Grendels mother dana a veteran of middle east conflicts who came home mysteriously pregnant and willa herot, the rich suburban woman who ends up marrying beowulf. In this beautiful book a designer, a poet, and a specialist in anglosaxon literature recreate beowulf for a modern audience. Inside you will find a comprehensive study guide, and a modern retelling along with the original text of beowulf each section of this book may also be purchased individually. Specifically not a translation, and im fine with the. Grendel and his mother live in whats left of the wilderness on a mountain above herot hall. Shakespeare goes steampunk in dexter palmers mashup of fairytales, science fiction, and the tempest. This classic and much lauded retelling of beowulf follows the monster grendel as he learns about humans and fights the war at the center of the anglo saxon classic epic.
New york times bestselling author maria dahvana headley presents a modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, set in american suburbia as two mothersa housewife and a battlehardened veteranfight to protect those they love in the mere wife from the perspective of those who live in herot hall, the suburb is a paradise. Although these two stories had a similar background, a main difference in the two was the perception at which each of the stories was told. The dragon turned and sunk its teeth into beowulf s neck. Beowulf also gives queen hygd a necklace and three horses. Apr 23, 2015 shakespeare goes steampunk in dexter palmers mashup of fairytales, science fiction, and the tempest. His use of stark colors does an excellent job of presenting the horror of the encounters giving the reader an idea of what it must have been like to hear the story as they were first told around the fire so long ago. Jul 17, 2018 new york times bestselling author maria dahvana headley presents a modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, set in american suburbia as two mothersa housewife and a battlehardened veteranfight to protect those they love in the mere wife. In contrast to the victorian novels weve looked at, beowulf seems to lend itself especially well to nonfaithful adaptationsperhaps in part because the plot is quite simple and the characters have little. There are numerous modern retellings of beowulf, a sort of book that sits somewhere between adaptation and translation.
How place becomes character in beowulf retelling the mere wife. This retelling of the beowulf legend focuses on two women. A modern, illustrated retelling of the anglosaxon epic about the heroic efforts of beowulf, son of ecgtheow, to save the people of heorot hall from the terrible monster, grendel. No one is quite what they first seem in this modern retelling of beowulf. In the epic poem, the characters are basically static, and their actions are predictable. Beowulf, a wellknown detective, and his trusty assistant wiglaf are called to denmark city to solve a bloody mystery. The mere wife by maria dahvana headley the wolf border.
The book beowulf starts in the land of danes, the king named hrothgar decides to built a great hall of victory. The main difference between the anglosaxon poem, beowulf, and john gardners modern retelling, grendel, lies in the development of the characters. Beowulf, the primary epic of the english language, is a powerful heroic poem eloquently expressive of the anglosaxon culture that produced it. New york times bestselling author maria dahvana headley presents a modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, set in american suburbia as two mothersa housewife and a battlehardened veteranfight to protect those they love in the mere wife.
It is one of the most important works of old english literature. How place becomes character in beowulf retelling the mere. Sep 26, 2018 how place becomes character in beowulf retelling the mere wife features we take a closer look at how this modern retelling of epic poem beowulf gets creative with point of view. Plenty, maria dahvana headley suggests in her new novel, the mere wife if you mess around with it. This book is a graphic novel retelling of beowulf, and i must say that i think that gareth hinds did an excellent job. No one had really written a book about grendels mother. The date of composition is a matter of contention among scholars. Picket fences divide buildingshigh and gabledand the community is entirely selfsustaining.
The dragon cried in pain once again, blew his last fiery breath, and fell hard on the floor. Just as headley removes him from the title of her version of beowulf, she also greatly diminishes his role in the story. The history of modern beowulf criticism is often said to begin with j. The beowulf manuscript above is thought to be approximately 1,000 years old. Anglosaxon poets typically used alliterative verse, a form of verse in which the first half of the line the averse is linked to the second half the bverse through similarity in initial sound. After a huge feast at heorot a monster from the fen attacks the hall leaving it after reading the book beowulf. A feminist, modern day retelling of beowulf apparently that is what was missing from. From school library journal grade 46this is the first volume in szobodys shortened, modern retelling of the beowulf epic in picturebook format. An old english poem such as beowulf is very different from modern poetry. Maria dahvana headleys new novel, the mere wife, is much more than a. Mere wife, her superb new retelling of beowulf in american suburbia.
My rather lackluster attempt at a modernized version of beowulf for an english assignment. A modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, the mere wife is set in american suburbia as two mothersa housewife and a battlehardened veteranfight to. Grendel is a beautiful and heartbreaking modern retelling of the beowulf epic from the point of view of the monster, grendel, the villain of the 8thcentury. King hrothgar, the ruler of the danes, is troubled by the rampages of a demon named grendel. This modern retelling preserves the splendor of those old english poetic conventions, while the taut, restrained phrasing captures beowulf s original aural experience. Interweaving evocative images, a new interpretation in verse, and a running. This adaptation is reminiscent of the poems old english origins in meter and vocabulary, the boldface heraldic introduction, and the simply stated conclusion. From the perspective of those who live in herot hall, the suburb is a paradise.
Harold, the books protagonist, is a greeting card writer imprisoned in a zeppelin circling the. Book to movie comparison the beowulf legend has endured for centuries, having been retold time and time again. The beowulf legend has endured for centuries, having been retold time and time again. In robert zemeckiss film beowulf, modern technology allows a. Wikipedia lists about as many beowulf adaptations as it does for wuthering heights, and its list includes almost nothing prior to 1950.
