document_title: Concrete slump test

question_text: degree of workability is high when slump is

text: Concrete slump test

text: Procedure[edit]

text:
Slump cone

Tamping procedure

Removing cone

Height measurement

text: The test is carried out using a metal mould in the shape of a conical frustum known as a slump cone or Abrams cone, that is open at both ends and has attached handles. The tool typically has an internal diameter of 100 millimetres (3.9 in) at the top and of 200 millimetres (7.9 in) at the bottom with a height of 305 millimetres (12.0 in).The cone is placed on a hard non-absorbent surface. This cone is filled with fresh concrete in three stages. Each time, each layer is tamped 25 times with a 2 ft (600 mm)-long bullet-nosed metal rod measuring 5/8 in (16 mm) in diameter.[2] At the end of the third stage, the concrete is struck off flush with the top of the mould. The mould is carefully lifted vertically upwards, so as not to disturb the concrete cone.

text: The concrete then slumps (subsides). The slump of the concrete is measured by measuring the distance from the top of the slumped concrete to the level of the top of the slump cone.[3][4]

text: Interpretation of results[edit]

text: The slumped concrete takes various shapes and according to the profile of slumped concrete, the slump is termed as true slump, shear slump or collapse slump. If a shear or collapse slump is achieved, a fresh sample should be taken and the test repeated. A collapse slump is an indication that the mix is too wet.

text: Only a true slump is of any use in the test. A collapse slump will generally mean that the mix is too wet or that it is a high workability mix, for which the slump test is not appropriate.[1][3] Very dry mixes having slump 0 – 25 mm are typically used in road making, low workability mixes having slump 10 – 40 mm are typically used for foundations with light reinforcement, medium workability mixes with slump 50 – 90 mm, are typically used for normal reinforced concrete placed with vibration, high workability concrete with slump > 100 mm is typically used where reinforcing has tight spacing, and/or the concrete has to flow a great distance.[5]:68

text:
Collapse
Shear
True

In a collapse slump the concrete collapses completely.[3]
In a shear slump the top portion of the concrete shears off and slips sideways.[3]
In a true slump the concrete simply subsides, keeping more or less to shape.[3]

text: Limitations of the slump test[edit]

text: The slump test is suitable for slumps of medium to high workabiity, slump in the range of 5 – 260 mm, the test fails to determine the difference in workability in stiff mixes which have zero slump, or for wet mixes that give a collapse slump. It is limited to concrete formed of aggregates of less than 38 mm (1.5 inch).[1]

text: Differences in standards[edit]

text: The slump test is referred to in several testing and building codes, with minor differences in the details of performing the test.

text: United States[edit]

text: In the United States, engineers use the ASTM standards and AASHTO specifications when referring to the concrete slump test. The American standards explicitly state that the slump cone should have a height of 12-in, a bottom diameter of 8-in and an upper diameter of 4-in. The ASTM standards also state in the procedure that when the cone is removed, it should be lifted up vertically, without any rotational movement at all.[6] The concrete slump test is known as "Standard Test Method for Slump of Hydraulic-Cement Concrete" and carries the code (ASTM C 143) or (AASHTO T 119).

text: United Kingdom and mainland Europe[edit]

text: In the United Kingdom, the standards specify a slump cone height of 300 mm, a bottom diameter of 200 mm and a top diameter of 100 mm. The British Standards do not explicitly specify that the cone should only be lifted vertically. The slump test in the British standards was first (BS 1881–102) and is now replaced by the European Standard (BS EN 12350-2).[7] The test should be carried out by filling the slump cone in three equal layers with the mixture being tamped down 25 times for each layer.

text: Other tests[edit]

text: There are many tests for evaluating slump in concrete: the flow table test (DIN 1048-1) uses similar, but differently-sized, apparatus, but the table on which the slump cone is placed is dropped several times after the slump cone is removed, and the measurement is of the diameter of the sample, not the height.[8] one example is the K-Slump Test (ASTM International C1362-09 Standard Test Method for Flow of Freshly Mixed Hydraulic Cement Concrete).[9] Other tests evaluating consistency are the British compacting factor test,[10] the Vebe consistometer for roller-compacted concrete (ASTM C1170),[11]

text: Another way of determining slump is to use an automated slump meter. Sensors and controls enable the meters to measure and display slump. Their reliability has by now earned them acceptance in various standard codes such as ASTM International. Some automated slump meters, such as the one by Verifi also can add water to the concrete mix in the delivery truck while in transit. In 2013 ASTM C94/C94M was revised to allow water additions during transit for trucks equipped with automated slump monitoring and measurement systems.


document_title: The Water Is Wide (song)

question_text: who wrote the lyrics to the water is wide

question_tokens: who wrote the lyrics to the water is wide

root

text: The Water Is Wide (song)

text: Themes and construction[edit]

text: The imagery of the lyrics describes the challenges of love: "Love is handsome, love is kind" during the novel honeymoon phase of any relationship. However, as time progresses, "love grows old, and waxes cold." Even true love, the lyrics say, can "fade away like morning dew."

tag: p

text: The modern lyric for "The Water Is Wide" was consolidated and named by Cecil Sharp in 1906 from multiple older sources in southern England, following English lyrics with very different stories and styles but the same meter. Earlier sources were frequently published as broadsheets without music. Performers or publishers would insert, remove, and adapt verses from one piece to another: floating verses are also characteristic of hymns and blues verses. Lyrics from different sources could be used with different melodies of the same metre. Consequently, each verse in the modern song may not have been originally composed in the context of its surrounding verses nor be consistent in theme.

text: Variants[edit]

text: The Water is Wide may be considered a family of lyrics with a particular hymn-like tune.

text: O Waly Waly (Wail, Wail) may be sometimes a particular lyric, sometimes a family tree of lyrics, sometimes Jamie Douglas, sometimes one melody or another with the correct meter, and sometimes versions of the modern compilation The Water is Wide (usually with the addition of the verse starting O Waly, Waly). Benjamin Britten used the melody and verses of The Water is Wide for his arrangement—which does not have the O Waly, Waly verse, yet is titled Waly, Waly. A different melody is used for the song When Cockleshells turn Silver Bells, also subtitled Waly, Waly. Yet another melody for O Waly, Waly is associated with the Lord Jamie Douglas lyric.

text: Ancestors[edit]

text: A key ancestor is the lyric Waly, Waly, Gin Love Be Bonny from Ramsay's Tea Table Miscellany (1724), given below. This is a jumble of verses from other lyrics including Arthur's Seat shall be my Bed (1701), The Distressed Virgin (1633) and the Scottish scandal ballad Jamie Douglas (1776).

text: The use of cockleshells and silver bells in Thomson's version (1725) pre-dates the earliest published Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary (1744) and may relate to torture.[1]

text: Some though not all versions of Jamie Douglas have the first verse that starts 'O, Waly, Waly'. Andrew Lang found a variant verse in Ramsay's Tea Table Miscellany from a sixteenth-century song.[2]

text: Cousins[edit]

text: Predecessors of The Water is Wide also influenced lyrics for other folk and popular songs, such as the modern version of the Irish Carrickfergus (1960s) and the American Sweet Peggy Gordan (1880). The Irish song Carrickfergus shares the lines but the sea is wide/I cannot swim over/And neither have I wings to fly. This song may be preceded by an Irish language song whose first line A Bhí Bean Uasal ("It was a noble woman") matches closely the opening line of one known variation of Lord Jamie Douglas: I was a lady of renown. However, the content of the English-language Carrickfergus includes material clearly from the Scots/English songs not in any known copy of A Bhí Bean Uasal suggesting considerable interplay among all known traditions.

text: Descendants[edit]

text: The modern The Water Is Wide was popularized by Pete Seeger in the folk revival. There have been multiple subsequent variations of the song and several names—including Waly, Waly, There is a Ship, and Cockleshells—which use and re-use different selections of lyrics. The song Van Diemen's Land on the album Rattle and Hum by U2 uses a variation of the melody of The Water Is Wide.[3] The song "When the Pipers Play," sung by Isla St. Clair on the video of the same name, uses the melody of "The Water is Wide."

text: Lyrics[edit]

text: Waly, Waly, Gin Love Be Bonny[edit]

text:
The Water is Wide

Tune for The Water is Wide

Problems playing this file? See media help.

tag: table

text: The lyrics for "Waly, Waly, Gin Love Be Bonny" from Ramsay's Tea Table Miscellany (1724).

text:
O Waly, waly (a lament – "woe is me") up the bank,
And waly, waly doun the brae (hill),
And waly, waly, yon burn-side (riverside),
Where I and my love wont to gae.
I lean'd my back into an aik (oak),
I thocht it was a trusty tree;
But first it bow'd, and syne (soon) it brak (broke),
Sae my true love did lightly me.

O waly, waly, but love be bonnie (beautiful),
A little time while it is new,
But when 'tis auld (old), it waxeth cauld (cold),
And fades away like the morning dew.
O wherefore should I busk my heid (adorn my head)?
Or wherefore should I kame (comb) my hair?
For my true love has me forsook,
And says he'll never love me mair (more).

Now Arthur Seat shall be my bed,
The sheets shall ne'er be fyl'd by me,
Saint Anton's well shall be my drink,
Since my true love has forsaken me.
Martinmas wind, when wilt thou blaw (blow),
And shake the green leaves off the tree?
O gentle death, when wilt thou come?
For of my life I am weary.

'Tis not the frost, that freezes fell,
Nor blawing snaws (snow) inclemency,
'Tis not sic cauld (such cold) that makes me cry,
But my love's heart grown cauld to me.
When we cam in by Glasgow town,
We were a comely sight to see;
My love was clad in the black velvet,
And I my sell in cramasie (crimson).

