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572 ratings, 3.44 average rating, 49 reviews
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published
August 5th 1987
(first published 1991)
by Signet
binding
Paperback, 160 pages
isbn
0451627954
(isbn13: 9780451627957)
description
The earliest extant poem in a modern European language, Beowulf was composed 400 years before the Norman Conquest. As a social document, this great ep...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 698)
I am on page 50 of this book but I don't plan on reading anymore. I love Beowulf and previously read the Seamus Heaney translation 2 or 3 times.
This translation is much more approachable but it makes it so dull I really didn't want to waste more time reading it. I'd wanted to read a different Beowulf version as Seamus Heaney really changes some of the text for his own aesthetic. At the same time, his translation is beautiful, poetic, and oftentimes vague as you would expect from an ancient ...more
This translation is much more approachable but it makes it so dull I really didn't want to waste more time reading it. I'd wanted to read a different Beowulf version as Seamus Heaney really changes some of the text for his own aesthetic. At the same time, his translation is beautiful, poetic, and oftentimes vague as you would expect from an ancient ...more
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I read this for an English class, and it was much better than I expected it to be. The story moves quickly, with only a few annoying breaks to rehash past battles that have no effect on the plot, and the main characters and monsters are all really interesting. Through the course of the story Beowulf fights Grendel (good luck guessing exactly what he is, by the way - the text never spells it out and my class spent forty-five minutes just trying to figure out if he was a monster or a human), Grend...more
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Read in March, 2008
I had expected this to be a little difficult to get through, being a classical epic poem, and translated from the original language. I was very pleasantly surprised. I found it engaging and interesting, and really, I wish it were longer.
It rambles in parts, reliving older glory days of various characters. With few exceptions, I wanted more of those stories.
When most people hear "Beowulf," they think Beowulf fighting Grendel. Imagine my surprise when he'd defeated Grendel and the bo...more
It rambles in parts, reliving older glory days of various characters. With few exceptions, I wanted more of those stories.
When most people hear "Beowulf," they think Beowulf fighting Grendel. Imagine my surprise when he'd defeated Grendel and the bo...more
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recommends it for:
Everyone
Ok, I of have to be annoying and share one of my first favorite lines. Beowulf is talking to the king after the kings friend is killed
“Let your sorrow end. It is better for us all to avenge our friends, not mourn them forever. Each of us will come to the end of his life on earth; he who can earn it should fight for the gloryof his name; fame after death is the noblest of goals.”
Believe me there are many more lines I’d like to share, but you should simply read it yourself, Actua...more
“Let your sorrow end. It is better for us all to avenge our friends, not mourn them forever. Each of us will come to the end of his life on earth; he who can earn it should fight for the gloryof his name; fame after death is the noblest of goals.”
Believe me there are many more lines I’d like to share, but you should simply read it yourself, Actua...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in January, 2007
I have actually read this book several times throughout my life, but just read it again recently. I re-read it so that I could try and figure out the proper cadance so that I could read it to my 8 year old son. It is fixing to be a movie next month and would really like him to start having the stories already in his read before he sees it come to life.
The book itself, is only impressive to me due to its age. It is good place for a young man to embark into a world of fantasy/mythology reading...more
The book itself, is only impressive to me due to its age. It is good place for a young man to embark into a world of fantasy/mythology reading...more
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Read in January, 1997
It is January. Snow everywhere. Cold seeping into my bones because the heater in the dorm blew. The roof of the ratty classroom leaks on to barely functioning desk chairs. An entire class that didn't think this book was worth opening.
Except for me.
This book opened up my love for English, and set me on the path to being an English major. It is, to my mind, the Genesis of the religion of the word. Everyone needs to read this, everyone needs to see how we get our epic stories.
This...more
Except for me.
This book opened up my love for English, and set me on the path to being an English major. It is, to my mind, the Genesis of the religion of the word. Everyone needs to read this, everyone needs to see how we get our epic stories.
