Books / the-beowulf-poem
Facts about The Beowulf Poem
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Despite its English setting and hero, Beowulf takes place entirely in Scandinavia, depicting events in Denmark and Geatland.
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Scholars generally date the composition of Beowulf to somewhere between the 8th and 11th centuries, with debate still ongoing.
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Three monsters serve as antagonists in Beowulf: the man-eating Grendel, his vengeful mother, and a fire-breathing dragon.
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Beowulf is an Old English epic poem of more than 3,000 lines, making it the longest surviving poem in that language.
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Written in Old English, Beowulf survives in a single manuscript known as the Nowell Codex, housed in the British Library.