Môn học nhằm cung cấp các khái niệm cơ bản về văn học, và các tác phẩm văn học Anh-Mỹ tiêu biểu. Với phương pháp trích giảng, sinh viên vận dụng các kiến thức về lịch sử xã hội Anh-Mỹ đã học vào việc phân tích và cảm nhận tác phẩm. Trong quá trình học sinh viên có cơ hội thể hiện sự hiểu biết của mình về các tác phẩm và tác giả bằng cách tham gia vào các vở kịch, thảo luận, viết bài luận phân tích.
Trang 1HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITYMID -TERM TEST ON ENGLISH AND AMERICANLITERATURE
FOR STUDENTS OF ENGLISH (No 3)Subject Code: EN16
Full name: Date of birth: Group:
Student Code:
MÃ ĐỀ SỐ 03I Answer the following questions: (50 points )
1 What do you know about the contents of “The Song of Beowulf”? 2 What is the historical background of the Anglo-Norman period?
(The file sent will be named after each student’s name Plagiarism will lead to failure)
The protagonist Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, king of theDanes, whose great hall, Heorot, is plagued by the monster Grendel Beowulf killsGrendel with his bare hands, then kills Grendel's mother with a giant's sword that hefound in her lair.
Later in his life, Beowulf becomes king of the Geats, and finds his realm terrorized by adragon, some of whose treasure had been stolen from his hoard in a burial mound Heattacks the dragon with the help of his thegns or servants, but they do not succeed.Beowulf decides to follow the dragon to its lair at Earnanæs, but only his young Swedishrelative Wiglaf dares to join him Beowulf finally slays the dragon, but is mortallywounded in the struggle He is cremated and a burial mound by the sea is erected in hishonour.
Trang 22 The Anglo Norman (1066 CE- 1300 CE) period marked the end of the Germanic Saxonrule in England On 14th October, 1066 CE, William the Conqueror won the Battle ofHastings and became the first Norman King of England
a) The Conflict between the Normans and the Anglo Saxons
In 1066 CE, the Anglo Saxon king Edward the Confessor (1042-1066) died without alegitimate heir As a result, the Anglo Saxon parliament also known as witenagemotdeclared Harold Godwinson or Harold II as the next king of England He also became thefirst English king to be crowned at the Westminster Abbey However, this decision of thecouncil was not welcomed by everyone.
In Norway, Harold III or Harald Hardrada considered himself to be the rightful king ofthe English throne Interestingly, his claim was not without reason and was based on adeal between the Danish Anglo-Saxon king Harthacanute (1040-1042) and the formerNorwegian king Magnus.
On the other hand, just like Harold III, the Duke of Normandy, William I also sawhimself at the rightful king of England His claim was founded upon Aethelred's marriageto Norman Emma that had formed an alliance between the Anglo Saxons and theNormans With Harold Godwinson ascending the English throne, the alliance between theNormans and the Anglo Saxons was negatively impacted.
b) The Battle of Stamford Bridge- 25th September 1066 CE
In Order to claim the English throne, Norwegian Harald Hardrada attacked HaroldGodwinson in the battle of Stamford Bridge The English army defeated the Norwegiansin a fierce battle The battle of Stamford Bridge also marked the end of the age of theVikings raids Consequently, the English army was significantly depleted and exhausted -a factor that would later cost them dearly.
c) The Battle of Hastings - 14th October 1066 CE
The Normans under the leadership of William the Conqueror had aimed to attack HaroldGodwinson earlier but had been unable to do so due to bad weather This proved to be ablessing in disguise for the Normans as the Battle of Stamford Bridge had alreadyfatigued and depleted the English army and had made them an easier target to attack SixHundred ships and Seven Thousand men assembled from France and Germany to attack avulnerable English army.
On the 14th of October, 1066 CE , the Battle of Hastings began at Senlac Hill Despitebeing extraordinary fierce and almost driving the Norman army, the Anglo Saxons wereultimately defeated As a result, William I ( also known as William the Conqueror) was
Trang 3crowned the first Norman king of England on 25th December 1066 This marked thebeginning of the Anglo Norman period.
The Norman conquest marked the beginning of the Anglo Norman period While theAnglo Norman period transformed the Anglo Saxon literature, the Norman conquest didnot bring about dramatic social changes The Normans respected English institutions,cultures, and customs and even considered themselves as English The Anglo Normanperiod exposed England to a more international European culture that was at the timebeing dominated by French literature and sensibilities.
d) List of Kings during the Anglo Norman period (1066 - 1327)
* Below is a list of Kings who ruled the English throne during the Anglo Norman period.
William I or William the Conqueror (1066-1087): The very first Norman king of England.He was also known as William the Bastard It was him who began the DomesdaySurvey to document all the property and material possessions his kingdom contained.William II or William Rufus (1087-1100): An unpopular and cruel king who was killed
while hunting He was never married.
Henry I or Henry Beauclerc (1100-1135): He was the fourth son of William I and was
popularly known as the 'Lion of Justice' for providing England with good laws Hisdaughter Matilda became his successor She was married to Geoffrey Plantagenet.
