This innovative and intriguing introduction to Old English literature is structured around what the author calls 'figures' from Anglo-Saxon culture: the Vow, the Hall, the Miracle, the Pulpit, and the Scholar. These unconventional categories not only situate Old English texts within a cultural framework but also create new connections between different genres, periods and authors: for example, between prose and poetry, the vernacular and Latin, and the obscure and the well known. The book is based on the author's many years' experience of teaching Old English literature and combines close textual analysis with historical context, making it suitable for both new students and general readers.