old english – Scott J. Pearson’s Book Review

Old English Poetry: An Anthology

By Scott J. Pearson | March 28, 2020March 28, 2020 by Scott J. Pearson

Old English contains the oldest literature written in the English language. As such, it is key to understand not only historically but also linguistically. Many educated people are familiar with the epic poem Beowulf, but for most, that poem is the only source material studied before Chaucer (who writes in Middle English). This anthology fills in the gap with entertaining and enlightening poems. One cannot help but picture Anglo-Saxons sitting around the fire and sharing…

History Poetry

Beowulf

By Scott J. Pearson | February 9, 2020February 9, 2020 by Scott J. Pearson

Like many, I have not touched this work since my class on British Literature in high school. I have learned a lot since then, and my capacity for processing great literature has only increased. This book, perhaps the first great work in the English language (Old English, that is), has remained the same. Today, I read it in one afternoon and loved every minute of it. Raffel’s translation brings out the drama of the tale…