Characteristics Of The Beowulf Poem

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since his name is written on one of the folios, Lawrence Nowell, the
sixteenth-century scholar, may have been responsible for Beowulf's
preservation."(Raffel ix) An interesting fact that is unique about the poem is
that "it is the sole survivor of what may have been a thriving epic tradition,
and it is great poetry."(Raffel ix)
The poem was composed and performed orally. "Old English bards, or
scops, most likely began by piecing together traditional short songs, called
heroic lays; they then gradually added to that base until the poem grew to its
present size. The verse form is the standard Old English isochronic: each line
contains for stresses; there is a strong caesura in the middle of the lines and
the resultant half lines are bound together by alliteration. Although little
Old English poetry survives, Beowulf's polished verse and reflective, allusive
development suggest that it is part of a rich poetic tradition."(Foster 501)
An aspect of the poem is the ...

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