The Song of Beowulf, Rendered into English Prose

by Robert Kay Gordon

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Genres: Poetry, History, Classics

128 pages, Hardcover

First published August 9, 2015

Reviews

[Mimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Old English epic poem about a warrior named Beowulf who slays monsters in his youth and old age.
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I read this story for an Early Brit Lit class. I ended up listening to an audiobook because I was struggling to keep my focus on the words on the page. I've analyzed it to death, especially in the religious context of the story.

I'll do a proper analysis of the Beowulf another day.
It was okay. It wasn't my favorite old English poem that I've read so far for my Early Brit class.

[erl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enduring story, full of monsters and battles. This version is written in prose. Translating poetry is next to impossible. The translator must choose between staying true to the rhyme scheme or staying true to the literal meaning of the words. Still, I would love to have a feel for what the rhyme structure of the original is. Gordon touches a little on this structure in his forward, but not enough for my taste. In the end, Beowulf has all the glory and danger that have fascinated humans for centuries.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beowulf is perhaps better heard than read (this is likely how the story was first shared). It's a little repetitive at times but really picks up with the entry of the dragon.

There's murders, vengeance, problematic Christian righteousness and tonnes of toxic masculinity. I liked it.

Favourite quote: "He lived honourably, never did he slay his hearth companions in his drunkenness". The bar was low.

It's short, it's an important text, worth your consideration.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blackstone Audio; Robertson Dean, narrator.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a growing appreciation for this book, but i doubt I’ll ever truly appreciate it as I should.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heroic saga's really don't give much space for understanding the side of the foes. All the Christianity leaking into the story is also somewhat troubling, but that happened hundreds of years ago.

[Donald Owens II · Rating 4 out of 5]

A prose translation will never get 5 stars from me, but this was beautifully done; better than other prose versions I've seen.

[Lisa Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the Dover Thrift edition.

[Dan Absalonson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was pretty epic. Fights against monsters and a dragon? I'm in! I think it helped a lot that I recently finished the Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien, so I was used to the older style of English. I feel like this story is the grandfather of fantasy literature, as The Lord of the Rings is the Father of fantasy. I listened to the beginning of the story in the original old English version and it sounds like some of the languages in The Lord of the Rings.

[Erica Baxter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this way back in college, but it was fun revisiting it now, many years later. Part of the joy in the reading is knowing that this is such an old (likely composed between 700 and 750 CE) piece of writing that has enduring through the centuries.

And I do appreciate a story with monsters and dragons!!!

After all these centuries, Beowulf is still worthy of a read.

[Patrick Santino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good as usual, but felt too quick this time through. Listened to much of it while exhausted xc skiing, so I didn’t absorb much translation nuance besides that this one was relatively easy (compared to Tolkien’s). I was struck this time how much happens after he dies.