The earliest extant heroic epic in any european vernacular, beowulf is considered the most important poem in old english. He also represents the ideal lord and vassal, generous to his own men while fulfilling all the forms of courtesy at court. Heaneys performance reminds us that beowulf, written near. The subject of the poem is the battles of beowulf, the geatish hero, in youth and old age. New york times best seller and whitebread book of the year, nobel laureate seamus heaneys new translation of beowulf comes to life in this. Download hundreds of free audio books, mostly classics, to your mp3 player or computer. Beowulf cd audio cd abridged, audiobook, cd by anonymous author, j. Gummere apparently follows closely the anglosaxon original, even to the. Beowulf itself is one of the classics of epic poetry.
Beowulf audiobook old english epic poem internet archive. This man is beowulf, whose heroic dragonslaying deeds were sung in the courts of anglosaxon england more than a thousand years ago. Read in english by clarinetcarrot the most famous piece of old english literature, beowulf was written by an unknown poet at least years ago and tells how the eponymous hero who is a great warrior defeats the monster grendel and his mother. Sep 14, 2016 beowulf free full audiobook online listen authors unknown language west saxon dialect of old english date c. Plus, youll get an additional audiobook per month after trial. Beowulf tells the story of a mysterious young warrior who saves the speardanes from the terrible monster grendel and his venomous mother.
Beowulf, in heroic fashion, bests grendel in combat, then follows grendel back to his lair to finish the job. Originally written in old english, this translation by francis barton gummere updates it. Germanic paganism and the christianity of the early middle ages sprung one of. Nobel laureate seamus heaneys new translation of beowulf comes to life in this gripping audio. It may be the oldest surviving long poem in old english. This is a short but beautiful book, and the gummere translation really captures the feel of the old english. Composed toward the end of the first millennium of our era, beowulf is the elegiac narrative of the adventures of beowulf, a scandinavian hero who saves the danes from the seemingly invincible monster grendel and, later, from grendels mother.
Below, youll find great works of fiction, poetry and nonfiction, by such authors as twain, tolstoy. Stories of beowulf told to the children internet archive. It may be the oldest surviving long poem in old english and is commonly cited as one of the most important works of old english literature. Germanic paganism and the christianity of the early middle ages sprung one of the worlds supremely great pieces of literature. Beowulf university of oxford podcasts audio and video. Beowulf first rescues the royal house of denmark from two marauding monsters, then returns to rule his people for 50 years, ultimately losing his life in a battle to defend the geats from a dragons rampage. Francis barton gummere translates this beautiful poem. Beowulf stands as one of the first and greatest works of english literature. Download this important work of anglosaxon literature and the oldest surviving epic poem of old english. Heaneys performance reminds us that beowulf, written near the. Dec 03, 2017 librivox recording of beowulf, translated by francis barton gummere 18551919.
Heaneys translation of beowulf for several years, but after sitting down with it. Listen to the beowulf being read in original old english. A great story to be listened to, this audio book is well read by tad e. After coming to the aid of the king of the danes, whose mead hall is under constant attack by the monster grendel, beowulf slays grendels mother and goes on to become the king of the geats. New york times best seller and whitebread book of the year, nobel laureate seamus heaneys new translation of beowulf comes to life in this gripping audio. The beowulfpoet, in a sense, is more of a collective noun than an individual author. Thus begins the battle between good and evil, for lying in wait and anxious to challenge the ogre grendel is a young man, strongwilled and firehearted. Composed toward the end of the first millennium of our era, beowulf is the elegiac narrative of the adventures of. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Beowulf was composed by an anonymous anglosaxon poet. Beowulf, the epic tale of adventure that follows beowulf as he battles grendel, grendels mother, and later becomes king. The brave warrior, beowulf, comes to the aid of king hrothgar when he hears that grendel, a horrible monster, is terrorizing the inhabitants of hart hall.
Jan 01, 2006 the earliest extant heroic epic in any european vernacular, beowulf is considered the most important poem in old english. Beowulf is an oldenglish epic poem telling the tale of the scandinavian hero, beowulf and his battles. Hear the epic battle between the hero beowulf and the monster grendel, and then grendels mother. The language arrived in britonpreviously inhabited by celtic speakerssometime in the fifth century, though whether the anglosaxon invasion was a hostile takeover by germanic mercenaries or a slow population drift that introduced a. Also, if you want to hear what old english sounds like, check out 2. It is one of the most important works of anglosaxon literature. Heaneys translation is easy to read, very straightforward in language, and the accompanying essay helps you see how much work goes into preserving some of the form of the original in the modern translation. New york times best seller and whitebread book of the year, nobel laureate seamus.