Stephen (1135-1154): Being a woman, Matilda did not succeed the English throne after
Henry I's death Stephen was a legitimate grandson but a weak ruler During his reign,England was constantly raided and attacked by the Scots and the Welsh It was alsoduring Stephen's rule that Matilda invaded from Anjou in a civil war called the Anarchy.The war ended with the Treaty of Westminster according to which Matilda's son Henrywas named the next king of England.
* The following Plantagenet Kings ruled England during the Anglo Norman period.
Henry II (1154-1189): Henry II was Matilda's son He was a capable ruler and a brilliant
soldier who ruled most regions of France He also laid the foundation of the English jurysystem It was Henry II who had a feud with Thomas Becket over the rights of theChurch, which eventually led to Becket's murder by Henry's followers.
Richard I (1189-1199): Also known as 'Lionheart', Richard I was the third son of Henry
II He rarely stayed in England and spent most of his time and country's money of foreignmilitary ventures Richard I died without any children.
Trang 4John (1199-1216): He is often termed as the worst king of England While Richard I was
the third son, John was the fourth son of Henry II He was a cruel king notorious forraising taxes till the whole nation united against it.
Henry III (1216-1272): Ascended the English at the young age of 9 years He was a
religious man who devoted his life to religion, art, and learning.* Kings of Wales and England in the Anglo Norman Period
Edward I or Edward Longshanks (1272-1307) : He was also known as the Hammer of
the Scots He wanted to unify Britain and was married to Eleanor.
Edward II (1307-1327): He was a weak ruler and an incompetent soldier who was
defeated by the Scots at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 He was deposed in 1327 andwas succeeded by Edward III.
II Comments (50 points)
What are your comments on the first masterpiece of English literature - “The Song ofBeowulf ”?
- Beowulf is an epic poem of more than 3,100 lines originally written in Old English (alsocalled Anglo-Saxon) about a Scandinavian prince of the same name It was composed andrecorded in Britain between the seventh and tenth centuries by an unknown author.Though the specific characters and plot are mostly fictional, the poem paints a historicalpicture of sixth-century Danish, Swedish, and Germanic peoples.
- Beowulf is the first of the epics in English poetry The story deals with three episodeswhich are connected together only by the central figure of the hero himself Beowulf is nonational epic like Homer's Iliad The story is mere folklore.
- Beowulf cannot be a national epic, for neither its characters, nor its events belong toAnglo-Saxon England It may be concluded that Beowulf is an adaptation ofScandinavian saga in Anglo-Saxon poetry It has a foreign basis but a national form Theatmosphere of the poem and the outlook on life embodied in Beowulf show a curiousfusion of the Pagan and Christian elements Beowulf holds a special position in theAnglo-Saxon literature because it is the only complete extant epic of its kind in theancient Germanic language It is a heroic poem celebrating the exploits of a great warrior.Its style is elevated with concrete phrases, picturesque compounds, permanent epithetsand uniform stately movement of rhythmic language, richness of details and digressions.- Beowulf is not a true epic Though certain episodes and the sustained gravity of tonetend to make Beowulf a historical poem, the incidents of the plot are romantic and
Trang 5supernatural Adventures of monsters and dragons are more like a nursery tale than aheroic narrative There is no perfection of technique as in the Homeric epic.
- Writing style is forceful and expressive, conveying with an economy of words The useof compound words should be noted especially The verse is strongly rhythmical Thestressed syllables are the ones which bear the alliteration The poem has remarkableliterary qualities which lift it to the level of an epic The poem is written with a long line.The lines do not rhyme, but each line has alliteration, and the poet has a special andextensive vocabulary.
- Beowulf is s a picture of the social life of a primitive age It has a great historicalsignificance The splendor and the banquets and revelries in the court are drawn withrealism The life of the common people, who eat and drink and sleep after day's labor, tooreceives the attention of the poet Beowulf holds a special position in the Anglo-Saxonliterature because it is the only complete extant epic of its kind in the ancient Germaniclanguage The poem gives a very valuable and faithful historical record of ancientTeutonic life - their system of government, social institutions, their culture and religion,their belief and superstitions At the head of the social hierarchy of the Anglo-Saxons,there was the lord or chieftain of a clan living in a large hall of a city or a fortified place.Ceremonies are elaborate and gorgeous There is supreme respect for Kingship Womenplay a prominent part gracing feasts in ceremonies with their presence They often showpolitical wisdom Courage and loyalty are the chief virtues of men.
- Beowulf is a great warrior who loves glory and adventures in a foreign land He is giftedwith iron resolution, fearlessness and dutifulness and spirit of self-sacrifice He has theattributes of an ideal hero The poem reflects the ideal of that state of society which iscalled the heroic age The philosophy of life is Teutonic-sober, melancholy and stern Itcelebrates the heroism of a great warrior where character and actions are held up as amodel of aristocratic Virtue But an elegiac note pervades the poem At the moment ofBeowulf's supreme triumph, Hrothgar discourses on human vanity and the inexorabilityof fate.