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Beowulf (1910)

by Anonymous, Francis B. Gummere (translator)

Download: [html] [pdb] [jxl]

Media: book
Types: fiction – poetry
Genres: epic – mythology

Library of Congress

Classification: PR1583. 1910

• PR - English literature
• PR 1490-1799 - Anglo-Saxon literature

Pluckable URL

URL: http://www.pluckerbooks.com/works/anonymous/beowulf/

Review

This wonderful old epic tells the story of Beowulf, a Danish warrior-turned-king, and his adventures in fighting three monsters: Grendel, a hideously humanoid creature who likes to feast on the Danes; Grendel's stronger, more ferocious mother; and a dragon, whose name I forget at the moment.

When reading Beowulf, one gets the sense of an ancient superhero of sorts. We hear about feats such as swimming across the ocean (in full armor) while battling sea monsters, not to mention the great wars that are fought in this primitive, yet magical world.

There is a reason why this epic has come down through the ages as one of the best examples of early Anglo-Saxon literature. Not only is it one of very few surviving examples of that time – it's also a damn good story!

This version of Beowulf is taken from the translation by Francis B. Grummere, which was included in the Harvard Classics (1910), Volume 49.

Contributed by Curtis Weyant (caw.homelinux.net) on 2001-08-09; last updated on 2007-01-04

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