Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 1—Alliteration

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Find 3 examples of alliteration in the text. Write the exact wording of each on this paper.

Underline the alliteration. Use quotation marks. Tell the line numbers for each quote.

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 2--Caesura

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Find 2 examples of caesura in the text. Write the line. Use quotation marks. Underline where

the caesura occurs. Tell the line numbers for each as you go.

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 3—Barbaric yawps

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

The Anglo-Saxons were called Barbarians or savages by people in Rome. While this may be

partly unfair, it seems interesting to impersonate.

As a group come up to Mrs. Beckett and savagely yell the name of the king who tried to unify

England through promoting Old English and education.

Mrs. Beckett will initial when you succeed _______________

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 4—Finding kennings

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Find 2 kennings we have not discussed in class. List the kenning, the line number and the noun

it replaces.

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 5-Be epic.

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Beowulf knows he is awesome. Find a line that proves it. Have your group come back to Mrs.

Beckett and awesomely say this line together. You must be strong. Unferth-like whininess is

not epic enough to succeed.

Mrs. Beckett will initial when you succeed _______________

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 6—History

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Make one solid connection between your historical notes and something that happened in the

text.

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 7—All the world’s a stage.

Involving all of your group members, re-enact a 30-second scene of all three of Beowulf’s

battles. One person may narrate if that works for your group. Tell who is playing the following:

Beowulf:___________________________ Grendel:_________________________

Grendel’s mom:_____________________ the Dragon:_______________________

Narrator (optional): ___________________ other (optional):____________________

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 8--Imagery

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Find 1 example of strong visual imagery in the text. Your example should be at least 3 lines

long. Use quotation marks. Tell the line numbers.

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 9— terms

Names:__________________________________________________________

Define the following and give a sentence saying how it applies to Beowulf and/or Anglo-Saxon times:

Scop—

Comitatus group—

Weregild—

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 10—Word.

Names:______________________________________________________

Explain in a few sentences how Old English became a spoken language AND how it shifted from

Old English into Middle English. (Think invaders/people groups).

Epic Scavenger Hunt Round 11—the grand finale

Names:______________________________________________________

Class Period:_______________

Using the handout, tell 4 traits of an epic, and briefly explain how Beowulf fits each.

The Epic

The epic is generally defined: A long narrative poem on a great and serious subject, related in an

elevated style, and centered on a heroic or quasi-divine figure on whose actions depends the fate of a

tribe, a nation, or the human race. The traditional epics were shaped by a literary artist from

historical and legendary materials which had developed in the oral traditions of his nation during a

period of expansion and warfare (Beowulf, The Odyssey, The Iliad).

Epic Conventions, or characteristics common to both types include:

1. The hero is a figure of great national or even cosmic importance, usually the ideal man of his

culture. He often has superhuman or divine traits. He has an imposing physical stature and is

greater in all ways than the common man.

2. The setting is vast in scope. It covers great geographical distances, perhaps even visiting the

underworld, other wortlds, other times.

3. The action consists of deeds of valor or superhuman courage (especially in battle).

4. Supernatural forces interest themselves in the action and intervene at times. The intervention

of the gods is called "machinery."

5. The style of writing is elevated, even ceremonial.

6. Additional conventions: certainly all are not always present)

1. Opens by stating the theme of the epic.

2. Writer invokes a Muse, one of the nine daughters of Zeus. The poet prays to the

muses to provide him with divine inspiration to tell the story of a great hero.

3. Narrative opens in media res. This means "in the middle of things," usually with the

hero at his lowest point. Earlier portions of the story appear later as flashbacks.

4. Catalogs and geneaologies are given. These long lists of objects, places, and people

place the finite action of the epic within a broader, universal context. Oftentimes, the

poet is also paying homage to the ancestors of audience members.

5. Main characters give extended formal speeches.

6. Use of the epic simile. A standard simile is a comparison using "like" or "as." An

epic or Homeric simile is a more involved, ornate comparison, extended in great

detail.

7. Heavy use of repetition and stock phrases. The poet repeats passages that consist of

several lines in various sections of the epic and uses homeric epithets, short, recurrent

phrases used to describe people, places, or things. Both made the poem easier to

memorize.

Aristotle described six characteristics: "fable, action, characters, sentiments, diction, and meter."

“An extended narrative poem,

usually simple in construction, but grand in scope,

exalted in style, and heroic in theme, often giving expression to the ideals of a nation or race. ”

Sidelight: Homer, the author of The Iliad and The Odyssey, is sometimes referred to as the "Father

of Epic Poetry." Based on the conventions he established, classical epics began with an argument

and an invocation to a guiding spirit, then started the narrative in medias res. In modern use, the

term, "epic," is generally applied to all lengthy works on matters of great importance. The

Rhapsodoi, professional reciters, memorized his work and passed it on by word of mouth as part of

an oral tradition.

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Updated 10 July 2006.