Tips and Tricks to Reading and Understanding Beowulf and other Difficult Texts by Sarah West

Over the past few weeks, our 10th grade english class has been engaged in reading and studying our first required literary work of the year, Beowulf. Even though this epic has been translated from its original old-english form, the difficult language and anglo saxon literary elements make this text a difficult read for most students. I, for one, found it specifically challenging to decipher the plot through the hodgepodge of kennings, epithets, unfamiliar language, complicated names and a structure that most students are not used to reading. During my struggle, I came across what I believe is the most useful tool in understanding difficult texts: SparkNotes. Ironically, I, along with most of my fellow peers, had been told throughout our academic careers to avoid this incredibly effective resource, because it would have a negative effect on our reading and comprehension when substituted for the genuine text. However when used correctly, along with and the assigned text, I have found SparkNotes to be a very helpful device in deepening my understanding of the text.

When attempting to read an excerpt from Beowulf, such as the following, for the first time it can be easy to get lost in the words and be unable to understand the details of the plot:

"For him the keen-souled kinsman of Hygelac
held in hand; hateful alive
was each to other. The outlaw dire
took mortal hurt; a mighty wound
showed on his shoulder, and sinews cracked,
and the bone-frame burst. To Beowulf now
the glory was given, and Grendel thence
death-sick his den in the dark moor sought,
noisome abode: he knew too well
that here was the last of life, an end
of his days on earth."

After reading this, it is probably understood that a fight is happening between Beowulf and Grendel. However, reading the chapter summary on SparkNotes may offer a new perspective and allow the reader to better interpret the details. Now, rereading the passage with the knowledge that in this section Beowulf rips off the arm of the monster Grendel and wins the battle, which is clearly stated in the summary, it is easier to recognize the connections between the words of the text and what the text is actually trying to communicate. For example the words "a mighty wound showed on his shoulder" and "the bone-frame burst" that may have been hidden before, now stand out, obviously referring to Grendel's arm being torn off.

Similarly in The Iliad by Homer, another epic our class has begun to study, long speeches and the many characters can be just as confusing:

"Then all the rest of the Achaians cried out in favor
that the priest be respected and the shining ransom be taken;
yet this pleased not the heart of Atreus' son Agamemnon,
 but harshly he drove him away with a strong order upon him:
 'Never let me find you again old sir, near our hollow ships,
neither lingering now nor coming again hereafter,
for fear your staff and the god's ribbons help you no longer.
The girl I will not give back;
sooner will old age come upon her in my own house'"

After consulting the SparkNotes summary it is known that Agamemnon is refusing the ransom offered by the priest for his daughter. It is now possible to deduce that since "the Achaians cried out in favor... the shining ransom be taken" but Agamemnon claims "the girl I will not give back", he does not take the opinion of his people into consideration, and is acting selfishly, by refusing to give up the girl even though his people are begging him to. It is also easier to see that Agamemnon is speaking to the priest, banishing him away from hime and his people, when he says "never let me find you again old sir, near our hollow ships".       

This may seem like a lengthy process, but when the understanding of the text is more complete it is easier to focus on the more important aspects of studying a piece of literature such as characterization and important themes. In other words; it's worth it to give it a try. Also, as I used this method throughout my reading, I found the more I used it, the less I needed it. As I became more acclimated to the language and structure of each epic, I picked up on more details and began to understand the plot better without using SparkNotes than I originally had. Not only are SparkNotes useful in understanding difficult texts, they also serve as a way to practice picking apart the meaning and pulling out the important details of and working through challenging passages, a skill that can be very helpful in testing environments, when this resource may not be available.  

Beowulf on SparkNotes

http://www.sparknotes.com/nofear/lit/beowulf/chapter-1/