The Wanderer Melancholy and the regret for the passing away of splendour, mirth and lame of men

were the dominant features of Anglo Saxon Poetry. These poems are deeply steeped in bitterness of life in exile, intensely felt recollection of earlier joys, futility and frailly of human life, stillness of ruin and death, variety of worldly achievements and the transitoriness of human life and strenght. The main subject-matter of The Wanderer is the mind of a noble-birth in exile, visiting many places in search of a leader whose community he might join since his own Lord and former comrades are slain. Alone and friendless, he travels over the sea, seeking a home where he can get protection. In sleep, vision of his former happiness comes back to him. When he awakes, his heart sinks at the sight of the intense sufferings and loneliness. The reverie of the Wanderer is deeply connected with tine nostalgic memory of his former state of fame, glory and happiness. Meditating on his own trials, the Wanderer reflects how his former lords and comrades departed- suddenly from the banquet hall of life. This incident reminds him of the general misery of the world. He realises that the earth is a middle-ground, a very transient place for human beings, where they step like guests and enjoy merriment only for a while. This realisation of this exiled man reveals the complete philosophy of human life, lie has now learnt arid become wise through his .sufferings. Indeed a man cannot be wise until he has gained knowledge through sufferings during his stay in this world and a prudent man always should be patient The central philosophical understanding and the ultimate realisation begins when the Wanderer says: Where is the house of the feast? Where is the halls uproar? I Alas, bright cup! Alas, burnished fighter I Alas, proud prince t How the time has passed, dark under night $ helm, as though it never had been! Perhaps, these lines are spoken through the mouth of an old wise man after suffering and experiencing a lot. He now learns the common philosophical truth of life. Contemplating this ruined castle and its past glories, he thinks of his own lost hall of revelry and heroism. And from such thought, his mind passes to moralising on the transitoriness of all things of the world. Then he seeks refuge in the mercy of Heaven. He shows his firm confidence in the grace and comfort of the Father in Heaven; ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Well is it for him who seeks forgiveness. the heavenly fathers solace, in whom all our fastness stands. This very general destination of every man helps the Wanderer to calm down his restless The poem The Seafarer tells of an old sailors life at sea. He says that it is hardship that makes life attractive and worth living. Though the poem speaks of the sufferings at sea, it admits the charms of the sea. The speaker expresses his contempt for the luxuries of laud and desires to set forth on the voyage, which leads him to think of his future life and the fleeting nature of earthly pomp and joys. The aid sailor is numb with hunger and cold and instead of that cheerful laughter of friends in the mead-hall, he hears only the

roaring of waters, the scream of the gannets and the shrieks of the gulls. Yet, something deep in him pushes him relentlessly on over the foaming waves and forces him to repridiate the delights and comforts of land. The old man is convinced that the gifts of the earth are unstable and quite transient like mans life on earth. So, he rushes ahead expecting to get eternal joy and happiness. Thus the poem The Seafarer is the story of a man who takes a voluntary exile renouncing the transitory pleasures of the world in order to win the eternal felicity of the next world. So, we may conclude that the Anglo Saxon Poems deal mainly with the vanity of worldly achievements and more particularly the inevitable end which awaits all. Indeed, the reflections on the transitory nature of all earthly objects give these two poems a cosmic significance. The old sailor and the Wanderer finally can overcome the mundane sorrows and seek salvation, mercy and comfort from the Almighty Lord in Heaven. Both in The Wanderer and The Seafarer, the poets lament over the nothingness and decay of earthly glory and beauty. The Wanderer. Q. Write an essay on the themes of exile and melancholy in Anglo-Saxon poetry with special reference to The Wanderer. Ans. Loneliness is great punishment to a human being because man is by nature a social animal. He cannot tolerate loneliness as it separates him from the suit fruits of the society. The foundation of society started long ago when men lived in the caves of the mountain. The life of the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th and 6th centuries was a perpetual struggle against the hostile forces of nature. This constant struggle with hostile nature and the transitoriness of all earthly objects Rive the Anglo-Saxon poems a tone of sadness. The Anglo-Saxon poets, living in a highly organized compact society, could feel the pangs of isolation and so they wrote many poems on this theme. Loneliness is the effect of different actions, some people arc sent into exile for various reasons and others are left alone by the accidents. So, it was inevitable that there should be a note of profound melancholy and pensiveness in the verses of the AngloSaxon poets. The plight of isolation is the theme of The Wanderer. Here we have a picture of a lone man who has lost his lord, wanders sad at heart and mourns the former state of glory and happiness. The note of the sufferings of loneliness has been voiced here. The poem begins with the expression of the Wanderers hearts anguish: Who liveth alone long eth for mercy, Makers mercy. Though he must traverse Tracts of sea, sick at heart A melancholic meditation is obvious from the beginning, the effect of which is that it also creates sadness in the minds of the readers. The Wanderer is a grasshopper who has old grief in his mind of the cold slaughters and deaths of his kinsmen. He has none to whom he can express the sadness of his mind: Alone am I driven each day before daybreak

