According to the syllabus, this assignment is due on 24 January. You should choose a passage of no more than about twenty lines from one of our Old English poems (one of the elegies or Beowulf) and write an essay that analyzes the passage closely. This is what we call a “close reading.” This is how I suggest going about it:
1. Choose a passage that is particularly interesting, strange, or dense with meaning or imagery.
2. Read it carefully, pencil in hand. Look up any words that you don’t know in the Oxford English Dictionary (available from our library here). At this point you should be developing particular ideas about the passage, or perhaps even an arguable thesis.
3. Make notes on all aspects of the passage: how the imagery works, metaphor, diction, the structure of the verse, position of the speaker, etc. (See “Reading Poetry” in the back of your book for more ideas about this.)
4. Write an essay that makes a specific argument about your passage. Use your specific observations from #2 and #3 to support your argument. You may refer to other parts of the poem, but your primary emphasis should be on your chosen passage.
5. Your essay should be about four pages, typed and double-spaced. You should type the entire quoted passage at the beginning of the paper so that your reader will have it as a reference.