This...more
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2 comments
Read in November, 2007
I first read Burton Raffel’s translation of Beowulf many years ago as a college freshman. Since then, I’ve read six or eight other translations of the poem and have read it several times in the original, but I always come back to Raffel as a reliable and engaging text. Seamus Heaney’s translation, of course, aside from being great poetry in its own right, probably catches the spirit of the poem better than any translation I’ve read, but Heaney’s translation is a bit free, and having ...more
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Yes, of course I've already read this book, but I just can't remember it!
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Read in April, 2007
The first time I read this book was the summer going into my freshman year of high school and I hated it. I think it confused me and I thought the wording was repitious and annoying. However, upon my second read in college, I liked it. I think I was old enough not to be confused by the language. Also, I read it for a history class; I'd recommend reading it in that context because, at least for me, I found it much more interesting than when I read it for the high school English class (then ag...more
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Considered the earliest recorded epic poem in a modern european language, it was written sometime in the Saxon rule of Britain. As of today there have been two updated, modern movies made of this story--both based largely on Neil Gaiman's comicbook rewrite of the original. Both movies are very good--though I much prefered the live action one over the CGI version--odd for me, because I am a CGI creator myself... Anyway, this is a hard slog, readwise, but the story IS epic and well worth the ef...more
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Read in January, 2005
This is a great poem and one of the few survivors of what may have been a thriving epic tradition of stories passed on verbally through song and poetry. It gives vital information about the sixteenth century Old English social life and about Old English politics. It is an aristocratic poem, concerned with kings and kingship and the beliefs they had in pre-Christian (it hadn't made it to them yet) times about monsters and mythology believed to live among them. It is a horror story. The movie mirr...more
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Read in March, 2001
I'm not a great fan of Raffel's translation, which is modernized to the point of sounding like your neighbor was telling the story of a big fight his brother got into in the bar down the street. Some use of archaic language and Old English rhythms are really key to preserving this work, and Raffel ditches it all in favor of modern prose. I admit to being biased in favor of the eldest language possible, but even I can appreciate how modernized language helps a new reader. Still, this steps too fa...more
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Read in September, 1990
recommends it for:
anyone
I loved this book! I read it right after High School, since it wasn't one that I "had" to read but wanted to. For me, it was a rather quick read, and I was done with it in about two weeks. I started it on my way to Army Basic Training. I have read it twice since then. It may be a bit difficult for younger readers, since the language is a bit off, but the basic story of good v. evil is really well written as our hero Beowulf defeats demon after demon. Just wonderful.
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Read in February, 2008
Great poem. I love the characters and the entire story itself. Fast read because it is not that long. totally worth it! Too complicated for children but I think all youth should read this one. There are apparently many versions I chose this one because it is the one a friend loaned me. What a fabulous introduction. Raffel tells the moving tale of the stories origination and it is very cool.Good read, will probably read again but not too soon.
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Read in December, 2005
I guess I didn't really understand this book. Sure, it was really good from what survived from back then, but other than that, this epic poem of England was just some exaggerated literary monument to a soldier, in my humble opinion. Perhaps if I could read this for the third time under the supervision of a medieval scholar I would find it very exciting.
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Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
everyone
I'm shocked that I liked this. I tried Seamus Heaney's trans. and couldn't get into it. To say this translation is old-fashioned is an understatement, and coloured with the translator's Christian bias, but the gore, the adventure, the stock songs, gift-giving...made me very homesick for Homer. I heartily enjoyed this.
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Read in September, 2005
Beowulf is wonderful, but I wonder just how accurate this translation (by Raffel Burton) really is. It differs significantly from other translations that I have encountered, but because I am not familiar with the source material I can't say for sure how accurate it is.
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Wow, Beowulf really really kicks ass. This edition has parts where Grendal is "sucking at the veins" of people. Really gory. I think a really good movie could be made of this along the same lines as 300, or maybe something really gory from Mel Gibson.
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Read in September, 2008
Yeah, yeah it's a 'classic' of literature and all that but what would make this better is if a movie was made of it with some big name talented actors reduced to playing second string to some crappy CGI, now that would be entertaining!!
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Read in December, 2007
I had read Beowulf back in high school but it was great to revisit it. I was particularly amazed at how strong the theme of Christianity considering when and where it was written. I love this story- simply epic because its hero is so complete.
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