The Anglo-Saxons

When looking at a map, it is easy to see that Britain is an island that is isolated from the rest of Europe. In the past, the entire island was known as England, and was the home of many legal and political systems still used across the world today. Since it is an island, England had more than its fair share of invaders, each of whom left as aspect of their culture.

First there were the Celts, who led their lives according to their magical religion. They believed in animism, and contributed many of the myths and tales still told in the world today. The remnants of the Celts' culture are still strongly associated with Ireland.

Beginning with an invasion by Julius Ceasar in 55B.C., the Roman Empire would control the island for the next four hundred years. The Romans were very good at protecting Britain from invaders with their technologically advanced military. They also built roads and walls that still exist in England today. Eventually the Roman Empire would begin to fall, and in A.D. 409, the Romans left Brittain unprotected. Rome would ultimately fall in A.D. 476.

The Angles and Saxons attacked from what is modern-day Germany, and the Jutes (yoots) attacked from what is now Denmark. These tribes eliminated the Brittons who enhabited the island except for the Celts who escaped to Wales. The most famous Celt of them all was King Arthur.

Anglo-Saxon England was not very organized at all. There was a different King for each area, and none of the laws nor customs were similar. This all changed when King Alfred of Wessex, or Alfred the great organized the defeat of attacking Danish pirates we know as Vikings. Alfred's success as well as the spread of Christianity across the island helped unify a new land the Anglo-Saxons called England. Though they were more unified at this point, England was still ruled by a large group of kings.

The centerpiece of Anglo-Saxon culture was the warrior tradition, and the ultimate protection of England from its invaders. Absolute loyalty to leaders was essential to the Anglo-Saxons. Though Christianity was on the rise in England, the old Anglo-Saxon religion was still strong. The most important Anglo-Saxon god was Odin, the god of death, poetry, and magic. The Anglo-Saxon name for Odin was Woden, and this is where we get the name for Wednesday. Other important figures in the Anglo-Saxon religion were Thunor, or Thor, and the dragon, who is usually the protector of treasure or warrior graves. The most important people in Anglo-Saxon culture were the warriors and the bards, who recited tales and poetry that often featured plenty of violence.

You can read much more here.

Your Assignment . . .

1. Read the 12 episodes of Beowulf here. This is a modern translation, which may still be a challenge to read because it is a poem. Don't give up! If you need help, ask me! It would help you to jot down notes on each of the episodes.

post the following to your blog -

1. Write a 4-5 paragraph response to Beowulf. What did you think of the story? What parts stuck out to you the most. You may also want to include some of your thoughts on the Anglo-Saxon culture.

2. Think about what you know about the Anglo-Saxon's culture. How well does Beowulf illustrate what the Anglo-Saxons believed? Give at least three separate examples, and back them up with direct evidence from the poem.

3. How does this story compare to the hero stories from our culture? Provide at least one exmample of how Beowulf is similar, and one of how he is different. You should provide some evidence from the text to support what you claim.

4. What do you think of the way Beowulf dies? Write a 2-3 paragraph response on how you feel about the ending of the story. If you don't know where you are going with this, you should talk to me about it. It is especially important to support your opinions with some evidence from Beowulf.

SELF-EVALUATE YOUR WORK!!

When you are finished, leave a comment to this post, and I will check your blog for your work and set up a conference when we will talk about what you have accomplished.