Of Anglo-Saxon poetry, which is completely narrative, and which may be fairly called a metrical romance, a specimen still exists in MS. in the Cotton library; and some interesting extracts from it have been lately given by a writer on Anglo-Saxon antiquities. This is the poem on Beowolf. Its subject is the expedition of that chief to wreck the deadly feud on Krothgar, for a homi cide which he had committed. The embarking of the troops, the appearance of the arms and royal banner, the joys of the feasting hall, the appearance of a hos tile shore, and the landing of an invading army, are sub jects of description, in this rude sketch of an epic poem, which are not without magnificence ; but its short ver sification, whatever charms it had to contemporaries, is nothing pleasant to a modern ear. It is obscure from abruptness ; its figures of poetry are short, and rather glance than shine ; its imagery and delineation of cha racter are no way delightful. Caedmon's paraphrase of Genesis, and his poem on Judith, of which fragments remain, cannot strictly be called Anglo-Saxon poetry, as they are not original; and their authenticity as the work of Caedmon has been questioned. Any remarks on these pieces would, however, be here a digression from the subject ; we must therefore refer the reader to the article CAEDMON in our work.
The most common measure of versification, in Anglo Saxon poetry, was called the Drotquaet, or common song, being that which was most in use for the praises of their kings and heroes. Each verse or line consisted of six syllables, each distich of two lines, and each stanza of four distichs, or eight lines. The harmony of this kind of verse in each distich was partly literal, and part ly syllabical. The literary harmony consisted in this, that three words in each distich should begin with the same letters, two in the first line of the distich, and one in the second. These initials were called the sonorous letters. The syllabical harmony consisted in this, that there should be two syllables of similar sounds in each line, which were called the sonorous syllables. The syllabical harmony was either perfect or imperfect; im perfect when they consisted of the same consonants, but not of the same vowels. The syllabical harmony might be imperfect in the first line of a distich, but it always was to be perfect in the second. All these rules are illustrated and exemplified in the two following Latin lines, which form a distich of the Drotquaet, or com mon song of the Danes and Saxons. The sonorous let ters and syllables are in capitals, that they may be more readily distinguished.
In this distich, C is the sonorous letter, and begins two words in the first line, and one in the second. In the
first line, 1ST and OST are the two sonorous syllables ; but imperfect, consisting of the same consonants, but not of the same vowels. ON and ON are the sonorous syllables in the second line, being perfect, as consisting both of the same vowels and consonants, agreeably to the above rules. Four such stanzas form a complete stanza of the Drotquaet.* Independent of the variety of rhyme, the northern Scalds, we are informed, had no fewer than one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of verse.
The Latin poetry of the Anglo-Saxons, though some times smooth and approaching to elegance, was in gene ral debased by all the fopperies of grotesque ornament, and by rhyme, enigma, acrostic, alliteration, and cento. So whimsically was the labour of versification thrown away, that Proba Falconia, a poetess of the 4th century, constructed a poem on the bible history, which, with the exception of a few passages, consisted of lines or por tions of lines from Virgil.
The prose literature of the Anglo-Saxons may be dat ed from their conversion to Christianity. About the middle of the 8th century, a division of the seven liberal sciences took place. Grammar, rhetoric, and logic, were called the trios ; music, arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy, were called the quadrion of science. In the same century, we find, from a catalogue of books belong ing to Egbert, archbishop of York, that Aristotle, Tully, Virgil, Lucian, Statius, Lucan, and Prudentius, were possessed by that churchman. Theodore, the first pri mate of all England, and his friend bishop Adrian, as well as Benedict the founder of \Veremouth abbey, are mentioned as luminaries of learning in the seventh cen tury ; but the only names in literature before the illustri ous Alfred, that seem worthy of particular notice, are those of Aldhelm, Bede, and Alcuin. Aldhclm and Bede were contemporaries, and flourished during the lat ter part of the 7th, and the prior part of the 8th century. Of the former writer, whose Latin poetry and prose were alike celebrated as late as the 12th century, venera ble Bede gives a high commendation ; but the taste of modern times has not been so favourable to his memory. It is wonderful indeed, that Bede, so remarkable for simplicity, should have tolerated the extravagant turgi dity of his style, which converts every thought into a simile, and every simile into a wearisome episode. His principal work is an essay on virginity, in which there is every unchaste perversion of language. In one of his letters we have an opening sentence of fifteen allitera tive words.