( First off, sorry if there's already a thread on this I'm missing, I looked, but didn't see one.) Well well, Beowulf. I'm in the middle of this book right now, for my british literature class. But I'm afraid I have a confession to make. I'm kind of disappointed in this experience. Not necessarily in the story itself, I mean, come on, this is Anglo-Saxon epic poetry from over a thousand years ago. But mainly in the fact that I just can't love it. I want to, I want to sooo badly, but man, I just can't get involved in it. I know that it should feel different than any regular book; obviously the translation I have is going to effect it, too, and just the fact of how old it is, how it came from oral history, etc. etc. etc. makes it likely to feel very foreign and even unnatural to the modern reader, but I still think I should be enjoying it more than I am. I don't WANT to be bored by Beowulf! It's shameful. But it's the truth, and I admit it. Well, now that I've gotten that off my chest . . . any thoughts?
the old times were fucked up man! Thier prose is very tedious. If you think Beowulf is bad, try the Illiad.
Beowulf wasnt bad, i did not mind it but the illiad was terrible, but i enjoyed the odyssey so i guess its what you like
I read it all in one night instead of taking my time, and I really liked it. Actually, what happened was that I'd done a bunch of coke and needed something to do because I was all jumpy, but I enjoyed it, anyway....
Well, I actually enjoyed the Illiad and Odyssey. They were read together in classes, though, and that's always easier. I need it on tape...a tape of my teacher reading it would be AMAZING, he has the best old-english voice. Charisma: through the roof. I suppose it probably might be better to get through in one night on coke, or speed or something...but I haven't got any of that just lying around. Maybe I'll take some ginseng/green tea pills...that shoudl make for an interesting english essay on William Wordsworths' poem about Milton, even if it doesn't help with the Anglo Saxons. Wow, I'm pretty fucked up, aren't I.
