Examples Of Caesura In Beowulf

The recitalists originally presented the epic poem Beowulf orally, so they faced the challenge of intriguing the audience for a long period of time while creating the sensation that they were actually living in the story. The use of the poetic element, caesura, in Beowulf acted as an oral device to keep the listener’s attention, and alliteration helped to immerse the listener into the story through vivid imagery in an attempt to showcase the important of the Anglo-Saxon cultural theme of heroism. Caesuras denote pauses within the lines of a poem and allow for a rhythmic flow to form within the text that is harmonious to the human ear. This was a key element to maintaining the audience’s interest during oral renditions because humans are subconsciously attracted to patterns in literature, so the use of caesuras helped engage the listener’s attention for the entirety of the performance. …show more content…
Kennedy’s translation of Beowulf uses various types of punctuation to represent the caesuras the original poet had included, specifically a comma in the line, “Lamented for Beowulf, wailing in woe” (1869). Another poetic element is used in lines 1868-1872 where “an aged woman with upbound locks/ Lamented for Beowulf, wailing in woe./ Over and over she uttered her dread/ Of sorrow to come, of bloodshed and slaughter,/ Terror of battle, and bondage, and shame.” When spoken aloud, one will notice a repetition of three sounds, words beginning with the letters w and l, as well as the unvoiced s sound. These three letters are often the beginning of words expressing