For those coming to the novel with these details firmly in mind, the. The first and most terrifying monster in english literature, from the great early epic beowulf, tells his own side of the story in this frequently banned book. Beowulf gets a 21stcentury update the new york times. Bob attempted to take the place of beowulf, using modern technology. This leads beowulf down a badass, gory path of vengeance for the fallen danes as he takes down several monsters. That a clear, simple retelling of beowulf is an especially appropriate and significant experience for a nine year old was ignored by elementary education editors considering the selection. He laid in bed awake, waiting for grendel to strike. In robert zemeckiss film beowulf, modern technology allows a centuriesold story to be retold in a vivid, dynamic way. A new telling by robert nye i was pleasantly surprised that i enjoyed it. Feb 02, 2018 a modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, the mere wife is set in american suburbia as two mothersa housewife and a battlehardened veteranfight to protect those they love. Two mothersa suburban housewife and a battlehardened veteranstruggle to protect those they love in this modern retelling of beowulf. The book, in many ways, is an extremely faithful retelling of beowulf.
Beowulf is an old english heroic epic poem of anonymous authorship. Just finished reading the poem beowulf or a translation of it, and while the story itself is pretty interesting, the way its written is, understandably, dated. Grendel is a beautiful and heartbreaking modern retelling of the beowulf epic from the point of view of the monster, grendel, the villain of the 8thcentury anglosaxon epic. It has risen to national epic status in england beowulf has been adapted a number of times in cinema, on the stage, and in books. A series of eight graphic novels, that depict the characters of beowulf in the years leading up to the epic poem. Beowulf and grendel book and film essay example for. A modern retelling of beowulf recasts classic themes from the perspectives of the attackers and finds a suburban housewife and a battlehardened veteran navigating dark realities to protect the. Specifically not a translation, and im fine with the author taking creative liberties with the tale. Suttons list has pithy descriptions of all the books hes found, so i wont create a new.
But in your book, youve described women in particular as women whose lives we have lived ourselves, or people we. Harold, the book s protagonist, is a greeting card writer imprisoned in a zeppelin circling the. So i was looking for a more modern retelling of it. In gardners version of the epic, instead of lauding the helmeted hero, beowulf, the spotlight shines on grendel. But how much contemporary cultural resonance does it have. Grendels mother dana a veteran of middle east conflicts who came home mysteriously pregnant and willa herot, the rich. Dating back to the 8th century, this epic heroic poem employs many features that have long appealed to countless storytellers, authors, graphic novelists, and filmmakers. Wiglaf ran to beowulf s aid, and attempted to treat his wound. Jul 16, 2018 the book, in many ways, is an extremely faithful retelling of beowulf. The most surprising novel this year is a modernday beowulf minus.
This is what happened in the novel grendel by john gardner. Stephen notleys weekly strip bob the angry flower ran a 10part series entitled rothgar. How place becomes character in beowulf retelling the mere wife features we take a closer look at how this modern retelling of epic poem beowulf gets creative with pointof. Doconent risune cs 201 868 author wagner, betty jane.
The mere wife is getting a ton of acclaim, and justly so. The king of the danes hrothgar sends beowulf on this mission to kill the grotesque monster grendel. Dahvana headley presents a modern retelling of the literary classic beowulf, set. Maria dahvana headleys muscular, bloodthirsty novel is a contemporary retelling of beowulf. Every night, grendel attacks king hrothgars wealthy meadhall, heorot, killing danish warriors and sometimes even eating them. Hrothgar was a great warrior in his time, but now hes an old king and cant seem to protect his people. And these have actually been ascribed mainly in the original tale to beowulf himself. The dragon focused on beowulf so the battle was easier for young and strong wiglaf, who gave the dragon a deadly blow. More an homage to that novel than a direct retelling, smiths impressively sprawling tale of the belsey and kipps families shares plenty with forsters original work, including its most basic. There have also been a number of novels that, like gardners grendel, attempt to give a new spin to the beowulf story.
Beowulf formally presents all the treasures that hrothgar gave to him to king hygelac, explaining that these treasures belonged to hrothgars brother heorogar. The gifts include a boarframed standard, a helmet, a mailshirt, a sword, and four horses. But before the beast could open its mouth, beowulf put grendel in an arm lock no man or beast. The beowulf manuscript above is thought to be approximately 1,000. Maria dahvana headleys muscular, bloodthirsty novel is a contemporary retelling of beowulf from the. When he turns his talents to retelling beowulf, the earliest epic in british literature, the result is a work that combines extensive knowledge with a marvelous strain of pure fun. List of translations and artistic depictions of beowulf. Jul 22, 2018 theres a vitally important word in the epic tale of beowulf and, according to maria dahvana headley, its been translated incorrectly for a very long time. When beowulf is an old man, however, a thief disturbs a barrow, or mound, where a great dragon lies guarding a horde of treasure. The mere wife on apple books apple books apple apple.
A study in honor by claire odell is a spin on the adventures of sherlock holmes by sir arthur. With battlebold words ancient poets sang the clash between beowulf and grendel. How can you appreciate beowulf when you have no idea what its saying if youve ever sat down with the epic poem and found yourself scratching your head then this bundled book is just for you. He rules wisely for fifty years, bringing prosperity to geatland. Beowulf book charlotte mecklenburg library bibliocommons.
Sep 27, 20 there are numerous modern retellings of beowulf, a sort of book that sits somewhere between adaptation and translation. Tolkien, author and merton professor of anglosaxon at university of oxford, who in his 1936 lecture to the british academy criticised his contemporaries excessive interest in its historical implications. Tolkien said that the dragon in beowulf is one of only two true dragons in all of literature the other being fafnir. And i think the story of beowulf is a story about a man who wants. Is it absolutely necessary to be familiar with beowulf to enjoy this book. Its creation dates to between the 8th and the 11th century, the only surviving manuscript dating to circa 1010. The mere wife is an epic retelling for too long the old english poem has long been perceived as a masculine text, says maria dahvana headley.
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