Poetry (choose 2 or 3)
Short Fiction (choose 1)
- Excerpts from Beowulf translated by Burton Raffel
- Excerpts from Grendel by John Gardner
Short Fiction (choose 1 or 2)
Multimedia (choose 2)
The library also recommends:
Documentaries/Movies
- "Secrets of the Viking Sword" from PBS NOVA
- "Vikings" from PBS NOVA
- "Vikings Uncovered" from PBS
- "Star Wars: A New Hope"
Short Videos
Websites
Articles
- "J.R.R. Tolkien Translation of Beowulf to be Published" from The Guardian
- Beowulf: Context from SparkNote (Good, easy-to read summary of history of the poem itself/manuscript and context (conquests, heroes, etc.))
- Anglo-Saxon and Germanic Culture: The Historical Setting of Beowul (Not entirely sure of the author/source, but a good, short easily jigsaw-ed article with sections on Anglo-Saxons, warrior-kings, paganism, etc.)
- Placing Beowulf in History from Student Resources in Context (Focused mainly on the history of and dating the manuscript, based on literary clues)
- Beowulf from Gale Resources in Context (Very short and simple article about the plot, history of manuscript, themes and enduring impact)
- Beowulf from Myths and Legends of the World (Includes a 2 paragraph context section, and then a longer plot summary.)
- Why Read Beowulf? by Robert Yeager (National Endowment of the Humanities, Mar/Apr 1999) (Largely about the history/authorship/dating of the work itself, but also discusses the appeal of its themes, and why it has endured)
- Norse Mythology from Myths and Legends of the World (Medium-length rundown of how these stories were written down, major figures and themes)
- James Bond as Literary Descendant of Beowulf from DISCovering Authors (Literary criticism)
- Beowulf: New Light on the Dark Ages from History Today (Archaeological and historical evidence)
Books
- Beowulf by Gareth Hinds (graphic novel)
Historical Nonfiction (choose 1)
- "Monomyth" from Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
Contemporary Nonfiction (choose 1 or 2)