CP English 12 (P1 L02 - Literary Background for Beowulf)

3-2-1 Assessment Sheet

1.  What are three key things you learned about the Dark Ages in this lesson? Please be sure to include at least two complete sentences for each one.
1. In Norman settlements, Lords controlled the villages as well as ruling and governing their land. Lords were oftentimes knights and served the king Norman settlements were surrounded by a wall that encompassed the lord’s house, and the rest of the village and the lord’s house usually had yet another wall. The village usually contained a stockpile of food, a well, and weapons. The idea is that they would have everything that they needed to survive within the walls, in case of an attack.
2. Old English resembles modern English, but not very closely. One must remember that old English was only a component of the languages that formed together to make modern English. Latin, Celtic and German were blended together and reformed over time to make today’s English.
3. Christianity wasn’t always the main religion of ancient Britain. It only became truly popular and dominant after the romans had been ran out of Britain and the Germanic tribes formed together to make the Anglo-Saxons.
2. Explain two things that you would still like to know about the development of Old English. Please be sure to include at least one complete sentence for each one.
1. I would like to learn more about the Modern English words that show roots in German Latin and Celtic.
2. I would enjoy studying which language our grammar is based off of, and how we mixed certain rules in grammar from different languages.
3. In one paragraph, describe how the language of English evolved during the Dark Ages. What were the influences that changed it over the years? Which ethnic backgrounds were involved in this evolution? Please write at least four sentences for this response.
1. Old English gets its roots from the Celtic language that was spoken in ancient England. The romans invaded, and sent the Celtic population north and into Ireland. The clashes with the romans brought a little Latin into the language. When the Germanic tribes invaded the language also adopted a little German and the mix was known as Old English.