Beowulf

Beowulf
Begin: 11/27/07
End: 11/29/07
Quality: Eight out of Ten.
Reason: Unread.
Genre: Epics. World Literature. Saxon Literature.
Original Language: Old English.
Date of Publication: 1010.
Fog Index: 11.5/63% are harder.
Flesch Index: 59.9/66% are harder.
Flesch-Kincaid Index: 10.2/52% are harder.
Complex Words: 7%/87% have more.
Number: Third?
Synopsis: King Hroogar builds this great hall but unfortunately the noise that he and his people make irritate the monster Grendel, who then comes and decimates many of them. Beowulf hears of this and comes to slay Grendel. Once this is accomplished, Grendel’s mother comes seeking vengeance. Once Beowulf kills her, he is hailed as a hero and returns to his own land. He eventually becomes King there and dies fighting a dragon.
Thoughts: Well, I bought this when I discovered that Neil Gaiman was working on the screenplay for a Beowulf movie. I didn’t actually read it until after seeing the movie. I remember watching the movie and remember the plot when I read it in college and then they completely alter it. I wanted to see exactly what the text said. And so I read it.

I thought it was very good. I got the Seamus Heaney translation. It was a very quick read. The only real issue that I had with it, due to my very modern sentiments, was that I wish that there was more descriptions of the monsters. I don’t really know what else to say about it so I guess I’ll end here.