Beowulf, Annotated Bibliography Example

DuBois, Arthur E. “The Dragon in Beowulf.” 72.5 (1957): 819-822. PMLA. JSTOR. Web. 20 Nov. 2009.

This article begins by focusing on the exact meaning and misunderstanding of a symbol in terms of its use in literature.  The author argues that symbols are not truly symbols without a specifically definition of what the symbol represents, which can be very difficult to attribute to many symbolic images within Beowulf.  With this said, the author mentions many fallacies associated with the symbol of the Dragon in Beowulf, and attempts to discuss what it does not mean in an effort to understand what it does mean.  This article is necessary to discuss the Dragon as a symbol in the story, and to assess potential meanings of this beast within the plot.

Elden, Stuart “Place symbolism and land politics in Beowulf.” Cultural Geographies 16.4 (2009): 447-463. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 20 Nov. 2009.

The author of this article discusses the important symbolism within the story’s use of geography and inherent meanings of the lands used to describe the setting for Beowulf.  Three of the major battle settings are discussed within this article in order to determine potential symbolic meanings of each land masses.  These three settings include the battles between Beowulf and Grendel, Beowulf and Grendel’s mother, and Beowulf and the Dragon.  This article will be used to briefly mention the importance of land in association with the symbolic image of the Dragon throughout the story.

Mizuno, Tomoaki “The Magical Necklace and the Fatal Corslet in Beowulf.” English Studies 80.5 (1999): 377-397. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 20 Nov. 2009.

This article concentrates mostly on the unimportance of the magical necklace that is given to Beowulf at the celebratory “potlatch” party just after Beowulf had defeated Grendel.  Although the magical necklace is argued to hold a symbolic meaning, the act of giving gifts to a prodigy is also discussed by the author.  It is within this scope that this article holds true meaning for this essay because of the symbolic importance that exists within Beowulf for royal members to give gifts.  A gift such as the golden horn was given to Beowulf and it too holds strong symbolic meaning for the story.

Puhvel, Martin “The Blithe-Hearted Morning Raven in Beowulf.” English Language Notes 10.4 (1973): 243-247. Humanities International Complete. EBSCO. Web. 20 Nov. 2009.

This article discusses the cultural meanings of symbolic images within the story, especially with regards to the “blithe-hearted raven” that is mentioned multiple times.  The raven serves as a symbolic image of a death-eater but also as an image of grace over the battlefield, almost like a good luck charm or a bringing of good tidings.  This suggests that many other symbols can have multiple meanings, and is an important discrepancy to understand when analyzing any image within the text.

Tafli, Hülya “Number, Colour and Animal Mysticism in Beowulf and The Book of Dedem Korkut.” Turkish Studies 3.1 (2008): 96-120. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 20 Nov. 2009.

This article compares the symbolic images and examples of number, color and animal images within two different stories.  However, the importance of this article comes from its ability to validate the raven as a symbolic image, as well as the color black that is associated with the raven.  This article is crucial in bringing additional analysis to the raven as a symbol and even attempts to discuss an alternative meaning that Puhvel neglects to mention with the discussion of color in relationship to the raven.