But had I wist (known), before I kiss'd,
That love had been sae ill to win,
I'd lock my heart in a case of gold,
And pin'd it with a silver pin.
Oh, oh! if my young babe were born,
And set upon the nurse's knee,
And I my sell were dead and gane,
For a maid again I'll never be.[4]

text: The Water Is Wide[edit]

text: Some popular lyrics for "The Water is Wide" are within the book Folk Songs For Solo Singers, though many versions have been printed and sung.

text: Jürgen Klos traces the first verse to "I'm Often Drunk And Seldom Sober" (c. 1780), the second to "The Seamans leave taken of his sweetest Margery" (c. 1660), the third to "Oh Waly, Waly, Gin Love Be Bonny" (already 'old' when published in c. 1724), and the fourth to "Hey trollie lollie, love is jolly" (c. 1620.) He could not trace the melody before 1905.[5]

text: Round[edit]

text:
The Water is Wide
I Cannot get over
Nor have I Wings
With which to-o-o fly
O-o-h give me a boat
That can carry Two
We both shall Row
My friend and I-i-I

text: (repeat twice in parts with one part higher than the other and then sing in round with group two beginning to sing at the word 'Nor')

text:
The water is wide
I cannot get o'er
No wings have I
No wings have I to-o fly
Give me a boat
That will carry two
We both shall row,
my friend and I.

Verse 2:
As I look out
across the sea
a Bright horizon beckons me
And I am called to do my best
and be the most
that I can be.[citation needed]

text: The Voyage Home

text:
The water is wide, I cannot get o'er
And neither have I wings to fly,
Build me a boat that can carry two
And both shall row, my love and I.

I leaned my back up against an oak,
To find it was a trusty tree,
I found you true, love, when first you spoke,
'tis true you are, and ever shall be.

Our love shines clearly against the storm,
Turns darkest night to brightest day,
Turns turbulent waters to perfect calm,
A blazing lamp to light our way.

Love is the centre of all we see,
Love is the jewel that guides us true,
No matter what, love, you'll stay with me,
No matter what, my love, I'll stay with you.

The water is wide, I cannot get o'er
And neither have I wings to fly,
Build me a boat that can carry two
And both shall row, my love and I.

text: Recent renditions[edit]

text: Arrangements[edit]

text: "O Waly, Waly" has been a popular choice for arrangements by classical composers, in particular Benjamin Britten, whose arrangement for voice and piano was published in 1948. John Rutter uses it for the Third Movement in his "Suite for Strings" (1973).[6]

text: The tune is often used for the hymn "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" by Isaac Watts.[7][8] It is also the tune for John Bell's "When God Almighty came to Earth" (1987)[9] and F. Pratt Green's "An Upper Room did our Lord Prepare" (1974).[10] Additionally, Hal H. Hopson used the tune for his work "The Gift of Love". Hopson also wrote Christian lyrics to The Water is Wide, which are often performed by church choirs.

text: Mack Wilberg has arranged the tune to "Thou Gracious God" by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., which the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performs in the album Peace Like a River.

text: Oregon (band) has a Jazz version of this on their 30th studio album, Lantern (Oregon album).

text: Recordings[edit]

text: This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. Please relocate any relevant information into other sections or articles. (March 2017)

text: Classical singers who have recorded "O Waly, Waly" include Maura O'Connell (Irish Alto), Sir Thomas Allen (English baritone), Janet Baker (English mezzo-soprano), Ian Bostridge (English tenor), Sarah Brightman (English soprano), Alfred Deller (English counter-tenor), Anthony Rolfe Johnson (English tenor), John Langstaff,[11] Richard Lewis (English tenor), Felicity Lott (English soprano), Benjamin Luxon (English bass-baritone), Derek Lee Ragin (American countertenor), Aksel Schiotz (Danish tenor), Daniel Taylor (Canadian counter-tenor), Robert Tear (Welsh tenor), Frederica von Stade (American mezzo-soprano), Carolyn Watkinson (English mezzo-soprano), and Kathleen Ferrier (English contralto). The King's Singers have a setting combined with the cello solo from J. S. Bach's Suite no. 1 on their British Isles folk song album, "Watching the White Wheat".

text: The Library of Congress audio archives contain a recording of the American composer Samuel Barber singing this tune and accompanying himself on piano in a recital broadcast from the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia on 26 December 1938.

text: "The Water is Wide" has also been recorded countless times, with popular renditions by Maura O'Connell (Irish Alto folk singer), June Tabor (1976 solo album, Airs and Graces), Angie Aparo, The Highwaymen, The Seekers, Peter, Paul and Mary (titled "There is a Ship"), Sheila Jordan (Lost and Found, 1989), Cowboy Junkies, Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger, Rangers, Joan Baez, Fred Neil, Enya, Steeleye Span, Karla Bonoff, James Taylor, John Gorka, Daniel Rodriguez, Luka Bloom, Steve Goodman, Eva Cassidy, Rory Block, Tom Chapin, Kathy Hampson's New Elastic Band, and Ed Gerhard.

text: Mark Knopfler recorded an instrumental version of "The Water is Wide" following the death of musician Chet Atkins, who had collaborated with Knopfler in several musical projects.

text: The lyrics vary from period to period and from singer to singer.

text: Carolyn Hester recorded the song twice, first on her self titled LP for Tradition Records in 1960, then on her Live At Town Hall in 1965, but not released until 1990.

text: The Kingston Trio released a version under the title "The River is Wide" in 1961. The New Christy Minstrels recorded this same melody in 1963 with entirely different lyrics, arranged by Randy Sparks and retitled "Last Farewell".

text: Roger McGuinn of the Byrds recorded the song on his first solo album (1973).

text: Cliff Richard has a version on his 1982 album Now You See Me, Now You Don't.

text: Neil Young wrote new, environmentally themed lyrics to the tune, and recorded it as "Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)" on his 1990 album Ragged Glory.

text: Karla Bonoff recorded a version that is included on the 1991 soundtrack for the US television program thirtysomething and was used to conclude 2006 airing of episode 94 ("Solo") of the fifth season of the TV show "Alias".

text: French singer Renaud helped make the tune famous among French-speaking countries. He wrote pacifist lyrics to the song "La ballade nord-irlandaise" (the Northern-Irish Ballad) for his 1991 album Marchand de cailloux, evoking the troubles of Northern Ireland. The Breton group Tri Yann also recorded a French version "La Mer est sans fin" (the Sea Is Endless), in addition to a Breton version "Divent an dour". The first French version is "La mer est immense"(The sea is Wide) by the New-Zealander singer Graeme Allwright on his 1966 album Joue, joue, joue

text: The American-born Taiwanese artist Leehom Wang included a rendition of this song on his 1995 debut album, Love Rival Beethoven.

text: In the late 1990s Jewel, Sarah McLachlan, and the Indigo Girls collaborated on a version of the song in concert on the Lilith Fair tour.

text: Barbra Streisand included "The Water is Wide" paired with "Deep River" on her 1997 Higher Ground album.

text: The Two Worlds album released by jazz musicians Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin in 2000 included a performance of The Water is Wide combined with Shenandoah sung by the soprano Renée Fleming.

text: American jazz artist Charles Lloyd recorded The Water Is Wide, a CD released in 2000 on ECM Records with Lloyd (tenor saxophone) John Abercrombie (guitar), Brad Mehldau (piano), Larry Grenadier (double-bass), and Billy Higgins (drums). The Charles Lloyd Quartet released another version of the song on the Mirror CD (2010), with Lloyd (tenor saxophone), Jason Moran (piano), Reuben Rogers (bass), and Eric Harland (drums).

text: Charlotte Church, the Welsh child soprano, recorded a popularised rendition of this song on her 2001 album Enchantment.

text: Eva Cassidy's version was released posthumously on her 2003 album American Tune as well as on the 1994 bootleg album Live at Pearl's.

text: American jazz pianist Eyran Katsenelenbogen recorded this song on his album It's Reigning Kats & Dogs & Bogen, released in 2003.

text: Chloë Agnew, the youngest member of Celtic Woman, recorded this song for her album Chloë (2002) with the help of composer David Downes.

text: Runrig, the Scottish Gaelic rock band, recorded this song for their first Access All Areas album (2001).

text: In 2006, Triniti released the song on their self-titled debut album, as did Órla Fallon on the album of the same name.

text: Hayley Westenra's album Treasure, released in 2007, contained another version. This is not in the made in the EU version of Treasure 2007, but is the second track in Haley Westenra's album Odyssey made in the EU 2005 / 2006.

text: Masaaki Kishibe's 2008 album My Favorites includes a fingerstyle acoustic guitar rendition, instead incorporating the vocal melodies into the guitar melodies. American pianist, John Laing features this song on his debut album Awakened and it features Brittany Benish on guitar.

text: Alexander Armstrong recorded the song on his 2015 solo album, A Year of Songs, with an orchestral accompaniment.

text: John Gorka sang the song on the 1998 album "Where Have All The Flowers Gone", a two-CD celebration of Pete Seeger songs by numerous artists.[12]

text: Schoonerfare sang "The Water is Wide" on their 2005 album, titled "And Both Shall Row."

text: The second Christmas album from Christian rock band, Mercyme, used the tune for their arrangement of O Come, O Come Emmanuel on their 2015 album, Mercyme, It's Christmas!

text: The thirtieth album of the band Oregon called Lantern, released in 2017 on CAM Jazz, contains a version of the song as arranged by Paul McCandless.

text: In film[edit]

text: It played in the opening and closing credits of the 1964 film, "Nobody Waved Goodbye."

text: Bob Dylan and Joan Baez rendered a version of the song for Bob Dylan's 1978 film, Renaldo and Clara.

