Beowulf

This course will consist of a careful reading and analysis of Beowulf in its original language. In addition to developing language competence, we will also discuss the poem through comparison to other Old English poems and Scandinavian analogues. Themes will include the manuscript context, heroism, gender, sacrifice, lamentation and elegy, the monstrous, material culture, and contemporary theoretical approaches to the poem. Prerequisite: 2000-level Introduction to Old English or its equivalent. Enrollment limited to 15.