Classroom texts

22 February  reading task:
Read the introduction into Bewoulf translation  by Seamus Heaney (text below) and find aswers to the following questions.

1.      How did Sheamus Heaney develop “a fondness for the melancholy and fortitude that characterized the poetry“? Why is his “fondness” associate with studies in an American university? What is a fortitude of poetry?.

2.      How does Sheamus Heaney describe his work process in translating the poem? What were the steps in his approach?  Did he change this working method, why?

3.      What likeness did he notice in Anglo-Saxon poetry to his poems? What  can you assume from this?

4.      How do you understand the definition „spiky consonants“? How does a language impress you when you hear these spiky  sounds? What do you think of people, of communication dressed in such sound character?

5.      What is Sheamus Heaney's attitude to the Irish language? Why? What does he refer to when he speaks of “the right of voice”?

6.      How does he characterize his attitude to Irish/English language relationship? Did he have any feeling of the opposition between the languages?

7.      What does he mean when he speaks of  Celto-British Land of Cockaigne?

The text  of the Introduction is here: https://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/beowulf/introbeowulf.htm

2.

Simon Armitage translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74glI1lg1CQ










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