The main character, beowulf, proves himself a hero as he battles against supernatural demons and beasts. Beowulf translation by seamus heaney highbridge audio. With the original and heaneys version printed side by side, it affected the way i read it. Download this important work of anglosaxon literature and the oldest surviving epic. Beowulf unabridged beowulf unabridged audiobook, by c.
Project gutenberg offers 61,992 free ebooks to download. I read this aloud to my son, who is very into monsters and knights and such, as bedtime reading and he loved it, despite the archaic language. In the figure of beowulf, the scandinavian warrior, and his struggles against monsters, the unknown author depicts the life and outlook of a pagan age. Mar 08, 2005 written ten centuries ago, it celebrates the character and exploits of beowulf, a young nobleman of the geats, a people of southern sweden. Beowulf was originally written in old english by an unknown anglo.
Mar 01, 2016 audio books free download free audio books download. Beowulf is commonly known as the oldest surviving long poem in old english, consisting of an impressive 3182 alliterative lines. Download as many audiobooks, ebooks, language audio courses, and language eworkbooks as you want during the free trial and its all yours to keep even if you cancel during the free trial. This audio book takes you on a journey back to the dark ages, and gives you an experience youll never forget. The service works on any major device including computers, smartphones, music players, ereaders, and tablets. This audio book is the translated by irish poet and nobel laureate seamus heaney and he also narrates the audio book which runs 2 hrs. Commonly cited as one of the most important works of anglosaxon literature, beowulf is an epic poem that traces the exploits of the titular hero. Enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app.
Beowulf may be recognized in popular adaptations for its monster fights, but there are also complicated discussions on honor, duty, legacy, greed. After beowulf slays him, grendels mother attacks the hall and is then also defeated. Heaneys performance reminds us that beowulf, written near the turn of another millennium, was intended to be heard not read. Mar 29, 2010 listen to beowulf audiobook by anonymous. Written ten centuries ago, it celebrates the character and exploits of beowulf, a young nobleman of the geats, a people of southern sweden. Old english to a modern voice is poignantly refreshing. Gummere apparently follows closely the anglosaxon original, even to the alliterative verse and kennings, so that listening to it gives one the illusion of listening to the real poem.
The brave warrior, beowulf, comes to the aid of king hrothgar. Beowulf free full audiobook online listen authors unknown language west saxon dialect of old english date c. The title character is a warrior of superhuman strength who accomplishes glorious deeds to honor his king. Old english, the english of beowulf, is almost a foreign tongue. Jan 01, 2010 in the poem, beowulf, a hero of the geats in scandinavia, comes to the help of hro.
Overall, this free audiobook of beowulf does the job well enough as an introduction to interested. Beowulf recounts the story of the valiant warrior of geats who comes to the aid of his neighbor, king hrothgar whose mead hall is being attacked by a dreadful creature called grendel. Usage attributionnoncommercial topics beowulf, anglosaxon, epic poem, poetry, audiobook. This translation uses alliterative verse similar to the old english original, and uses some words that are now or perhaps always were very obscure. Tolkien, author of the lord of the rings, delivered a famous lecture to the british academy in 1936 in which he maintained that. Originally written in old english, this translation by francis barton gummere updates it to modern english.
This audio book deserves 6 stars, and i 100% recommend this. The song of roland is acknowledged today as the first masterpiece of french vernacular literature and one of the worlds greatest epic poems. When beowulf arrives at hrothgars hall, he discovers that the hall is beset by grendel, an evil creature that kills and pillages with impunity. Beowulf is one of the best books in old english literature that youll ever read. Beowulf sets the standard for epic poetry in the english language, and seamus heaneys translation from the original anglosaxon aka. Wonderfully grim, austere, beautiful beowulf this is a great audiobook beowulf.
Beowulf was originally written in old english by an unknown anglosaxon poet sometime between the 8th and 11th centuries. Librivox recording of beowulf, translated by francis barton gummere 18551919. A new york times bestseller and whitbread book of the year. Composed toward the end of the first millennium of our era.
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