This week we continued our study of Beowulf, moving from overview to close reading of the text itself. Here’s what we covered.

Grendel: More Than Just a Monster

We examined Grendel’s introduction in the poem, focusing on one crucial detail: his descent from Cain.

• As a descendant of Cain (who committed the first murder in the Bible), Grendel is a spiritual threat (obviously in addition to him killing people [physically])
• He represents everything bad in Christianity, the first murder, exile, sin, etc.
• The biblical allusion (we have not learned this word yet) would add deeper meaning for the poem’s original audience.

The Hero Interview

We did a mock job interview where Beowulf applied to work for King Hrothgar. This exercise helped us analyze:

Final PPF Stuff

This week, we spent some extra time on PPF graphs. I am now confident that most of you understand what a PPF represents (opportunity cost) and the ways that a PPF can shift. On Friday, I tried to be sure that all students have everything a PPF question might include in their notes. For anyone I missed, I give you this here.

Farmland and Techland

Who Has the Absolute Advantage?

• In Bread? Farmland (100 > 90)
• In Smartphones? Techland (120 > 50)

• Should they trade?

Comparative Advantage

A country has a comparative advantage if it can produce a good with a lower opportunity cost.

• It’s not about being the best, it’s about losing the least.

Calculate Opportunity Cost

We need to find the opportunity cost of producing 1 unit of each good.

Overview of Beowulf

Beowulf is an epic poem from the Anglo-Saxon period. It tells the story of a hero who fights monsters. The poem was probably written down not because it was considered ideal literature, but because the scribe was collecting stories and examples (possibly as a bestiary).

Beowulf includes both pagan and Christian ideas. Pagan beliefs show fate and personal honor. Christian ideas show God’s guidance and moral rules. This is interesting because, historically, paganism and Christianity did not get along, and their interchange involved a lot of bloodshed.

Review of Last Year

When we started, I was not sure how much you knew, so I began with reviewing.

I learned that you know STORES and HISAGE (and you learned that “sage” means a smart/wise person).

The First Americans

The first people came to the Americas from Asia by walking across the Bering Strait (which was a bridge during the Ice Age). New evidence shows this might have happened as early as 40,000 years ago. When ocean levels dropped, it created land between Russia and Alaska that people could cross.

Life Before Columbus

Before Europeans came, many different societies lived in the Americas:

• They hunted, gathered, and farmed for food