text: It was performed by Susanna Hoffs in the film Red Roses and Petrol directed by Tamar Simon Hoffs, as part of the soundtrack.

text: It was used over the final scenes in Terence Davies' 1988 film Distant Voices, Still Lives as the characters disappear into the darkness.

text: The song was played repeatedly as part of the soundtrack to the film The River Wild (Universal Pictures, 1994). A version recorded by Cowboy Junkies was used during the end credits.

text: The lyrics of the song are spoken, just before the assassination scene, by Jesse James' daughter in the 2007 film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

text: It was used as a musical motif throughout the 2001 film The Simian Line.

text: It was performed by a blind fiddle player in the 1984 film The Bounty, starring Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson.

text: It was performed by Yukawa Shione as part of the festival in the 2005 Japanese film "Linda Linda Linda".

text: It was used during end credits of the 1996 TV film Homecoming starring Anne Bancroft.

text: It was used in TV drama "Boardwalk Empire", first season.

text: Gerard Way is confirmed to have recorded the song for Kevin Smith's film Tusk.[13]

text: PJ Harvey recorded this song in 2014 for the second season of BBC Two's "Peaky Blinders".[14]

text: In the episode The Magdalen Martyrs of the Jack Taylor TV series the character Kate Noonan played by Nora-Jane Noone sings this song in a pub.

text: In popular culture[edit]

text: Television[edit]

text: The CBS TV series "The Unit" featured an episode in season 2 entitled The Water is Wide, in which Unit members must disarm a bomb in the office of the Secretary-General of the UN, while their wives seek an alleged POW/MIA soldier in Vietnam.[15]


document_title: Electromagnetic spectrum

question_text: where does wifi fall on the electromagnetic spectrum

text: Electromagnetic spectrum

text: History of electromagnetic spectrum discovery

text: For most of history, visible light was the only known part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The ancient Greeks recognized that light traveled in straight lines and studied some of its properties, including reflection and refraction. The study of light continued, and during the 16th and 17th centuries conflicting theories regarded light as either a wave or a particle.[6]

text: The first discovery of electromagnetic radiation other than visible light came in 1800, when William Herschel discovered infrared radiation.[7] He was studying the temperature of different colors by moving a thermometer through light split by a prism. He noticed that the highest temperature was beyond red. He theorized that this temperature change was due to "calorific rays" that were a type of light ray that could not be seen.

text: The next year, Johann Ritter, working at the other end of the spectrum, noticed what he called "chemical rays" (invisible light rays that induced certain chemical reactions). These behaved similarly to visible violet light rays, but were beyond them in the spectrum.[8] They were later renamed ultraviolet radiation.

text: Electromagnetic radiation was first linked to electromagnetism in 1845, when Michael Faraday noticed that the polarization of light traveling through a transparent material responded to a magnetic field (see Faraday effect). During the 1860s James Maxwell developed four partial differential equations for the electromagnetic field. Two of these equations predicted the possibility and behavior of waves in the field. Analyzing the speed of these theoretical waves, Maxwell realized that they must travel at a speed that was about the known speed of light. This startling coincidence in value led Maxwell to make the inference that light itself is a type of electromagnetic wave.

text: Maxwell's equations predicted an infinite number of frequencies of electromagnetic waves, all traveling at the speed of light. This was the first indication of the existence of the entire electromagnetic spectrum.

text: Maxwell's predicted waves included waves at very low frequencies compared to infrared, which in theory might be created by oscillating charges in an ordinary electrical circuit of a certain type. Attempting to prove Maxwell's equations and detect such low frequency electromagnetic radiation, in 1886 the physicist Heinrich Hertz built an apparatus to generate and detect what are now called radio waves. Hertz found the waves and was able to infer (by measuring their wavelength and multiplying it by their frequency) that they traveled at the speed of light. Hertz also demonstrated that the new radiation could be both reflected and refracted by various dielectric media, in the same manner as light. For example, Hertz was able to focus the waves using a lens made of tree resin. In a later experiment, Hertz similarly produced and measured the properties of microwaves. These new types of waves paved the way for inventions such as the wireless telegraph and the radio.

text: In 1895 Wilhelm Röntgen noticed a new type of radiation emitted during an experiment with an evacuated tube subjected to a high voltage. He called these radiations x-rays and found that they were able to travel through parts of the human body but were reflected or stopped by denser matter such as bones. Before long, many uses were found for them in the field of medicine.

text: The last portion of the electromagnetic spectrum was filled in with the discovery of gamma rays. In 1900 Paul Villard was studying the radioactive emissions of radium when he identified a new type of radiation that he first thought consisted of particles similar to known alpha and beta particles, but with the power of being far more penetrating than either. However, in 1910, British physicist William Henry Bragg demonstrated that gamma rays are electromagnetic radiation, not particles, and in 1914, Ernest Rutherford (who had named them gamma rays in 1903 when he realized that they were fundamentally different from charged alpha and beta particles) and Edward Andrade measured their wavelengths, and found that gamma rays were similar to X-rays, but with shorter wavelengths and higher frequencies.

text: Range of the spectrum

text: Electromagnetic waves are typically described by any of the following three physical properties: the frequency f, wavelength λ, or photon energy E. Frequencies observed in astronomy range from 7023239999999999999♠2.4×1023 Hz (1 GeV gamma rays) down to the local plasma frequency of the ionized interstellar medium (~1 kHz). Wavelength is inversely proportional to the wave frequency,[5] so gamma rays have very short wavelengths that are fractions of the size of atoms, whereas wavelengths on the opposite end of the spectrum can be as long as the universe. Photon energy is directly proportional to the wave frequency, so gamma ray photons have the highest energy (around a billion electron volts), while radio wave photons have very low energy (around a femtoelectronvolt). These relations are illustrated by the following equations:

text: where:

text:
c = 7008299792458000000♠299792458 m/s is the speed of light in a vacuum
h = 6966662606895999999♠6.62606896(33)×10−34 J·s = 6985413566733000000♠4.13566733(10)×10−15 eV·s is Planck's constant.[9]

tag: ul

text: Whenever electromagnetic waves exist in a medium with matter, their wavelength is decreased. Wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, no matter what medium they are traveling through, are usually quoted in terms of the vacuum wavelength, although this is not always explicitly stated.

text: Generally, electromagnetic radiation is classified by wavelength into radio wave, microwave, terahertz (or sub-millimeter) radiation, infrared, the visible region that is perceived as light, ultraviolet, X-rays and gamma rays. The behavior of EM radiation depends on its wavelength. When EM radiation interacts with single atoms and molecules, its behavior also depends on the amount of energy per quantum (photon) it carries.

text: Spectroscopy can detect a much wider region of the EM spectrum than the visible range of 400 nm to 700 nm. A common laboratory spectroscope can detect wavelengths from 2 nm to 2500 nm[citation needed]. Detailed information about the physical properties of objects, gases, or even stars can be obtained from this type of device. Spectroscopes are widely used in astrophysics. For example, many hydrogen atoms emit a radio wave photon that has a wavelength of 21.12 cm. Also, frequencies of 30 Hz and below can be produced by and are important in the study of certain stellar nebulae[10] and frequencies as high as 7027290000000000000♠2.9×1027 Hz have been detected from astrophysical sources.[11]

text: Rationale for spectrum regional names

text: Electromagnetic radiation interacts with matter in different ways across the spectrum. These types of interaction are so different that historically different names have been applied to different parts of the spectrum, as though these were different types of radiation. Thus, although these "different kinds" of electromagnetic radiation form a quantitatively continuous spectrum of frequencies and wavelengths, the spectrum remains divided for practical reasons related to these qualitative interaction differences.

text:
Electromagnetic radiation interaction with matter

Region of the spectrum
Main interactions with matter

Radio
Collective oscillation of charge carriers in bulk material (plasma oscillation). An example would be the oscillatory travels of the electrons in an antenna.

Microwave through far infrared
Plasma oscillation, molecular rotation

Near infrared
Molecular vibration, plasma oscillation (in metals only)

Visible
Molecular electron excitation (including pigment molecules found in the human retina), plasma oscillations (in metals only)

Ultraviolet
Excitation of molecular and atomic valence electrons, including ejection of the electrons (photoelectric effect)

X-rays
Excitation and ejection of core atomic electrons, Compton scattering (for low atomic numbers)

Gamma rays
Energetic ejection of core electrons in heavy elements, Compton scattering (for all atomic numbers), excitation of atomic nuclei, including dissociation of nuclei

High-energy gamma rays
Creation of particle-antiparticle pairs. At very high energies a single photon can create a shower of high-energy particles and antiparticles upon interaction with matter.

text: Types of radiation

text: Boundaries

text: A discussion of the regions (or bands or types) of the electromagnetic spectrum is given below. Note that there are no precisely defined boundaries between the bands of the electromagnetic spectrum; rather they fade into each other like the bands in a rainbow (which is the sub-spectrum of visible light). Radiation of each frequency and wavelength (or in each band) has a mix of properties of the two regions of the spectrum that bound it. For example, red light resembles infrared radiation in that it can excite and add energy to some chemical bonds and indeed must do so to power the chemical mechanisms responsible for photosynthesis and the working of the visual system.

text: Regions of the spectrum

text: The types of electromagnetic radiation are broadly classified into the following classes:[5]

text:
Gamma radiation
X-ray radiation
Ultraviolet radiation
Visible radiation
Infrared radiation
Terahertz radiation
Microwave radiation
Radio waves

tag: ol

text: This classification goes in the increasing order of wavelength, which is characteristic of the type of radiation.[5] While, in general, the classification scheme is accurate, in reality there is often some overlap between neighboring types of electromagnetic energy. For example, SLF radio waves at 60 Hz may be received and studied by astronomers, or may be ducted along wires as electric power, although the latter is, in the strict sense, not electromagnetic radiation at all (see near and far field).

