The Significance of the Beowulf Poem :: Epic Beowulf essays

The Significance of the Beowulf Poem      Ã‚   There are many characteristics of the Beowulf poem that make it a significant part of the history of literature.   It is a perfect representation of how the people in eighth century England communicated, what their feelings were, and their culture.   "It gives us vital information about Old English social life and about Old English politics and about many things that scholars would like to have much more information on."(Raffel ix)   Another characteristic is that the Beowulf poem was passed down orally.   The poem contains aspects of Christianity what form it takes in the story.   It is also sort of a history of how the English language has changed in the many years from then until now. The poem also contains many mythical references and it contains   a great hero.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Beowulf is considered an artifact by many because "it is the oldest of the English long poems and may have been composed more than twelve hundred years ago."(Beowulf 19)   It deals with events of the early 6th century and is believed to have been composed between 700 and 750.   "No one knows who composed Beowulf , or why.   A single manuscript (Cotton Vitellius A XV) managed to survive Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries, and the destruction of their great libraries; 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)      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   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.

Emily Bronte’s “Wuthering Heights” Essay

The story of Heathcliff, the sadistic protagonist of Emily Bronte’s â€Å"Wuthering Heights† is so upset that Edgar Linton does not want his lovely daughter, Cathy, to hear it. Heathcliff and Cathy, two prominent characters in the novel, interact in the second half of the novel. Heathcliff’s passages reveal that the tortured character comes about from a childhood without the care of parents (33) while Cathy’s goodness (164) reflects her being raised by a loving father. The different supervision each character experienced while growing up is reflected by their behavior, showing that nurture is a greater factor over one’s personality than nature. Beginning her description of Heathcliff with the lowly word â€Å"degradation†, Nelly, the narrator, tells Lockwood how Heathcliff and Catherine (the mother of Cathy) grow more reckless daily without parental guidance. Nelly recalls these events right before Catherine is injured and stays at Thrushcross Grange for five weeks. Nelly also said that Heathcliff and Catherine â€Å"promised†¦ to grow up rude as savages.† The punishments the two received from Joseph and the Curate, Nelly notes, haven’t helped her increase the â€Å"small power† she holds over the two, due to the lack of parental guidance. It is also important to note some of the foreshadowing that occurs here: Heathcliff’s return alone in the rain foreshadows his demise. His lack of respect for the church also symbolizes his lack of will and later on immense greediness. Bronte’s genius shines throughout this passage, mixing savagery, love, symbolism, and foreshadowing all in o ne page. Nelly’s description of Cathy is spoken on a very positive note, including many of the same devices seen in Heathcliff’s passage. She says that Cathy has not seen or even heard of any bad deeds except for her â€Å"slight acts of disobedience†, and that Cathy is â€Å"amazed at the blackness of spirit† of Heathcliff. Nelly describes Cathy as a sheltered, gentle, book-loving young daughter of Edgar. In addition, Cathy is said to be extremely well mannered within this section. Edgar tries to protect his daughter from having to know about an evil soul such as Heathcliff, attempting to prevent the malicious outside force from corrupting her personality. The passage even contains Cathy crying over the miseries of someone she has only met twice so far. She also has a pretty convincing argument as to why she should meet Linton  again, foreshadowing her disobedience of her father by going to meet Linton, her only companion outside of Thrushcross Grange. This disobedience will be the main factor in her future encounters with Heathcliff. Cathy’s extreme kindness and Heathcliff’s great roughness contrast very well. Heathcliff’s description shows him as a wild, undisciplined being. Cathy, on the other hand, is portrayed as a very nice, helpful daughter and a devoted friend to Linton. Heathcliff’s lack of education (Catherine being his only educator) also differs from Cathy’s â€Å"lessons for a couple of hours† that she has. Heathcliff’s vow to â€Å"grow up as rude [as a savage]† is far from Cathy’s melancholy over not being able to meet Linton again. There is not much that is similar between the two characters, due to both of them being on opposite ends of the spectrum. This lack of similarities is what makes these two characters interesting to follow throughout the novel. The language in these passages is quite interesting. Nelly uses much harsher language in the passage with Heathcliff than the passage with Cathy, representing the behavior of the two characters. The paces of the narratives also differs, with Heathcliff’s being a more intense rate than Cathy’s, also due to their contrasting actions. Another interesting thing to note is the use of the word naughty. Both passages employ this word, showing a mild form of being disobedient, which cannot be explained by any other means other than just saying that the both have the same author and narrator: Emily Bronte and Nelly Dean, respectively. Also, as seen throughout the book, an unusal amount of referrals to doors are present, most likely to show frames within the framed narrative. Studying these two passages against each other brings one to a deeper meaning than reading each one separately. Nelly’s descriptions of Heathcliff and Cathy shows that nurture predominates over nature. Cathy, the mix between the peaceful Edgar Linton and the wild Catherine Earnshaw, shows only her positive traits, due to the fact that she was brought up by Edgar alone. Heathcliff, an orphan brought home by Mr. Earnshaw, has had his good qualities disappear through a process which Nelly calls â€Å"degradation;† because he was raised up with Hindley, who constantly thought of Heathcliff as an â€Å"other.† These two characters are so  dramatically different, even though they were both blessed with good looks and intelligence. One might argue, however, that because Bronte does not give the origins of Heathcliff, he might be born of a family with a tendency to be selfish and greedy. This idea can be countered, though, because Heathcliff was said to have â€Å"bore his degradation pretty well at first†, a quality that not many natural tyrants can boast of. Also, the fact that Cathy is the daughter of Catherine and yet shows few of the violent characteristics of her mother tells us that genes play no, or very little, role in how she behaves.

