Seminar om Beowulf

Editionsfilolog Vibeke A. Pedersen, Grundtvigs Værker, Grundtvig Centeret:

Velkomst

Ph.d. Philip Lavender:

Introductions to Beowulf: Battling with the Basics

A brief introduction to Beowulf, one of the most commented on poems in the English language, is no easy task. It is not made any easier by the fact that there is great disagreement over many of the most basic questions which one puts to this text, not least when and where it was written. In this talk I will present some of the most basic ambiguities in our knowledge of the poem (as well as some of the proposed solutions) and argue for the value of such conundrums in ensuring the poem's continuing mystique.

Associate Professor Brad Busbee, Samford University:

Grundtvig and the Living Words of Beowulf

This presentation approaches Grundtvig’s interpretation of Beowulf through his own unique perspective of medieval poetry as living art conveying truths relevant for modern man. First, I will provide an overview of “Et Par Ord” to give a glimpse of what scholars believed about the poem and what uses they had for it when Grundtvig first commented on the poem in 1815. Then, I will outline Grundtvig’s increasing understanding and appraisal of it in his later writings, especially from 1817 and 1820, giving special attention to the aspects of his interpretation that have had an enduring influence. These aspects will be set against current trends in Beowulf scholarship in order to provide a view of the importance and nature of Grundtvig’s pioneering work on the poem.

Cand.polit, civilingeniør Ejnar Hauberg:

Samfundsmæssige og individuelle værdier i Beowulf. Hvordan overfører man værdier til et samfund?