Beowulf is an Old English heroic epic poem of anonymous authorship. Its creation dates from between the 8th[1] and the 11th century, the only surviving manuscript dating from circa 1010.[2] At 3182 lines, it is notable for its length. It has risen to national epic status in England.[3]
Beowulf has been adapted many times in verse, in prose, on the stage, and in film. In 2003, the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies published Marijane Osborn's annotated list of over 300 translations and adaptations, withdrawn in 2019.[4] By 2020, the Beowulf's Afterlives Bibliographic Database listed some 688 translations and other versions of the poem, from Thorkelin's 1787 transcription of the text, and in languages including Afrikaans, Albanian, Arabic, Basque, Belarusian, Catalan, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, French, Ganda, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Macedonian, Persian, Portuguese, Polish, Punjabi, Russian, Serbo-Croat, Slovenian, Somali, Spanish, Swedish, Tamil, Turkish, Uighur, and Urdu.[5]
The poet John Dryden's categories of translation have influenced how scholars discuss variation between translations and adaptations.[6] In the Preface to Ovid's Epistles (1680) Dryden proposed three different types of translation:
metaphrase [...] or turning an author word for word, and line by line, from one language into another; paraphrase [...] or translation with latitude, where the author is kept in view by the translator so as never to be lost, but his words are not so strictly followed as his sense, and that, too, is admitted to be amplified but not altered; and imitation [...] where the translator – if he has not lost that name – assumes the liberty not only to vary from the words and sense, but to forsake them both as he sees occasion; and taking only some general hints from the original, to run division on the ground-work, as he pleases.[6]
The works listed below are novels and other works that take more "latitude" than pure "translations". Those are listed at List of translations of Beowulf.
1949 : Silverlock a novel by John Myers Myers. In one scene the protagonist attends the celebration in Heorot after Beowulf kills Grendel. Beowulf only appears in this scene, but he has a profound effect on the motivations of the protagonist.
1958: The Ring-givers, a novel by W. H. Canaway. It is historical novel based closely on the poem.[7]
1996: Whose Song is Sung, a novel by Frank Schaefer. The narrative is told from the point of view of a dwarf named Musculus, who becomes an advisor to Emperor Heraclius in the last days of the Roman Empire. Eventually, he makes his way north and becomes a traveling companion to Beowulf.[9]
1998: Bay Wolf: a poem by Neil Gaiman which retells the Beowulf story and appears in Smoke and Mirrors.
2015: Grendel's Mother: The Saga of the Wyrd-Wife, a novel by Susan Signe Morrison, portrays Grendel's Mother as being human, washed upon the shores of Denmark, with the character representing an integration between the old ways of the Scandinavian/Germanic tribes, and early Christianity. This novel has won a number of awards.[11]
2016: Grendel's Mother, a novel by Diana Stout.
2018: The Mere Wife, a novel by Maria Dahvana Headley, retells the story from the point of view of Grendel's Mother, set in contemporary, suburban America.[12]
2020: Beowulf, an illustrated adaptation for children by Nick Holt and John Howe
2022: Grendel's Mother, a novel in verse, by Jane Gardner.
2023: Shield Maiden, a novel, by Sharon Emmerichs, that reconsiders the Beowulf story from the perspective of King Beowulf's niece, Fryda, who was injured during childhood, but is now coming into her own power just in time--Guests are come to celebrate his 50-year reign which bring more than gifts & good-tidings to celebrate, & which only she may be able to overcome.
2023: Beowulf: In a Free Modern Retelling, by Ethan Mordden.
M J Weller's Beowulf Cartoon, (Writers Forum/Visual Associations, 2004)
1975-1976: Beowulf Dragon Slayer, published by DC comics and edited by Dennis O'Neil, written by Michael Uslan and primarily illustrated by Ricardo Villamonte.[13] Later, Beowulf appears in Wonder Woman #20 (2008).
