Annotated bibliography for an international student

Published under category: Writing Ideas | 2015-05-19 11:55:54 UTC

Context: Writing annotated bibliographies

Acker, Paul. "Horror and the Maternal in" Beowulf"." PMLA (2006): 702-716. Print. The author in this work analyzes the characters and their deeds as they transpire in the medieval poem. The author is an accredited professor of English, doubling up as an acclaimed author and editor of poetic literature. The author’s extensive analysis depicts the poet’s intentions, which are to portray monsters and their impact on the society. The monsters in the poem are created in a fictive society. They include Grendel, his mother and the dragon among others. I will use this source to show how the female characters in the poem, such as Grendel’s mother, who is portrayed as the main antagonist, contrasts the feminine ideals that were embraced in the Anglo Saxon period. This source is creditable as the author is a professor of English whose critical analysis helps strengthen and explain the portrayal of some of the women characters as atrocious and thus monsters in the society. Albano, Robert A. "The role of women in Anglo-Saxon culture: Hildeburh in Beowulf and a curious counterpart in the Volsunga Saga." English language notes 32.1 (1994): 1-10. This article discusses the roles and obligations that women in the Anglo-Saxon culture had. The women then were very conservative and always put in effort to take care of their families and husbands. The author critically analyses Hildeburh character as it is depicted in the poem. Hildeburh who was Danish, played her role as a peace weaver when she married the king of Jutes namely Finn. I will use this source to help put into perspective the type of society that existed during that Anglo Saxon period. The society then expected certain individuals to carry a burden for the benefit of the entire community, for example to end a dispute or war between two communities, the selected woman had to accept the hand in marriage of the rival King. Through this way, peace would be upheld. This source is credible as Roberts crucial analyses support the observation regarding the influence that women had, which cannot be understated. Alfano, Christine. "The issue of feminine monstrosity: A reevaluation of Grendel's Mother." Comitatus: A Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies 23.1 (1992). Print. In her work, Christine argues that the original Beowulf as written in the Anglo Saxon era portrayed Grendel’s mother as a female warrior. It references the original poem and blames translators and critics for having labeled Grendel’s mother as a monstrous feminine character. According to later translations as the author protests, the character has been redefined and the literature works that we access now label Grendel’s mother as a cruel and outrageous woman. The earlier version starting from the Old English edition termed Grendel’s mother as Ides, meaning lady. Subsequent translations label the mother as a monstrous woman who kept grief as a result of war wounds in her mind, a monstrous ogress who was lamenting the loss of her son and as a result sought revenge. These translations contradict the viewpoint that the mother was originally an outrageous woman by implying that the current texts might be different from the original work as a result of modification during translation. Christine is an accredited author whose analysis I will use to show that Grendel’s mother is today regarded as an antagonist. Chance, Jane. "The Structural Unity of Beowulf: The Problem of Grendel’s Mother." New Readings on Women in Old English Literature (1990): 248-61. Print. Chance in her analysis of the poem, discusses the disparity between the feminine ideal and Grendel's mother. Women in Old English literature were depicted as pillars of the society. They were mandated with maintaining a structural unity in the society. However, if they acted different then this unity would be disrupted. In order to expose this, Chance analyses the fight the mother had with Beowulf and argues that it was what instigated the fight between Grendel and Beowulf as well as with the dragon. I will use her analysis to show how females are portrayed as being manipulative and having influence over males in the medieval era. This source is creditable as its views concur with the observation that women characters influenced their husbands and male counterparts to act in a manner that supported their own personal schemes. Crossley-Holland, Kevin, and Heather O'Donoghue, eds. Beowulf. Oxford University Press, 1999. Print. The two authors who work as a translator and editor respectively translate the original work written in the Anglo Saxon period. They employ considerable editorial tools as evident from a critical introduction of the events as they unfold in the poem. Being translators, they are faced with the difficult task of reproducing the literal work as it was written in the original text without any major alterations. I will use this source, as despite the challenges and ignoring the minor translational changes here and there, they authors are able to produce an acclaimed translation that helps give a clearer detail of the events as they transpired in the poem especially from the women characters. The source is creditable as the authors are accredited and well experienced. Earl, James Whitby. Thinking about Beowulf. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1994. Print. The author in his work examines the originality of the literary work and contests that it could have been a fictional work of art and not necessarily one depicting customs of a historical society. He argues that the poem cannot be dated, as it was believed to have been originally orally narrated. Therefore, depictions of the women in the poem can be taken as mere fiction. This source is creditable as since the author recounts the actions of the characters and compares them to the traditions practiced in the Anglo Saxon period and their correlation with the reader and current cultures. I will employ this source to illustrate that despite the vast difference in time, the Anglo Saxon women can be compared to the modernized women in the sense that their influence in the community has significant impacts. This source is credible as makes it possible to understand the culture that these Anglo Saxons practiced and consequently understand their responsibilities and actions. In addition, it also becomes possible to associate those traditions and beliefs with the ideals of the modern day woman. Ferrante, Joan M.. Woman as image in medieval literature, from the twelfth century to Dante. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985. Print. The author in this work combines her knowledge of medieval literature to demonstrate and analyze the prejudice that women characters face from male poets. I will use this source whose argument is that women are supposed to be the pillar and fosters of unity and harmony in the society, however instead they are depicted as having philosophical and psychological conflicts, consequently, being detested by men. As a result, most medieval literature depicts them as the instigators of conflict. This source is credible as it supports the observation of characters such as Grendel’s mother as the source of conflict resulting to the wars between the main protagonist and the adversaries in the poem. There are other women as well who are depicted as violent instead of being gracious, kind and good hostesses, and result to using weapons as in the case of Thryth who slayed anyone who wandered through her hallways. Kliman, Bernice W. "Women in Early English Literature,“Beowulf” to the “Ancrene Wisse”." Nottingham Medieval Studies 21.1 (1977): 32-49. Print. The author examines characters from Beowulf and Ancrene Wisse and draws similarities and differences. In both texts, feminine characters are depicted as emotional, scheming and dominant. I will use this source to illustrate that in the case of Beowulf, some of the women are portrayed as being atrocious as in the case of Grendel’s mother, instigating chaos and hostility for their own selfish reasons. There is also the case of Thryth who also appears to be ruthless and shows disregard for life. However, she is contrasted with Grendel’s mother who is a monster in nature whereas Thryth is human. Kliman is an acclaimed author who in this work explores the manner in which women were portrayed in the medieval times and as result renders the source creditable Mitchell, Bruce, and Fred C. Robinson. A guide to Old English. 5th ed. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1992. Print. These two authors retranslate the tale of Beowulf as told from the subsequent poems. They too face the dilemmas faced by other translators of trying to maintain the original context as written by the poet. The source is creditable as the authors uphold excellence in demonstrating and explaining the characters in a more comprehensive and clear manner helping the reader to understand the customs and traditions of the people of the medieval era. I will employ the source to show the depiction of women as influential and manipulative. In addition, they help bring out other characters in the poem as well. Murphy, Michael. "Vows, boasts and taunts, and the role of women in some medieval literature." English Studies 66.2 (1985): 105-112. Print. Murphy in this essay demonstrates how women were portrayed in the Anglo Saxon era. He argues that women were viewed in contempt during that period. He quotes a popular legend that talked of a woman who made a vow not to remove her shift until a particular city had been captured during a siege. However, the war took longer than estimated and by the time her husband whom she was fervently devoted to won the war and claimed the city, her shift had become “isabelline”. This illustrates the manner in which women were viewed in the middle ages considered civilized. They were comically disregarded as opposed to those hailing from the earlier eras such as that in which the poem was written. I will employ this source to show how in the ‘Beowulf era’, the Anglo Saxon women acted as peacemakers and peace weavers by accepting to partake in social traditions such as marriage among rival tribes as well embracing and taking care of visitors despite being of rival tribes. Thus, they were taken as serious and influential people with reason to cause major impact. In contrast, their counterparts were taken less seriously as their behaviors were despised or taken in contempt. The source is creditable as Murphy is a recognized author with vast knowledge in English studies. Porter, Dorothy Carr. "The Social Centrality of Women in Beowulf: A New Context." The Heroic Age 5 (2001). Print. In this paper, Dorothy examines the roles that women characters played in the poem. Among them is the role of being good hostesses, monsters as well as peace weavers in the society. The source is creditable as it uses examples of characters such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, who are depicted as the two women who were queens and played their roles outstandingly. This was especially during functions or visits by important guests, where they ensured that the food and drink was flowing and also made sure that everyone was having a great time. As an example, Dorothy notes this where queen Wealhtheow offers the cup to her husband, then the knights and finally Beowulf. Her anthropological analysis exemplifies the significant role that women played or were expected to perform in the society. I will use this source as it demonstrates comprehensively their main significance in the poem as influential both politically and in family matters. Zesmer, David M. Guide to English literature from Beowulf through Chaucer and medieval drama. Ed. Stanley B. Greenfield. Greenwood Press, 1982. Print. This work attempts to give a survey of the literature that originated in the medieval era as well as help understand or explain the perspectives of critics who have criticized such works. The source is creditable as it compiles annotated bibliographies, which have been cautiously prepared to compliment the main text. I will use the source to show that through the author’s views, it becomes clear what kind of society the literatures portray and what sort of behavior the people, notably the women, exhibited during such times. Women played various roles among them catering to their husbands and being devoted to their families. Such an example is queen Hygd, who is portrayed as an attentive hostess as evident when she takes it upon herself to move through the spacious building with mead-cups, attending to the people, carrying flagons of drinks to the hands of the Hæthnas. On the other hand, there are some female characters that are shown to have let emotional problems overcome their consciousness and become trouble and eventually war perpetrators. These are for example Grendel’s mother and Thryth. Zesmer also analyses other characters from other literary works, which originated from around the same medieval era. He draws comparisons and contrasts in their behaviors as depicted in the texts. ORDER PLAGIARISM FREE PAPER