text: The distinction between X-rays and gamma rays is partly based on sources: the photons generated from nuclear decay or other nuclear and subnuclear/particle process, are always termed gamma rays, whereas X-rays are generated by electronic transitions involving highly energetic inner atomic electrons.[12][13][14] In general, nuclear transitions are much more energetic than electronic transitions, so gamma-rays are more energetic than X-rays, but exceptions exist. By analogy to electronic transitions, muonic atom transitions are also said to produce X-rays, even though their energy may exceed 6 megaelectronvolts (0.96 pJ),[15] whereas there are many (77 known to be less than 10 keV (1.6 fJ)) low-energy nuclear transitions (e.g., the 7.6 eV (1.22 aJ) nuclear transition of thorium-229), and, despite being one million-fold less energetic than some muonic X-rays, the emitted photons are still called gamma rays due to their nuclear origin.[16]

text: The convention that EM radiation that is known to come from the nucleus, is always called "gamma ray" radiation is the only convention that is universally respected, however. Many astronomical gamma ray sources (such as gamma ray bursts) are known to be too energetic (in both intensity and wavelength) to be of nuclear origin. Quite often, in high energy physics and in medical radiotherapy, very high energy EMR (in the >10 MeV region)—which is of higher energy than any nuclear gamma ray—is not called X-ray or gamma-ray, but instead by the generic term of "high energy photons."

text: The region of the spectrum where a particular observed electromagnetic radiation falls, is reference frame-dependent (due to the Doppler shift for light), so EM radiation that one observer would say is in one region of the spectrum could appear to an observer moving at a substantial fraction of the speed of light with respect to the first to be in another part of the spectrum. For example, consider the cosmic microwave background. It was produced, when matter and radiation decoupled, by the de-excitation of hydrogen atoms to the ground state. These photons were from Lyman series transitions, putting them in the ultraviolet (UV) part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Now this radiation has undergone enough cosmological red shift to put it into the microwave region of the spectrum for observers moving slowly (compared to the speed of light) with respect to the cosmos.

text: Radio frequency

text: Radio waves generally are utilized by antennas of appropriate size (according to the principle of resonance), with wavelengths ranging from hundreds of meters to about one millimeter. They are used for transmission of data, via modulation. Television, mobile phones, wireless networking, and amateur radio all use radio waves. The use of the radio spectrum is regulated by many governments through frequency allocation.

text: Radio waves can be made to carry information by varying a combination of the amplitude, frequency, and phase of the wave within a frequency band. When EM radiation impinges upon a conductor, it couples to the conductor, travels along it, and induces an electric current on the surface of that conductor by exciting the electrons of the conducting material. This effect (the skin effect) is used in antennas.

text: Microwaves

text: The super-high frequency (SHF) and extremely high frequency (EHF) of microwaves are on the short side of radio waves. Microwaves are waves that are typically short enough (measured in millimeters) to employ tubular metal waveguides of reasonable diameter. Microwave energy is produced with klystron and magnetron tubes, and with solid state diodes such as Gunn and IMPATT devices. Microwaves are absorbed by molecules that have a dipole moment in liquids. In a microwave oven, this effect is used to heat food. Low-intensity microwave radiation is used in Wi-Fi, although this is at intensity levels unable to cause thermal heating.

text: Volumetric heating, as used by microwave ovens, transfers energy through the material electromagnetically, not as a thermal heat flux. The benefit of this is a more uniform heating and reduced heating time; microwaves can heat material in less than 1% of the time of conventional heating methods.

text: When active, the average microwave oven is powerful enough to cause interference at close range with poorly shielded electromagnetic fields such as those found in mobile medical devices and poorly made consumer electronics.[17]

text: Terahertz radiation

text: Terahertz radiation is a region of the spectrum between far infrared and microwaves. Until recently, the range was rarely studied and few sources existed for microwave energy at the high end of the band (sub-millimeter waves or so-called terahertz waves), but applications such as imaging and communications are now appearing. Scientists are also looking to apply terahertz technology in the armed forces, where high-frequency waves might be directed at enemy troops to incapacitate their electronic equipment.[18]

text: Infrared radiation

text: The infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum covers the range from roughly 300 GHz to 400 THz (1 mm - 750 nm). It can be divided into three parts:[5]

text:
Far-infrared, from 300 GHz to 30 THz (1 mm – 10 μm). The lower part of this range may also be called microwaves or terahertz waves. This radiation is typically absorbed by so-called rotational modes in gas-phase molecules, by molecular motions in liquids, and by phonons in solids. The water in Earth's atmosphere absorbs so strongly in this range that it renders the atmosphere in effect opaque. However, there are certain wavelength ranges ("windows") within the opaque range that allow partial transmission, and can be used for astronomy. The wavelength range from approximately 200 μm up to a few mm is often referred to as "sub-millimeter" in astronomy, reserving far infrared for wavelengths below 200 μm.
Mid-infrared, from 30 to 120 THz (10–2.5 μm). Hot objects (black-body radiators) can radiate strongly in this range, and human skin at normal body temperature radiates strongly at the lower end of this region. This radiation is absorbed by molecular vibrations, where the different atoms in a molecule vibrate around their equilibrium positions. This range is sometimes called the fingerprint region, since the mid-infrared absorption spectrum of a compound is very specific for that compound.
Near-infrared, from 120 to 400 THz (2,500–750 nm). Physical processes that are relevant for this range are similar to those for visible light. The highest frequences in this region can be detected directly by some types of photographic film, and by many types of solid state image sensors for infrared photography and videography.

text: Visible radiation (light)

text: Above infrared in frequency comes visible light. The Sun emits its peak power in the visible region, although integrating the entire emission power spectrum through all wavelengths shows that the Sun emits slightly more infrared than visible light.[19] By definition, visible light is the part of the EM spectrum the human eye is the most sensitive to. Visible light (and near-infrared light) is typically absorbed and emitted by electrons in molecules and atoms that move from one energy level to another. This action allows the chemical mechanisms that underlie human vision and plant photosynthesis. The light that excites the human visual system is a very small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. A rainbow shows the optical (visible) part of the electromagnetic spectrum; infrared (if it could be seen) would be located just beyond the red side of the rainbow with ultraviolet appearing just beyond the violet end.

text: Electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength between 380 nm and 760 nm (400–790 terahertz) is detected by the human eye and perceived as visible light. Other wavelengths, especially near infrared (longer than 760 nm) and ultraviolet (shorter than 380 nm) are also sometimes referred to as light, especially when the visibility to humans is not relevant. White light is a combination of lights of different wavelengths in the visible spectrum. Passing white light through a prism splits it up into the several colors of light observed in the visible spectrum between 400 nm and 780 nm.

text: If radiation having a frequency in the visible region of the EM spectrum reflects off an object, say, a bowl of fruit, and then strikes the eyes, this results in visual perception of the scene. The brain's visual system processes the multitude of reflected frequencies into different shades and hues, and through this insufficiently-understood psychophysical phenomenon, most people perceive a bowl of fruit.

text: At most wavelengths, however, the information carried by electromagnetic radiation is not directly detected by human senses. Natural sources produce EM radiation across the spectrum, and technology can also manipulate a broad range of wavelengths. Optical fiber transmits light that, although not necessarily in the visible part of the spectrum (it is usually infrared), can carry information. The modulation is similar to that used with radio waves.

text: Ultraviolet radiation

text: Next in frequency comes ultraviolet (UV). The wavelength of UV rays is shorter than the violet end of the visible spectrum but longer than the X-ray.

text: UV in the very shortest wavelength range (next to X-rays) is capable of ionizing atoms (see photoelectric effect), greatly changing their physical behavior.

text: At the middle range of UV, UV rays cannot ionize but can break chemical bonds, making molecules unusually reactive. Sunburn, for example, is caused by the disruptive effects of middle range UV radiation on skin cells, which is the main cause of skin cancer. UV rays in the middle range can irreparably damage the complex DNA molecules in the cells producing thymine dimers making it a very potent mutagen.

text: The Sun emits significant UV radiation (about 10% of its total power), including extremely short wavelength UV that could potentially destroy most life on land (ocean water would provide some protection for life there). However, most of the Sun's damaging UV wavelengths are absorbed by the atmosphere before they reach the surface. The higher energy (shortest wavelength) ranges of UV (called "vacuum UV") are absorbed by nitrogen and, at longer wavelengths, by simple diatomic oxygen in the air. Most of the UV in the mid-range of energy is blocked by the ozone layer, which absorbs strongly in the important 200–315 nm range, the lower energy part of which is too long for ordinary dioxygen in air to absorb. This leaves less than 3% of sunlight at sea level in UV, with all of this remainder at the lower energies. The remainder is UV-A, along with some UV-B. The very lowest energy range of UV between 315 nm and visible light (called UV-A) is not blocked well by the atmosphere, but does not cause sunburn and does less biological damage. However, it is not harmless and does create oxygen radicals, mutations and skin damage. See ultraviolet for more information.

text: X-rays

text: After UV come X-rays, which, like the upper ranges of UV are also ionizing. However, due to their higher energies, X-rays can also interact with matter by means of the Compton effect. Hard X-rays have shorter wavelengths than soft X-rays and as they can pass through many substances with little absorption, they can be used to 'see through' objects with 'thicknesses' less than that equivalent to a few meters of water. One notable use is diagnostic X-ray imaging in medicine (a process known as radiography). X-rays are useful as probes in high-energy physics. In astronomy, the accretion disks around neutron stars and black holes emit X-rays, enabling studies of these phenomena. X-rays are also emitted by the coronas of stars and are strongly emitted by some types of nebulae. However, X-ray telescopes must be placed outside the Earth's atmosphere to see astronomical X-rays, since the great depth of the atmosphere of Earth is opaque to X-rays (with areal density of 1000 grams per cm2), equivalent to 10 meters thickness of water.[20] This is an amount sufficient to block almost all astronomical X-rays (and also astronomical gamma rays—see below).