The 6 Forgotten Italian Subject Pronouns

Often, one of the first Italian language lessons beginners study is Italian subject pronouns (pronomi personali soggetto). Too often, however, theres a whole subset of Italian subject pronouns that is given scant attention, including egli, ella, esso, essa, essi, and esse. Legacy Italian Subject Pronouns Call them legacy subject pronouns or classic subject pronouns, these subject pronouns are still (infrequently) used in Italian. They typically appear only as regionalisms, in formal speech, or in literature. There are three pairs of Italian subject pronouns for the third person singular: egli/ella, lui/lei, esso/essa. The third person plural includes the pair essi/esse and the form loro, which is the same for both masculine and feminine. Egli, Lui, Esso Egli and lui are used with reference to people. Lui, especially in spoken language, can also refer to animals and things. Esso is used for animals and things. Ho parlato con il direttore e egli [but commonly lui] mi ha assicurato il suo interessamento. I spoke with the director and he assured me of his interest. Cercai di trattenere il cavallo ma esso [also lui] proseguà ¬ la corsa. I tried to hold back the horse but he continued on the course. Un importante compito vi à ¨ stato affidato; esso dovrà   essere eseguito nel miglior modo possibile. An important task was entrusted to you; it must be performed in the best way possible. Ella, Lei, Essa The form ella has already fallen into disuse, especially in spoken language, and is considered literary and formal. Analogous to lui, the form lei also refers to animals and things, especially in spoken language. The form essa (unlike its masculine counterpart) also refers to a person, but it is less commonly used and has a literary or regional character. Avverti tua sorella, forse essa [but commonly lei] non lo sa ancora. Warn your sister, maybe she still doesnt know. Ho cercato di prendere la gattina, ma essa [also lei] à ¨ scappata. I tried to hold the kitten, but she ran away. Essi, Esse The plural forms essi and esse serve to indicate people, animals, and things. Loro is used with reference to people and, especially in spoken Italian, also to refer to animals. Li ho guardati in viso, essi [or loro] abbassarono gli occhi. I looked at them in the face, but they lowered their eyes. Allingresso della villa cerano due cani; essi [or loro] stavano per mordermi. At the entrance to the villa, there were two dogs; they were waiting to bite me. Il Parlamento ha emanato nuove leggi; esse prevedono la modifica dellordinamento giudiziario. Parliament issued new laws; they anticipate the modification of the legal rule. Wherefore Art Thou, Italian Subject Pronouns? The forgotten Italian subject pronouns egli, ella, esso, essa, essi, and esse, similar to the remote past tense (passato remoto), can sometimes seem obsolete, especially since they are often ignored in modern textbooks. A former grammatical rule held that egli was a subject pronoun and lui an object pronoun. But although lui, lei, and loro tend to predominate in colloquial conversation, egli, as well as the other subject pronouns in question, can still be found in literary texts. Similar to the remote past tense, the subject pronouns egli, ella, esso, essa, essi, and esse are still a feature of southern Italian dialects. En Italiano SINGOLARE1a persona: io2a persona: tu3a persona maschile: egli, lui, esso3a persona femminile: ella, lei, essa PLURALE1a persona: noi2a persona: voi3a persona maschile: loro, essi3a persona femminile: loro, esse