Before that needful journey which none may avoid

No man becomes more wise in thought than him who, in need, considers,

before his going away, about how his soul, its good and evil, will be judged

after the death day.

 Bede's Death Song (Hague Manuscript) [all]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2274)

Another excerpt from Beowulf Aloud to celebrate Beowulf. Today we hear Beowulf and Wiglaf fighting the dragon.

You can purchase the entire poem (a 3-CD set, for $25.00, which includes North American shipping) at the Beowulf Aloud link, or feel free to email me at mdrout -at- wheatoncollege.edu .

 Dragon Fight: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2834)

To celebrate Beowulf, I am posting a few excerpts from my Beowulf Aloud this week. Today we hear Beowulf’s arrival at Heorot.

You can purchase the entire poem (a 3-CD set, for $25.00, which includes North American shipping) at the Beowulf Aloud link, or feel free to email me at mdrout -at- wheatoncollege.edu .

 Beowulf's Arrival at Heorot: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1701)

To celebrate Beowulf, I am posting a few excerpts from my Beowulf Aloud this week.  This one is the first description of Grendel’s depredations against the Danes in Heorot.

You can purchase the entire poem (a 3-CD set, for $25.00, which includes North American shipping) at the Beowulf Aloud link, or feel free to email me at mdrout -at- wheatoncollege.edu .

 Beowulf, lines 115-164: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1980)

Gone fishin’.

But if you want to buy Beowulf Aloud before the cost goes up, please feel free.

This is just a brief interruption of the regularly scheduled podcast (which will continue tomorrow morning) to note that my 3-CD reading of Beowulf in Old English is now available for purchase. Beowulf Aloud is a complete recording of the entire Old English poem with an introductory lecture by me. I also sing/chant the Finnsburg episode, which should be good for comic relief, if for nothing else.

Having now gone over all the expenses, I see I can sell the 3-CD collection, which includes every single line of the poem plus the introductory lecture, for 15 dollars US. Packaging and shipping to anywhere in the continental US is 3 USD, so the total would be $18.00. Overseas shipping will whatever it costs me, checked on an individual basis. The button below goes to a PayPal account for the domestic shipping price, but you can also use my mdrout@wheatonma.edu address at PayPal. I am also happy to take personal checks, and for overseas folks who want to buy Beowulf Aloud, we can use the very clever system devised by Walking Tree Press (involving exchanges of Amazon.com gift certificates) if need be.

If you are enjoying Anglo-Saxon Aloud, I think you will like Beowulf Aloud even more, as the sound quality is somewhat better because it was recorded, edited and mixed professionally. (this is also the the reason I am charging for the latter and not the former: I had to pay for studio time, editing, art design, etc., for Beowulf Aloud, whereas I’ve done everything for Anglo-Saxon Aloud on my own, with only the investment of hundreds of hours of my labor [and how much could that be worth, really?]).

The mailing address is:
Prof. M. Drout
Wheaton College
26 E. Main Street
Norton, MA 02766
USA

and of course email correspondence can be sent to mdrout a† wheatoncollege d0t edu .

I hope that you will consider purchasing Beowulf Aloud if you’ve been enjoying Anglo-Saxon Aloud.

And with that, we will return to our regularly scheduled podcast, which this week is the scintillating Christ and Satan. Mmmmm, hell-torments.