text: Gamma rays

text: After hard X-rays come gamma rays, which were discovered by Paul Villard in 1900. These are the most energetic photons, having no defined lower limit to their wavelength. In astronomy they are valuable for studying high-energy objects or regions, however as with X-rays this can only be done with telescopes outside the Earth's atmosphere. Gamma rays are used experimentally by physicists for their penetrating ability and are produced by a number of radioisotopes. They are used for irradiation of foods and seeds for sterilization, and in medicine they are occasionally used in radiation cancer therapy.[21] More commonly, gamma rays are used for diagnostic imaging in nuclear medicine, an example being PET scans. The wavelength of gamma rays can be measured with high accuracy through the effects of Compton scattering.


document_title: Zion Williamson

question_text: what is zion williamson ranked in the country

text: Zion Williamson

text:
Zion Williamson

Williamson dunks in 2017

No. 12 – Spartanburg Day Griffins

Position
Small forward

League
SCISA

Personal information

Born
(2000-07-06) July 6, 2000 (age 17)
Salisbury, North Carolina

Nationality
American

Listed height
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)

Listed weight
230 lb (104 kg)

Career information

High school
Spartanburg Day School
(Spartanburg, South Carolina)

text: Zion Williamson (born July 6, 2000) is an American basketball player who attends Spartanburg Day School in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Currently a senior , he has been ranked as one of the top high school players in his class. In 2017, the North Carolina native gained significant media coverage after a series of slam dunks.

text: Early life[edit]

text: Williamson was born on July 6, 2000 in Salisbury, North Carolina.[1] He was named after Mount Zion, which appears in the Bible.[2] His father Lateef Williamson was a defensive lineman who had earned All-American honors at Darlington High School in Darlington, South Carolina. Lateef had committed to NC State before transferring to Livingstone College.[1][3] Zion's mother Sharonda Sampson was a sprinter at Livingstone and became a middle school health and physical education teacher. When Zion was two years of age, following the death of Sampson's mother, his family moved to Florence, South Carolina.[1][3] By the time he was five years old, his parents divorced.[3]

text: During his childhood, Williamson briefly played multiple sports including soccer and football.[2] At five years of age, Williamson first planned on becoming a standout college basketball player.[4] He played in many youth leagues with his mother as his coach.[3] He began working with his stepfather and former Clemson basketball player Lee Anderson to improve his skills as a point guard.[4] Even at age five, he competed with nine-year-olds on the Sumter Falcons Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team.[4] At Johnakin Middle School in Marion, South Carolina, coached by his mother as well, Williamson averaged 20 points per game.[4]

text: High school career[edit]

text: Shortly before ninth grade, Williamson enrolled at Spartanburg Day School, a small K–12 private school in Spartanburg, South Carolina.[2] Between eighth and ninth grade, he grew from 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) to 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m).[3] In the summer prior to his first season with Sharon High School basketball team, he also trained in a school gym and eventually developed the ability to dunk.[5] As a freshman for the Griffins, Williamson averaged 24.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 3.3 steals and 3.0 blocks and earned all-state and all-region honors.[6]

text: The Senior attends Spartanburg Day School in Spartanburg, South Carolina.[2][7] As a sophomore he helped lead his team to win the state championship, where he scored 32 points.[8][9] As a junior he averaged 36.8 points and 13.0 rebounds per game and led his team to their second straight state championship, where he scored 51 points.[10][11][12][13]

text: Williamson gained national notoriety after a series of mixtapes showcasing his athletic ability, dominating style and flashy dunks went viral. Since, Williamson has garnered attention from the national media, including an interview on ESPN's Sportscenter, only adding to his growing reputation.[14]

text: Williamson is rated as a five-star recruit and is ranked as the best player in the 2018 class.[15][16][17] While Williamson has received numerous scholarship offers, he has yet to commit to any program.[18]


document_title: Beowulf

question_text: when did the action of beowulf take place

text: Beowulf

text: Historical background[edit]

text: The events in the poem take place over most of the sixth century, after the Anglo-Saxons had started their journey to England and before the beginning of the seventh century, a time when the Anglo-Saxons were either newly arrived or were still in close contact with their Germanic kinsmen in Northern Germany. The poem may have been brought to England by people of Geatish origins.[6] Many suggest that Beowulf was first composed in the 7th century at Rendlesham in East Anglia, that the Sutton Hoo ship-burial also shows close connections with Scandinavia, and that the East Anglian royal dynasty, the Wuffingas, may have been descendants of the Geatish Wulfings.[7][8] Others have associated this poem with the court of King Alfred the Great or with the court of King Cnut the Great.[9]

text: The poem deals with legends, was composed for entertainment, and does not separate between fictional elements and real historic events, such as the raid by King Hygelac into Frisia. Though Beowulf himself is not mentioned in any other Anglo-Saxon manuscript,[10] scholars generally agree that many of the other personalities of Beowulf also appear in Scandinavian sources. (Specific works are designated in the following section).[11] This does not only concern people (e.g., Healfdene, Hroðgar, Halga, Hroðulf, Eadgils and Ohthere), but also clans (e.g., Scyldings, Scylfings and Wulfings) and some of the events (e.g., the Battle on the Ice of Lake Vänern). The dating of the events in the poem has been confirmed by archaeological excavations of the barrows indicated by Snorri Sturluson and by Swedish tradition as the graves of Ohthere (dated to c. 530) and his son Eadgils (dated to c. 575) in Uppland, Sweden.[12][13][14]

text: In Denmark, recent archaeological excavations at Lejre, where Scandinavian tradition located the seat of the Scyldings, i.e., Heorot, have revealed that a hall was built in the mid-6th century, exactly the time period of Beowulf.[15] Three halls, each about 50 metres (160 ft) long, were found during the excavation.[15]

text: The majority view appears to be that people such as King Hroðgar and the Scyldings in Beowulf are based on real historical people from 6th-century Scandinavia.[16] Like the Finnesburg Fragment and several shorter surviving poems, Beowulf has consequently been used as a source of information about Scandinavian personalities such as Eadgils and Hygelac, and about continental Germanic personalities such as Offa, king of the continental Angles.

text: 19th-century archeological evidence may confirm elements of the Beowulf story. Eadgils was buried at Uppsala according to Snorri Sturluson. When Eadgils' mound (to the left in the photo) was excavated in 1874, the finds supported Beowulf and the sagas. They showed that a powerful man was buried in a large barrow, c. 575, on a bear skin with two dogs and rich grave offerings. These remains include a Frankish sword adorned with gold and garnets and a tafl game with Roman pawns of ivory. He was dressed in a costly suit made of Frankish cloth with golden threads, and he wore a belt with a costly buckle. There were four cameos from the Middle East which were probably part of a casket. This would have been a burial fitting a king who was famous for his wealth in Old Norse sources. Ongentheow's barrow has not been excavated.[12][13]

text: Summary[edit]

text: The protagonist Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, king of the Danes, whose great hall, Heorot, is plagued by the monster Grendel. Beowulf kills Grendel with his bare hands and Grendel's mother with a giant's sword that he found in her lair.

text: Later in his life, Beowulf becomes king of the Geats, and finds his realm terrorized by a dragon, some of whose treasure had been stolen from his hoard in a burial mound. He attacks the dragon with the help of his thegns or servants, but they do not succeed. Beowulf decides to follow the dragon to its lair at Earnanæs, but only his young Swedish relative Wiglaf, whose name means "remnant of valour",[a] dares to join him. Beowulf finally slays the dragon, but is mortally wounded in the struggle. He is cremated and a burial mound by the sea is erected in his honor.

text: Beowulf is considered an epic poem in that the main character is a hero who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against supernatural demons and beasts. The poem also begins in medias res or simply, "in the middle of things," which is a characteristic of the epics of antiquity. Although the poem begins with Beowulf's arrival, Grendel's attacks have been an ongoing event. An elaborate history of characters and their lineages is spoken of, as well as their interactions with each other, debts owed and repaid, and deeds of valour. The warriors form a kind of brotherhood linked by loyalty to their lord. What is unique about "Beowulf" is that the poem actual begins and ends with a funeral. At the beginning of the poem, the king, hero, Shield Shiefson dies (26-45) and there is a huge funeral for him. At the end of the poem when Beowulf dies, there is also a massive funeral for Beowulf.(3140-3170)

text: First battle: Grendel[edit]

text: Beowulf begins with the story of Hrothgar, who constructed the great hall Heorot for himself and his warriors. In it, he, his wife Wealhtheow, and his warriors spend their time singing and celebrating. Grendel, a troll-like monster said to be descended from the biblical Cain, is pained by the sounds of a joy.[19] Grendel attacks the hall and kills and devours many of Hrothgar's warriors while they sleep. Hrothgar and his people, helpless against Grendel, abandon Heorot.

text: Beowulf, a young warrior from Geatland, hears of Hrothgar's troubles and with his king's permission leaves his homeland to assist Hrothgar.[20]

text: Beowulf and his men spend the night in Heorot. Beowulf refuses to use any weapon because he holds himself to be the equal of Grendel.[21] When Grendel enters the hall, Beowulf, who has been feigning sleep, leaps up to clench Grendel's hand.[22] Grendel and Beowulf battle each other violently.[23] Beowulf's retainers draw their swords and rush to his aid, but their blades cannot pierce Grendel's skin.[24] Finally, Beowulf tears Grendel's arm from his body at the shoulder and Grendel runs to his home in the marshes where he dies.[25]Beowulf displays "the whole of Grendel's shoulder and arm, his awesome grasp" for all to see at Heorot. This display would fuel her anger in revenge.[26]

text: Second battle: Grendel's Mother[edit]

text: The next night, after celebrating Grendel's defeat, Hrothgar and his men sleep in Heorot. Grendel's mother, angry that her son has been killed, sets out to get revenge. "Beowulf was elsewhere. Earlier, after the award of treasure, The Geat had been given another lodging" his assistance would be absent in this battle.[27] Grendel's mother violently kills Æschere, who is Hrothgar's most loyal fighter, and escapes.

