Text Interpretations Quizz - Monsters and Monstrosity

What is the main idea behind the fragment?

• Monsters don't exist.

• God created monsters.

• Monsters are human.

• Monsters are part of God's creation.

What does a monster require in order to function as an efficient literary device?

• a background

• striking appearance

• anti-social behaviour

• an army

In Beowulf, what social fears does Grendel represent?

• invasion

• famine

• exile

• adultery

Why is Grendel's mother somewhat justified in her actions against the Danes?

• Hrothgar insulted her by stealing her treasure.

• Beowulf defeated her in combat.

• Her son was killed, therefore making her seek revenge.

• She was unjustly punished for being a monster.

Why did (some) medieval people believe in monsters?

• They did not care for the truth.

• They were unduly credulous.

• They applied different criteria.

• They were sometimes misled.

Answer explanation

If the majority [of medievals] . . . accepted the evidence for miracles, it was not because they were unduly credulous or irrational, still less because they cared nothing for the truth. It was rather because in assessing the evidence they applied criteria very different from those of [Empiricist philosopher] David Hume. They may often have been misled by lying witnesses, but the fundamental cause of their error was that they considered a miracle to be a normal, though nonetheless remarkable, incident of life.

In JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, what is most evocative of Beowulf?

• The quest to destroy the Ring

• Boromir's betrayal of Frodo

• The people of Rohan

• Aragorn's coronation

What scene from Beowulf is referenced here?

• Beowulf's contest with Breca

• The arrival of Beowulf and his retinue to Hrothgar's lands

• The queen's toast in honor of Beowulf's victory

• Preparations for Beowulf's journey home.

Why is Beowulf set in the distant north?

• The Anglo-Saxons came from there.

• The greater distance brought greater credibility.

• Grendel is a type of Scandinavian monster.

• Cain was exiled in the north.

Monsters are often tied to foundational myths. For example, the founders of the Anglo-Saxon houses, Hengist and Horsa, have for names OE nouns that mean horse. Why?

• Most progenitors tend to have monstrous features to emphasise their divine origin.

• Some animals are considered noble; common traits were seen as marks of distinction.

• Monster were seen as dependable leaders in warfare times.

• Monstrous associations were made to deter possible enemies.