Issue #49 of the Animaniacs comic book featured a Pinky and the Brain story featuring Brain as Brainwulf, who, accompanied by Pinknarf (Pinky), attempts to defeat Grendel so that he can take over Denmark afterwards.[14]
1999-2000:The Collected Beowulf: by Gareth Hinds & Leslie Siddeley.[15]
2005: Speakeasy Comics: this series debuted a Beowulf monthly title featuring the character having survived into the modern era and now working alongside law enforcement in New York City to handle superpowered beings.[17]
2006: Antarctic Press ran a manga adaptation of the Beowulf legend, written and drawn by David Hutchison.[18]
2008: Beowulf: Monster Slayer, by Paul D. Storrie and Ron Randall.
Stephen Notley's weekly strip Bob the Angry Flower ran a 10-part series entitled Rothgar. Bob attempted to take the place of Beowulf, using modern technology to help Hroðgar defeat Grendel; the ancient epic changed when Grendel was revealed as a sympathetic character.[25]
2013:[26]Beowulf by Santiago Garcia and David Rubín, published in English in 2017 by Image Comics.
2023: Bea Wolf, by Zach Weinersmith; illustrated by Boulet. "A modern middle-grade graphic novel retelling of Beowulf, featuring a gang of troublemaking kids who must defend their tree house from a fun-hating adult who can instantly turn children into grown-ups." Published by First Second Books.
2024: García and Rubín's version was republished, including 22 pages of an unfinished earlier album by García illustrated by Javier Olivares.[26]
Grendel: A song by Marillion is the B side to their first single, "Market Square Heroes" (1982). The recorded version of the song is 17:40 long, while the live versions regularly ran to over 20 minutes.[27]
The Lament for Beowulf: (1925), op. 25, by American composer Howard Hanson (1896–1981). Large-scale work for chorus and orchestra. Translation by W. Morris and A. Wyatt.[28]
Beowulf: Scyld's Burial (2009), by composer Ezequiel Viñao. For SATB and percussion quartet. Translation by E. Viñao.[29]
Beowulf: A Suite for Ancient Instruments (2000) by American composer John Craton (b. 1953). A multi-movement work depicting the life and exploits of Beowulf, scored for ancient instruments. The composer also created a version for modern orchestra in 2005.[30]
1993. Beowulf, op. 17, chamber opera (or dramatic cantata) in one act for a chorus of young voices, light soprano, light tenor and baritone soli, by Richard Lambert.[35]
2005: Beowulf: rock opera composed by Lenny Picket, lyrics by Lenny Pickett and Lindsey Turner, produced October–November 2005 by the Irish Repertory Theatre, directed by Charlotte Moore[36]
2007: Beowulf: The Heart Off Guard Theatre Company produced a musical adaptation for children of the Beowulf story at the Edinburgh Fringe. Directed by Guy Jones with a score by Michael Betteridge.[39]
2007: Beowulf, a DVD release of a performance of Beowulf by Benjamin Bagby in the original Old English
1981: Grendel Grendel Grendel, an animated film based on the novel Grendel by John Gardner which tells the story of Beowulf from Grendel's perspective.
2007: Beowulf, an animated film directed by Robert Zemeckis starring Ray Winstone and created through motion capture. The manuscript was written by Roger Avary and Neil Gaiman. It deviates significantly from the original poem, most notably by making the dragon fought in the finale the offspring of Beowulf and Grendel's mother, whom he did not slay.[45][46][47]
^ abUniversity of Paris III: Sorbonne Nouvelle (1680). "John Dryden, 'The Preface to Ovid's Epistles'". Theoretical Texts on Translation | Textes théoriques en traduction. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
^Henk Aertsen, "Beowulf", in A Dictionary of Medieval Heroes: Characters in Medieval Narrative Traditions and Their Afterlife in Literature, Theatre and the Visual Arts, edited by Willem P. Gerritsen and Anthony G. Van Melle translated from the Dutch by Tanis Guest, 54–59 (Woodbridge: Boydell & Brewer, 2000). ISBN0-85115-780-7. P. 59.
^"Beowulf". Victor Davies. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