text: Hrothgar, Beowulf and their men track Grendel's mother to her lair under a lake. Unferth, a warrior who had doubted him and wishes to make amends, presents Beowulf with his sword Hrunting. After stipulating a number of conditions to Hrothgar in case of his death (including the taking in of his kinsmen and the inheritance by Unferth of Beowulf's estate), Beowulf jumps into the lake, at the bottom of which he finds a cavern containing Grendel's body and the remains of men that the two have killed. Grendel's mother and Beowulf engage in fierce combat.

text: At first, Grendel's mother appears to prevail. Beowulf, finding that Hrunting cannot harm his foe, puts it aside in fury. Beowulf is again saved from his opponent's attack by his armour. Beowulf takes another sword from Grendel's mother and slices her head off with it. Travelling further into Grendel's mother's lair, Beowulf discovers Grendel's corpse and severs his head. The blade of Beowulf's sword touches Grendel's toxic blood, and instantly dissolves so that only the hilt remains. Beowulf swims back up to the rim of the pond where his men wait in growing despair. Carrying the hilt of the sword and Grendel's head, he presents them to Hrothgar upon his return to Heorot. Hrothgar gives Beowulf many gifts, including the sword Nægling, his family's heirloom. The events prompt a long reflection by the king, sometimes referred to as "Hrothgar's sermon", in which he urges Beowulf to be wary of pride and to reward his thegns.[28]

text: Third battle: The Dragon[edit]

text: Beowulf returns home and eventually becomes king of his own people. One day, fifty years after Beowulf's battle with Grendel's mother, a slave steals a golden cup from the lair of a dragon at Earnanæs. When the dragon sees that the cup has been stolen, it leaves its cave in a rage, burning everything in sight. Beowulf and his warriors come to fight the dragon, but Beowulf tells his men that he will fight the dragon alone and that they should wait on the barrow. Beowulf descends to do battle with the dragon, but finds himself outmatched. His men, upon seeing this and fearing for their lives, retreat into the woods. One of his men, Wiglaf, however, in great distress at Beowulf's plight, comes to his aid. The two slay the dragon, but Beowulf is mortally wounded. After Beowulf's death, he is ritually burned on a great pyre in Geatland while his people wail and mourn him, fearing that without him, the Geates are defenseless against attacks from surrounding tribes. Afterwards, a barrow, visible from the sea, is built in his memory. (Beowulf lines 2712–3182).[29]

text: Authorship and date[edit]

text: Beowulf was written in England, but is set in Scandinavia; its dating has attracted considerable scholarly attention. The poem has been dated to between the 8th and the early 11th centuries, with some recent scholarship offering what has been called "a cohesive and compelling case for Beowulf's early composition."[30][31] However, opinion differs as to whether the composition of the poem is nearly contemporary with its transcription, whether it was first written in the 8th century, or if a proto-version of the poem was perhaps composed at an even earlier time (possibly as one of the Bear's Son Tales) and orally transmitted for many years, then transcribed in its present form at a later date. Albert Lord felt strongly that the manuscript represents the transcription of a performance, though likely taken at more than one sitting.[32] J. R. R. Tolkien believed that the poem retains too genuine a memory of Anglo-Saxon paganism to have been composed more than a few generations after the completion of the Christianisation of England around AD 700[33], and Tolkien's conviction that the poem dates to the 8th century has been defended by Tom Shippey, Leonard Neidorf, Rafael J. Pascual, and R.D. Fulk, among others.[34][35][36]

text: The claim to an early 11th-century date depends in part on scholars who argue that, rather than the transcription of a tale from the oral tradition by an earlier literate monk, Beowulf reflects an original interpretation of an earlier version of the story by the manuscript's two scribes. On the other hand, some scholars argue that linguistic, paleographical, metrical, and onomastic considerations align to support a date of composition in the first half of the eighth century;[31][37][38][39] in particular, the poem's regular observation of etymological length distinctions (Max Kaluza's law) has been thought to demonstrate a date of composition in the first half of the eighth century.[35][36] However, scholars disagree about whether the metrical phenomena described by Kaluza's Law prove an early date of composition or are evidence of a longer prehistory of the Beowulf meter;[40] B.R. Hutcheson, for instance, does not believe Kaluza's Law can be used to date the poem, while claiming that "the weight of all the evidence Fulk presents in his book[b] tells strongly in favor of an eighth-century date."[41]

text: Manuscript[edit]

text: Beowulf survives in a single manuscript dated on paleographical grounds to the late 10th or early 11th century. The manuscript measures 245 × 185 mm.[42]

text: Provenance[edit]

text: The poem is known only from a single manuscript, which is estimated to date from close to AD 1000, in which it appears with other works. The Beowulf manuscript is known as the Nowell Codex, gaining its name from 16th-century scholar Laurence Nowell. The official designation is "British Library, Cotton Vitellius A.XV" because it was one of Sir Robert Bruce Cotton's holdings in the Cotton library in the middle of the 17th century. Many private antiquarians and book collectors, such as Sir Robert Cotton, used their own library classification systems. "Cotton Vitellius A.XV" translates as: the 15th book from the left on shelf A (the top shelf) of the bookcase with the bust of Roman Emperor Vitellius standing on top of it, in Cotton's collection. Kevin Kiernan argues that Nowell most likely acquired it through William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, in 1563, when Nowell entered Cecil's household as a tutor to his ward, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford.[43]

text: The earliest extant reference to the first foliation of the Nowell Codex was made sometime between 1628 and 1650 by Franciscus Junius (the younger).[44]:91 The ownership of the codex before Nowell remains a mystery.[44]:120

text: The Reverend Thomas Smith (1638–1710) and Humfrey Wanley (1672–1726) both catalogued the Cotton library (in which the Nowell Codex was held). Smith's catalogue appeared in 1696, and Wanley's in 1705.[45] The Beowulf manuscript itself is identified by name for the first time in an exchange of letters in 1700 between George Hickes, Wanley's assistant, and Wanley. In the letter to Wanley, Hickes responds to an apparent charge against Smith, made by Wanley, that Smith had failed to mention the Beowulf script when cataloguing Cotton MS. Vitellius A. XV. Hickes replies to Wanley "I can find nothing yet of Beowulph."[46] Kiernan theorised that Smith failed to mention the Beowulf manuscript because of his reliance on previous catalogues or because either he had no idea how to describe it or because it was temporarily out of the codex.[47]

text: It suffered damage in the Cotton Library fire at Ashburnham House in 1731. Since then, parts of the manuscript have crumbled along with many of the letters. Rebinding efforts, though saving the manuscript from much degeneration, have nonetheless covered up other letters of the poem, causing further loss. Kevin Kiernan, in preparing his electronic edition of the manuscript, used fibre-optic backlighting and ultraviolet lighting to reveal letters in the manuscript lost from binding, erasure, or ink blotting.[48]

text: Writing[edit]

text: The Beowulf manuscript was transcribed from an original by two scribes, one of whom wrote the prose at the beginning of the manuscript and the first 1939 lines before breaking off in mid sentence. The first scribe made a point of carefully regularizing the spelling of the original document by using the common West Saxon language and by avoiding any archaic or dialectical features. The second scribe, who wrote the remainder, with a difference in handwriting noticeable after line 1939, seems to have written more vigorously and with less interest. As a result the second scribe's script retains more archaic dialectic features which allow modern scholars to ascribe the poem a cultural context.[49] While both scribes appear to proofread their work, there are nevertheless many errors.[50] The second scribe was ultimately the more conservative copyist of the two as he did not modify the spelling of the text as he wrote but rather copied what he saw in front of him. In the way that it is currently bound, the Beowulf manuscript is followed by the Old English poem Judith. Judith was written by same the scribe that completed Beowulf as evidenced through similar writing style. Worm-holes found in the last leaves of the Beowulf manuscript that aren't present in the Judith manuscript suggest that at one point Beowulf ended the volume. The rubbed appearance of some leaves also suggest that the manuscript stood on a shelf unbound, as is known to have been the case with other Old English manuscripts.[51] From knowledge of books held in the library at Malmesbury Abbey and available as source works, and from the identification of certain words particular to the local dialect found in the text, the transcription may have taken place there.[52]

text: Transcriptions[edit]

text: Icelandic scholar Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin made the first transcriptions of the manuscript in 1786 and published the results in 1815, working as part of a Danish government historical research commission. He made one himself, and had another done by a professional copyist who knew no Anglo-Saxon. Since that time, however, the manuscript has crumbled further, making these transcripts a prized witness to the text. While the recovery of at least 2000 letters can be attributed to them, their accuracy has been called into question,[c] and the extent to which the manuscript was actually more readable in Thorkelin's time is uncertain.

text: Translations[edit]

text: In 1805, the historian Sharon Turner translated selected verses into modern English.[54] This was followed in 1814 by John Josias Conybeare who published an edition "in English paraphrase and Latin verse translation."[54] In 1815, Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin published the first complete edition in Latin.[54] N. F. S. Grundtvig reviewed this edition in 1815 and created the first complete verse translation in Danish in 1820.[54] In 1837, John Mitchell Kemble created an important literal translation in English.[54] In 1895, William Morris & A. J. Wyatt published the ninth English translation.[54] Many retellings of Beowulf for children also appeared around the beginning of the 20th century.[55] In 1909, Francis Barton Gummere's full translation in "English imitative meter" was published,[54] and was used as the text of Gareth Hinds's graphic novel based on Beowulf in 2007.

