Friday, September 11, 2015

The Anglo Saxons

As we incorporate the New Historicist lens into our critical interpretations, our reading selections will connect to epic poems and the Anglo Saxon ideologies prevalent in such literary examples. Those Anglo Saxon ideologies -- mingling with the Celtic, Irish, and Roman influences -- will center our interpretation of Beowulf. If you need a refresher of these ideologies prior to Monday's class, review the Anglo Saxon background section in the textbook starting on page 6.

And with those Anglo Saxon ideologies regarding kings, warriors, monsters, women, and religion, we begin our short relationship with the epic Beowulf. Today, AP Lit members met the ever monstrous Grendel and were quite empathetic to his role as an outsider in a community of happy-go-lucky warriors. Does this mean Grendel does not reflect the common Anglo Saxon ideology of monsters?

When you enter our Anglo Saxon classroom on Monday, read sections 1-3 of Beowulf and be prepared to lead discussion of characterization, literary devices, themes, and, of course, Anglo Saxon ideologies in the text.

No comments:

Post a Comment