Unit 2: THE ANGLO-SAXON

PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGE

Content: Anglo-Saxon Period –
LITERATURE

Subject: Literary Analysis

Teacher: B.A. Claudia Beatriz Villalobos Zaldaña
What is the importance of the
Anglo Saxon literature?
Anglo-Saxon literature (or Old English literature)
encompasses literature written in Anglo-Saxon (Old
English) during the 600-year Anglo-Saxon period of Britain,
from the mid-5th century to the Norman Conquest of 1066.
Characteristics of Anglo-Saxon Literature
Anglo-Saxon literature, that is, the Old English literature, was almost
exclusively a verse literature in oral form. It could be passed down by
word of mouth from generation to generation. Its creators for the most
part were unknown. For this reason, there is little poetry nowadays. It
was given a written form long after its composition.
There were two groups of poetry in the Anglo-Saxon period. The first
group was the pagan poetry represented by Beowulf; the second was
the religious poetry represented by the works of Caedmon and
Cynewulf.

Beowulf Caedmon and Cynewulf

 Anglo-Saxon Poetry
1. Pagan Poetry
Beowulf
Beowulf is the oldest poem in the
English language. It is the most
important specimen of Anglo-Saxon
literature, and the oldest surviving epic
in the English language. It consists of
more than 3,000 lines. It had been
passed from mouth to mouth for
hundreds of years before it was written
down in the 10th century or at the end
of the 9th century. The main stories in
the poem are based on the folk legends
of the primitive northern tribes.
 2. Religious Poetry
Caedmon
Caedmon (610-680) is the first known
religious poet of England. He is known as
the father of English songs. The story of
how he developed his talent is wrapped in
the mist of folklore. It is said that his talent
sprang from a dream. During the night
Caedmon was visited by the vision of a
man who commanded him to sing.
Caedmon refused, claiming that he could
not sing. But the visitor would not be put
off. He requested that Caedmon sing of the
creation. To Caedmon's surprise, he sang
beautifully in praise of God. It was from
this divine inspiration that Caedmon began
to write religious poetry.
 Cynewulf and His
Poems
Cynewulf lived in the early 9th century.
Except the unknown composer of Beowulf,
he is regarded as the greatest Anglo-Saxon
poet. Of his life story we know very little.
He was probably an ecclesiastic and a
scholar. His name remained unknown until
1840.
He produced four poems: Christ, Juliana,
The Fates of the Apostles, and Elene.
Of all these poems the most characteristic
is Christ, which is a didactic poem in three
parts: the first part celebrates the Nativity;
the second part describes the Ascension;
and the third part deals with the
Doomsday.
The poetry that we can find in the Anglo-Saxon period is
called epic (a long poem in a formal style, usually about
heroic events or great adventure). Epic poems such as
Beowulf and others have a strong alliterative pattern and
are the most representative poetry of this period.
Before the Christianization, the most relevant poems apart from
Beowulf are “The Seafarer”, “The Wife’s Lament” and “The Wanderer”
among others that are contained in the Exeter Book.

The Exeter Book is the largest extant collection of Old English poetry.
 Anglo-Saxon Prose
Prose literature arrived later than poetry.
It did not show its appearance until the
8th century.
Thus in the Anglo-Saxon period, prose
had not been cultivated as a literary form
until the introduction of Latin which gave
English writers sources and models for
their composition.
The amount of surviving Old English
prose is much greater than the amount
of poetry.
 Anglo Saxon prose
writers

There appeared three famous

prose writers:
• Venerable
• Bede
• Alfred the Great
• and Aelfric
Alfred translated or had translated
the most important Latin texts. He
also encouraged writing in the
vernacular. Didactic, devotional, and
informative prose was written, and
the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, probably
begun in Alfred's time as an
historical record, continued for over
three centuries. Two preeminent Old
English prose writers were Ælfric,
Abbot of Eynsham, and his
contemporary Wulfstan, archbishop
of York. Their sermons (written in the
late 10th or early 11th cent.) set a
standard for homiletics.
 Activity chart

Name of the activity Anglo Saxons – Chart

Type of activity Written activity

Specific competences of Understanding figurative language by means of the analysis of literary genres and works from British and
the subject American writers by applying individual and collaborative learning strategies.

After reading the contents of this presentation, you will do the following:
• Work individually.
• Create a chart about the Anglo-Saxon period. Include: Relevant aspects of the period (culture, society,
Instructions and Literature)
• Organize properly the information.
• You can work in any format you wish.

Due date

Rubric
Evaluation instrument

Evaluation Percentage (LAB I 50%)

 Complementary resources
Resource Title Reference
Link The Anglo-Saxons (bbc.co.uk,2021)
Questions?
Thank you!