text: During the early 20th century, Frederick Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg[56] (which included the poem in Old English, an extensive glossary of Old English terms, and general background information) became the "central source used by graduate students for the study of the poem and by scholars and teachers as the basis of their translations."[57]

text: A great number of translations are available, in poetry and prose. Andy Orchard, in A Critical Companion to Beowulf, lists 33 "representative" translations in his bibliography,[58] and it has been translated into at least 23 other languages.[59]

text: Seamus Heaney's 1999 translation of the poem (referred to by Howell Chickering and many others as "Heaneywulf"[60]) was widely publicized. Translating Beowulf is one of the subjects of the 2012 publication Beowulf at Kalamazoo, containing a section with 10 essays on translation, and a section with 22 reviews of Heaney's translation (some of which compare Heaney's work with that of Anglo-Saxon scholar Roy Liuzza).[61] R. D. Fulk, of Indiana University, published the first facing-page edition and translation of the entire manuscript in the Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library series in 2010.[62]

text: J. R. R. Tolkien's long-awaited translation (edited by his son, Christopher) was published in 2014 as Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary.[63][64] This also includes Tolkien's own retelling of the story of Beowulf in his tale, Sellic Spell.

text: Debate over oral tradition[edit]

text: The question of whether Beowulf was passed down through oral tradition prior to its present manuscript form has been the subject of much debate, and involves more than simply the issue of its composition. Rather, given the implications of the theory of oral-formulaic composition and oral tradition, the question concerns how the poem is to be understood, and what sorts of interpretations are legitimate.

text: Scholarly discussion about Beowulf in the context of the oral tradition was extremely active throughout the 1960s and 1970s. The debate might be framed starkly as follows: on the one hand, we can hypothesise a poem put together from various tales concerning the hero (the Grendel episode, the Grendel's mother story, and the fire drake narrative). These fragments would have been told for many years in tradition, and learned by apprenticeship from one generation of illiterate poets to the next. The poem is composed orally and extemporaneously, and the archive of tradition on which it draws is oral, pagan, Germanic, heroic, and tribal. On the other hand, one might posit a poem which is composed by a literate scribe, who acquired literacy by way of learning Latin (and absorbing Latinate culture and ways of thinking), probably a monk and therefore profoundly Christian in outlook. On this view, the pagan references would be a sort of decorative archaising.[65][66] There is a third view that sees merit in both arguments above and attempts to bridge them, and so cannot be articulated as starkly as they can; it sees more than one Christianity and more than one attitude towards paganism at work in the poem; it sees the poem as initially the product of a literate Christian author with one foot in the pagan world and one in the Christian, himself perhaps a convert (or one whose forebears had been pagan), a poet who was conversant in both oral and literary composition and was capable of a masterful "repurposing" of poetry from the oral tradition.

text: However, scholars such as D.K. Crowne have proposed the idea that the poem was passed down from reciter to reciter under the theory of oral-formulaic composition, which hypothesises that epic poems were (at least to some extent) improvised by whoever was reciting them, and only much later written down. In his landmark work, The Singer of Tales, Albert Lord refers to the work of Francis Peabody Magoun and others, saying "the documentation is complete, thorough, and accurate. This exhaustive analysis is in itself sufficient to prove that Beowulf was composed orally."[67]

text: Examination of Beowulf and other Old English literature for evidence of oral-formulaic composition has met with mixed response. While "themes" (inherited narrative subunits for representing familiar classes of event, such as the "arming the hero",[68] or the particularly well-studied "hero on the beach" theme[69]) do exist across Anglo-Saxon and other Germanic works, some scholars conclude that Anglo-Saxon poetry is a mix of oral-formulaic and literate patterns, arguing that the poems both were composed on a word-by-word basis and followed larger formulae and patterns.[70]

text: Larry Benson argued that the interpretation of Beowulf as an entirely formulaic work diminishes the ability of the reader to analyze the poem in a unified manner, and with due attention to the poet's creativity. Instead, he proposed that other pieces of Germanic literature contain "kernels of tradition" from which Beowulf borrows and expands upon.[71][72] A few years later, Ann Watts argued against the imperfect application of one theory to two different traditions: traditional, Homeric, oral-formulaic poetry and Anglo-Saxon poetry.[72][73] Thomas Gardner agreed with Watts, arguing that the Beowulf text is of too varied a nature to be completely constructed from set formulae and themes.[72][74]

text: John Miles Foley wrote, referring to the Beowulf debate,[75] that while comparative work was both necessary and valid, it must be conducted with a view to the particularities of a given tradition; Foley argued with a view to developments of oral traditional theory that do not assume, or depend upon, ultimately unverifiable assumptions about composition, and instead delineate a more fluid continuum of traditionality and textuality.[76][77][78][68]

text: Finally, in the view of Ursula Schaefer, the question of whether the poem was "oral" or "literate" becomes something of a red herring.[79] In this model, the poem is created, and is interpretable, within both noetic horizons. Schaefer's concept of "vocality" offers neither a compromise nor a synthesis of the views which see the poem as on the one hand Germanic, pagan, and oral and on the other Latin-derived, Christian, and literate, but, as stated by Monika Otter: "... a 'tertium quid', a modality that participates in both oral and literate culture yet also has a logic and aesthetic of its own."[80]

text: Sources and analogues[edit]

text: Neither identified sources nor analogues for Beowulf can be definitively proven, but many conjectures have been made. These are important in helping historians understand the Beowulf manuscript, as possible source-texts or influences would suggest time-frames of composition, geographic boundaries within which it could be composed, or range (both spatial and temporal) of influence (i.e. when it was "popular" and where its "popularity" took it). There are five main categories in which potential sources and/or analogues are included: Scandinavian parallels, early Irish literature sources and analogues, classical sources, ecclesiastical sources, and echoes in other Old English texts.[81]

text: Early studies into Scandinavian sources and analogues proposed that Beowulf was a translation of an original Scandinavian work, but this idea has been discarded. In 1878, Guðbrandur Vigfússon made the connection between Beowulf and the Grettis saga. This is currently one of the few Scandinavian analogues to receive a general consensus of potential connection.[82] Tales concerning the Skjöldungs, possibly originating as early as the 6th century were later used as a narrative basis in such texts as Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus and Hrólfs saga kraka. Some scholars see Beowulf as a product of these early tales along with Gesta Danorum and Hrólfs saga kraka, and some early scholars of the poem proposed that the latter saga and Beowulf share a common legendary ancestry, Beowulf's Hrothulf being identified with Hrólf Kraki. Paul Beekman Taylor argued that the Ynglinga saga was proof that the Beowulf poet was likewise working from Germanic tradition.[83]

text: Friedrich Panze attempted to contextualise Beowulf and other Scandinavian works, including Grettis saga, under the international folktale type 301B, or "The Bear's Son" tale. However, although this folkloristic approach was seen as a step in the right direction, "The Bear's Son" tale was seen as too universal. Later, Peter Jørgensen, looking for a more concise frame of reference, coined a "two-troll tradition" that covers both Beowulf and Grettis saga: "a Norse 'ecotype' in which a hero enters a cave and kills two giants, usually of different sexes".[84]

text: Scholars who favored Irish parallels directly spoke out against pro-Scandinavian theories, citing them as unjustified. Wilhelm Grimm is noted to be the first person to link Beowulf with Irish folklore; however, Max Deutschbein is the first person to present the argument in academic form. He suggested the Irish Feast of Bricriu as a source for Beowulf—a theory that was soon denied by Oscar Olson. Swedish folklorist Carl Wilhelm Von Sydow argued against both Scandinavian translation and source material due to his theory that Beowulf is fundamentally Christian and written at a time when any Norse tale would have most likely been pagan.[85]

text: In the late 1920s, Heinzer Dehmer suggested Beowulf as contextually based in the folktale type "The Hand and the Child," due to the motif of the "monstrous arm"—a motif that distances Grettis saga and Beowulf and further aligns Beowulf with Irish parallelism. James Carney and Martin Puhvel also agree with this "Hand and the Child" contextualisation. Carney also ties Beowulf to Irish literature through the Táin Bó Fráech story. Puhvel supported the "Hand and the Child" theory through such motifs as (in Andersson's words) "the more powerful giant mother, the mysterious light in the cave, the melting of the sword in blood, the phenomenon of battle rage, swimming prowess, combat with water monsters, underwater adventures, and the bear-hug style of wrestling."[86]

text: Attempts to find classical or Late Latin influence or analogue in Beowulf are almost exclusively linked with Homer's Odyssey or Virgil's Aeneid. In 1926, Albert Stanburrough Cook suggested a Homeric connection due to equivalent formulas, metonymies, and analogous voyages.[87] In 1930, James A. Work also supported the Homeric influence, stating that encounter between Beowulf and Unferth was parallel to the encounter between Odysseus and Euryalus in Books 7–8 of the Odyssey, even to the point of both characters giving the hero the same gift of a sword upon being proven wrong in their initial assessment of the hero's prowess. This theory of Homer's influence on Beowulf remained very prevalent in the 1920s, but started to die out in the following decade when a handful of critics stated that the two works were merely "comparative literature",[88] although Greek was known in late 7th century England: Bede states that Theodore of Tarsus, a Greek, was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 668, and he taught Greek. Several English scholars and churchmen are described by Bede as being fluent in Greek due to being taught by him; Bede claims to be fluent in Greek himself.[89]

