Heide Estes, Ph.D., professor in the Department of English, participated in an invitational symposium, “Beowulf’s Afterlives II,” presented by the “Beowulf’s Afterlives” Three-Year Seminar of the Texas A&M University Glasscock Center for Humanities Research on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, 2018. The symposium was dedicated to exploring adaptations of and references to the Old English epic Beowulf in modern popular culture.
Estes presented an experimental paper that explored character adaptations of Beowulf’s Danish queen Wealhtheow by turn of the century women authors writing for children as well as by Maria Dahvana Headley in the recent novel The Mere Wife, Elaine Treharne in “Beowulf in 100 Tweets,” as well as by translators including Megan Purvis, Ruth P. Lehmann and Elaine Treharne.
The symposium also provided an introduction to an online database in preparation of all movies, music, literature and other cultural productions that reference or represent Beowulf in some way. The final event of the Glasscock Center’s “Beowulf’s Afterlives” Three-Year Seminar will be held at Texas A&M University on March 1-2, 2019.