The Structure and Theme of<i>The Fortunes of Men</i>

Neidorf, Leonard

doi:10.1080/0013838x.2019.1672461

English Studies

2019

DOI: 10.1080/0013838x.2019.1672461

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The Structure and Theme ofThe Fortunes of Men

Leonard Neidorf

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2022

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Cited by 2 publications

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“…The poem is often referred to as, The Fortunes of Men. For a recent discussion of the poem's structure and theme, see Neidorf (2020).…”

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confidence: 99%

Beowulf and the Hunt

Leneghan

2022

Humanities

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The presence of hunting imagery in Beowulf has often been noted, but the significance of the figures of the stag and the wolf to the thematic design of the poem has yet to be fully explored. In this article, I first analyse the sustained presentation of the Danish royal hall as a stag, before exploring how the Beowulf poet exploited the various traditional associations of the wolf in the development of the figures of Grendel and Grendel’s mother. Finally, I consider the elaboration of the hunting imagery in the final section of the poem, which focuses on the Geatish Messenger’s account of the pursuit and killing of King Ongentheow by Eofor and Wulf, and the beasts-of-battle motif. The article concludes that the Beowulf poet made extensive use of animal and hunting imagery in order to ground his work in the lived experiences and fears of his audience.

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“…The poem is often referred to as, The Fortunes of Men. For a recent discussion of the poem's structure and theme, see Neidorf (2020).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Beowulf and the Hunt

Leneghan

2022

Humanities

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Tu beoð gemæccan: The Key Concept of Maxims I Representing One of the Fundamental Principles of the World Order

Karasawa

2022

Anglia

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The Old English poem Maxims I has generally been regarded as a wisdom/catalogue poem listing miscellaneous gnomes without any major structural or thematic unity. It has also been suggested that it actually consists of three separate works, as it is divided into three in the manuscript. Against these views, this article will argue that the poet has a design and purpose in mind, and intends to produce a unified work. In listing gnomes, the poet focusses on good matches of beings or concepts, since well-matched pairs represent one of the fundamental principles in the order of the world in Biblical tradition as well as in the ‘scientific’ tradition of the time that ultimately went back to the ancient Greek theory of quaternity. Near the beginning of the work, the poet actually refers to the principle by the gnome tu beoð gemæccan ‘two are companions’ (l. 23b), with several clear-cut examples of well-matched pairs of beings or concepts. Various pairings of this type are dealt with throughout the work, and in order to remind the readers of this key concept, the poet inserts multiple series of short and simple gnomes listing good matches in all three parts. By this cumulative process, the poet presents truths, norms, and patterns in the Anglo-Saxon world and locates them in a wider context of the world order established by God the Creator. The thematic unity, as well as lexical, dialectal, and metrical affinities demonstrated in all three parts suggest that Maxims I is intended as a unified work. In fact, the three parts seem to have circulated together for a long time even before they were copied into the Exeter Book in the latter half of the tenth century.

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The Structure and Theme ofThe Fortunes of Men

Cited by 2 publications

References 16 publications

Beowulf and the Hunt

Beowulf and the Hunt

Tu beoð gemæccan: The Key Concept of Maxims I Representing One of the Fundamental Principles of the World Order

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