text: Frederick Klaeber, among others, argued for a connection between Beowulf and Virgil near the start of the 20th century, claiming that the very act of writing a secular epic in a Germanic world represents Virgilian influence. Virgil was seen as the pinnacle of Latin literature, and Latin was the dominant literary language of England at the time, therefore making Virgilian influence highly likely.[90] Similarly, in 1971, Alistair Campbell stated that the apologue technique used in Beowulf is so rare in epic poetry aside from Virgil that the poet who composed Beowulf could not have written the poem in such a manner without first coming across Virgil's writings.[91]

text: It cannot be denied that Biblical parallels occur in the text, whether seen as a pagan work with "Christian colouring" added by scribes or as a "Christian historical novel, with selected bits of paganism deliberately laid on as 'local colour'," as Margaret E. Goldsmith did in "The Christian Theme of Beowulf,".[92] Beowulf channels the Book of Genesis, the Book of Exodus, and the Book of Daniel[93] in its inclusion of references to the Genesis creation narrative, the story of Cain and Abel, Noah and the flood myth, the Devil, Hell, and the Last Judgment.[92]

text: Dialect[edit]

text:
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text: The poem mixes the West Saxon and Anglian dialects of Old English, though it predominantly uses West Saxon, as do other Old English poems copied at the time.[94]

text: There is a wide array of linguistic forms in the Beowulf manuscript. It is this fact that leads some scholars to believe that Beowulf has endured a long and complicated transmission through all the main dialect areas.[95] The poem retains a complicated mix of the following dialectical forms: Mercian, Northumbrian, Early West Saxon, Kentish and Late West Saxon.[44]:20-21 There are in Beowulf more than 3100 distinct words, and almost 1300 occur exclusively, or almost exclusively, in this poem and in the other poetical texts. Considerably more than one-third of the total vocabulary is alien from ordinary prose use. There are, in round numbers, three hundred and sixty uncompounded verbs in Beowulf, and forty of them are poetical words in the sense that they are unrecorded or rare in the existing prose writings. One hundred and fifty more occur with the prefix ge- (reckoning a few found only in the past-participle), but of these one hundred occur also as simple verbs, and the prefix is employed to render a shade of meaning which was perfectly known and thoroughly familiar except in the latest Anglo-Saxon period. The nouns number sixteen hundred. Seven hundred of them, including those formed with prefixes, of which fifty (or considerably more than half) have ge-, are simple nouns, at the highest reckoning not more than one-fourth is absent in prose. That this is due in some degree to accident is clear from the character of the words, and from the fact that several reappear and are common after the Norman Conquest.[96]

text: Form and metre[edit]

text: An Old English poem such as Beowulf is very different from modern poetry. Anglo-Saxon poets typically used alliterative verse, a form of verse in which the first half of the line (the a-verse) is linked to the second half (the b-verse) through similarity in initial sound. In addition, the two halves are divided by a caesura: "Oft Scyld Scefing \\ sceaþena þreatum" (l. 4). This verse form maps stressed and unstressed syllables onto abstract entities known as metrical positions. There is no fixed number of beats per line: the first one cited has three (Oft SCYLD SCEFING, with ictus on the suffix -ING) whereas the second has two (SCEAþena ÞREATum).

text: The poet has a choice of epithets or formulae to use in order to fulfill the alliteration. When speaking or reading Old English poetry, it is important to remember for alliterative purposes that many of the letters are not pronounced in the same way as in modern English. The letter ⟨h⟩, for example, is always pronounced (Hroðgar: [ˈhroðgar]), and the digraph ⟨cg⟩ is pronounced [dʒ], as in the word edge. Both ⟨f⟩ and ⟨s⟩ vary in pronunciation depending on their phonetic environment. Between vowels or voiced consonants, they are voiced, sounding like modern ⟨v⟩ and ⟨z⟩, respectively. Otherwise they are unvoiced, like modern ⟨f⟩ in fat and ⟨s⟩ in sat. Some letters which are no longer found in modern English, such as thorn, ⟨þ⟩, and eth, ⟨ð⟩ – representing both pronunciations of modern English ⟨th⟩, as /θ/ in thing and /ð/ this – are used extensively both in the original manuscript and in modern English editions. The voicing of these characters echoes that of ⟨f⟩ and ⟨s⟩. Both are voiced (as in this) between other voiced sounds: oðer, laþleas, suþern. Otherwise they are unvoiced (as in thing): þunor, suð, soþfæst.

text: Kennings are also a significant technique in Beowulf. They are evocative poetic descriptions of everyday things, often created to fill the alliterative requirements of the metre. For example, a poet might call the sea the "swan-road" or the "whale-road"; a king might be called a "ring-giver." There are many kennings in Beowulf, and the device is typical of much of classic poetry in Old English, which is heavily formulaic. The poem also makes extensive use of elided metaphors.[97]

text: J. R. R. Tolkien argued in Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics that the poem is not an epic, and while no conventional term exactly fits, the nearest would be elegy.[98]

text: Interpretation and criticism[edit]

text: The history of modern Beowulf criticism is often said to begin with J. R. R. Tolkien,[99] author and Merton professor of Anglo-Saxon at University of Oxford, who in his 1936 lecture to the British Academy criticised his contemporaries' excessive interest in its historical implications.[100] He noted in Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics that as a result the poem's literary value had been largely overlooked and argued that the poem "is in fact so interesting as poetry, in places poetry so powerful, that this quite overshadows the historical content..."[101]

text: In historical terms, the poem's characters would have been Norse pagans (the historical events of the poem took place before the Christianisation of Scandinavia), yet the poem was recorded by Christian Anglo-Saxons who had mostly converted from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism around the 7th century – both Anglo-Saxon paganism and Norse paganism share a common origin as both are forms of Germanic paganism. Beowulf thus depicts a Germanic warrior society, in which the relationship between the lord of the region and those who served under him was of paramount importance.[102]

text: In terms of the relationship between characters in Beowulf to God, one might recall the substantial amount of paganism that is present throughout the work. Literary critics such as Fred C. Robinson argue that the Beowulf poet arguably tries to send a message to readers during the Anglo-Saxon time period regarding the state of Christianity in their own time. Robinson argues that the intensified religious aspects of the Anglo-Saxon period inherently shape the way in which the Poet alludes to paganism as presented in Beowulf. The Poet arguably calls on Anglo-Saxon readers to recognize the imperfect aspects of their supposed Christian lifestyles. In other words, the Poet is referencing their "Anglo-Saxon Heathenism." In terms of the characters of the epic itself, Robinson argues that readers are "impressed" by the courageous acts of Beowulf and the speeches of Hrothgar (181). But, one is ultimately left to feel sorry for both men as they are fully detached from supposed "Christian truth" (181). The relationship between the characters of Beowulf, and the otherall message of the Poet, regarding their relationship with God is largely debated among readers and literary critics alike.

text: Stanley B. Greenfield has suggested that references to the human body throughout Beowulf emphasise the relative position of thanes to their lord. He argues that the term "shoulder-companion" could refer to both a physical arm as well as a thane (Aeschere) who was very valuable to his lord (Hrothgar). With Aeschere's death, Hrothgar turns to Beowulf as his new "arm."[103] Also, Greenfield argues the foot is used for the opposite effect, only appearing four times in the poem. It is used in conjunction with Unferð (a man described by Beowulf as weak, traitorous, and cowardly). Greenfield notes that Unferð is described as "at the king's feet" (line 499). Unferð is also a member of the foot troops, who, throughout the story, do nothing and "generally serve as backdrops for more heroic action."[104]

text: At the same time, Richard North argues that the Beowulf poet interpreted "Danish myths in Christian form" (as the poem would have served as a form of entertainment for a Christian audience), and states: "As yet we are no closer to finding out why the first audience of Beowulf liked to hear stories about people routinely classified as damned. This question is pressing, given... that Anglo-Saxons saw the Danes as 'heathens' rather than as foreigners."[105] Grendel's mother and Grendel are described as descendants of Cain, a fact which some scholars link to the Cain tradition.[106]

text: Other scholars disagree, however, as to the meaning and nature of the poem: is it a Christian work set in a Germanic pagan context? The question suggests that the conversion from the Germanic pagan beliefs to Christian ones was a prolonged and gradual process over several centuries, and it remains unclear the ultimate nature of the poem's message in respect to religious belief at the time it was written. Robert F. Yeager notes the facts that form the basis for these questions:

text: That the scribes of Cotton Vitellius A.XV were Christian beyond doubt, and it is equally sure that Beowulf was composed in a Christianised England since conversion took place in the sixth and seventh centuries. The only Biblical references in Beowulf are to the Old Testament, and Christ is never mentioned. The poem is set in pagan times, and none of the characters is demonstrably Christian. In fact, when we are told what anyone in the poem believes, we learn that they are pagans. Beowulf's own beliefs are not expressed explicitly. He offers eloquent prayers to a higher power, addressing himself to the "Father Almighty" or the "Wielder of All." Were those the prayers of a pagan who used phrases the Christians subsequently appropriated? Or, did the poem's author intend to see Beowulf as a Christian Ur-hero, symbolically refulgent with Christian virtues?[107]

text: The location of the composition of the poem is also intensely disputed. In 1914, F.W. Moorman, the first professor of English Language at University of Leeds, claimed that Beowulf was composed in Yorkshire,[108] but E. Talbot Donaldson claims that it was probably composed more than twelve hundred years ago, during the first half of the eighth century, and that the writer was a native of what was then called West Mercia, located in the Western Midlands of England. However, the late tenth-century manuscript "which alone preserves the poem" originated in the kingdom of the West Saxons – as it is more commonly known.[109] Donaldson wrote that "the poet who put the materials into their present form was a Christian and ... poem reflects a Christian tradition".[110]

text: Artistic adaptations[edit]