. Such loyalty grew out of a need to protect the group from the terrors of an enemy-infested wilderness—a wilderness that became particularly frightening during the long, bone-chilling nights of winter. In most of England, the Anglo- Saxons tended to live close to their animals in single-family homesteads, wooden buildings that surrounded a communal court or a warm, fire-lit chieftain’s hall. This cluster of buildings was protected by a wooden stockade fence. The arrangement contributed to a sense of security and to the close relationship between leader and followers.” This document, referring to their value of loyalty, shows how the Anglo-Saxons lived in close-knit community’s where they were able to protect one another from their enemies. As a community, along with there protection of one another they also took part in poetry. Document D: The Bards: Singing of Gods and Heroes, “The poets sang to the strumming of a harp. As sources for their improvisational poetry, the storytellers had a rich supply of heroic tales that reflected the concerns of a people constantly under threat of war, disease, or old age.” This document not only shows their part in poetry, but also their loyalty to one

People in our world, whether it’s in the past or present, are constantly influenced by their surroundings. They live their lives based on what’s around them and how they are brought up. The people in the Middle Ages were often exposed to a variety of different things that affected what they did. Their relationships with one another, and the way they were brought up to interact with each other greatly modified each individual’s lives. In addition to that, their daily jobs affected how they lived as well. All of these things were majorly influenced by feudalism, the form of government that the people in the Middle Ages lived by. They were exposed to this government every day, and it was the base of their values and as a whole. There were many

The tale of Beowulf is one of the most established cases of what society sees as a hero. In spite of the fact that the story was composed in Anglo-Saxon circumstances, the accreditations one would require so to be considered by society a legend continue as before. The Anglo-Saxons believed that a hero was brave and bold, however modest and kind also. They likewise trusted that a legend was astute and noble, in which he would battle until death with a specific end goal to guard his people. Beowulf is portrayed as minding, humane, honorable, and understanding, which makes him appear as though he had each attribute of a genuine

A renaissance man is a person with many talents or areas of knowledge. Shakespeare was an outstanding writer. The author might have an interest in Renaissance men. This might be the reason for the writer to be interested in this topic. Shakespeare was a renaissance man. He was very talented and knowledgeable. Even though there isn’t much known about him, it doesn’t mean that he didn’t write the famous works.

Anglo-Saxons, the clans that ran Old England and led Britain, used bards and Scops to tell their stories. These bards and Scops, honored members of society, passed their oral traditions down the generations. A well-known epic poem told by the Anglo-Saxons, Beowulf, about an epic hero, who leads the Geats in many well-known victories, demonstrates various beliefs that the Anglo-Saxons had. Throughout time, the epic became continuously passed down was changed and evolved into the version that exists today. Which was written into text by Christian Monks, who added here and there parts of their own religion to the epic, leading to the well-known epic today. Moreover, through Beowulf, the reader has the ability to take some of their values and apply them to their life, and the overall human condition. These values and traits include, Honor, Bravery, and Loyalty, which considering their time they have become some of the most valuable traits in a person, and even a valiant warrior.

Medieval Times were covered in deceit and secrecy and one of the main duties of a Queen in the Middle Ages was to help the King and other nobility find ways to spy on rivals, start conflicts or wars or simply spread important gossip through the country. One of the most famous medieval queens was Eleanor of Aquitaine. She was most likely born in the year 1122 as historians do not have the direct date of which she was born. Eleanor was a powerful and wealthy woman in Western Europe during the middle ages she married twice and had a total of 10 kids. To become a queen in the middle ages she had to acquire it through marriage or less commonly inheritance.