to give my cares utterance. None are there now among the living to whom f dare declare me thoroughly, tell my hearts thought So, he accepts his loneliness and curbs his mind. In order to understand the theme of loneliness of the Anglo-Saxons, we must have to consider the condition of the society. It was organized in small or very small units, and the unit called Cynn was organized around its Lord. In their society, all are valued equally. There was no classification among them. They gathered round the lord in the smoky hall at supper and partook the same food. The Cynn provided them the safety of life. A man without a lord was an orphan. The Anglo-Saxon word hlaford stands for the lord. This word is derived from hlafweard, meaning the guardian of loaf-the provider of bread and the incarnation of the lifeprinciple of agricultural society. Thus an Anglo-Saxon got more than food and feeling of solidarity from his lord. No man would dare molest a man who had a powerful lord to demand a compensation or take vengeance. In The Wanderer the Wraecca yearned for a lord who might take heed of him and furnish him with comfort and win him with cheer. The bliss of companionship and folklife is a strength for living this helpless life: How harsh and hitter is care for companion to him who hath few friends to shield him Such a friendless man is deprived of al) his joys and dreams of having that happy life again. From his lonely life he sends wishes to his friends for their success. He then laments over the nothingness and decay of earthly glory and beauty: Alas, bright cup! Alas, burnished fighter f Alas, proud prince! How that time his passed, dark under nights helm, as though it never had been! He at last learns the lesson that suffering fills the realm of the earth. He also learns the lesson of bearing sorrows in order to be wise. A man without his share in sufferings cannot grow to be a wise man: Wherefore no man grows wise without he have his share of winters. But, this type of melancholic verses are reflective lyrics coming to the level of a philosophic generalization, often of a Christian spirit about the frailty of human life and the impermanence of worldly happiness and security. So, the wanderer pursues the problem of Wraeccas plight beyond the usual physical and ethical aspects to the threshold of a metaphysical question. Here, in The Wanderer, Wraecca seeks mercy and comfort from the Almighty father in Heaven. Thus his melancholic tone comes to a Christian consolation: Well is it for him who seeks forgiveness,

the Heavens Fathers solace, in whom all our fastness stands. Thus, we see that the personal elegies are deeply steeped in bitterness of life in exile, futility and frailty of human life, regret for the glory of the past life etc. There is hardly any scope for levity, fun or humour in such poetry. Even the epic or heroic poems are not free from gloomy atmosphere. And it is clear to us that the Anglo-Saxon poetry is mostly characterized by the feeling of grief, sadness and melancholy. Anglo-Saxon religious poetry consisted structurally and thematically of many genres Biblical paraphrases. Homely legend and allegory. But it also contained the old specimen of the genre that was very popular in the Middle Ages the dream vision of the dream about the Cross or the Rood. Riligious poetry seems to have flourished in Northern England throughout the 18th for century and this kind of poetry owes to Christianity and not to Pagan tradition for its subject-matter. In these Christian poems, the heroic tone of the earlier poetry is totally absent. A note of hope instead of despair, an grave and placid outlook on life instead of negative ones are struck into the texture of all these poems. The old English religious poem, The Dream of the Rood, expresses the devout wonder of the dreams. It is interesting, imaginative, lyrically passionate and deeply religious. H is a vision in which the gospel-history of the crucifixion is beautifully translated. It gives a brief description of an orthodox mystical experience. The poem deals with the Cross on which Jesus was crucified. The crucifixion of Jesus is a great religious event in Christianity, All the Christians worship the Cross devoutly. They believe that Jesus came down to show the ways of God to man only to redeem the sinners. The Cross bore Christ lei crucifixion and to the belief of Christianity. It is a means to their salvation. It heals their ills and sorrows So, The Dream of the Rood is a great religious poem. The unknown poet of the poem tells us how the Rood, the original Cross, appeared to him and the words spoken by the personified Cross. The moralising speech of the poet came at the end of the poem. At the very beginning, the poet recounts how mid-night ho dreams a good dream of the Cross, decked with silver and soaked with blood. Then the speech of the Cross is vividly narrated. The Cross speaks to the dreamer poet how it was cut down in the forest and brought to bear the saviour of mankind the ransom of the world: Then I saw marching towards me Mankinds bravest king. Much against its intention, the Rood had to sec the tragic action of crucifixion enacted upon its body. Instead of the rogues the king of mankind is nailed upon it. It recalls that the earth shook at its feet when unlamented Jesus stripped himself and mounted on the high-Cross; I dared not break or bend aside against Gods will, though the ground itself The Cross laments to the dreaming poet that it wished to fall to the ground, but Gods will prevented it from dong so. The Cross had to stand firm and witness mournfully how Christ was crucified. The horrible crime and the devilish deed of the foes moved the heart

of the Rood while the whole universe wailed. Then the Tree, as a silent witness, saw the incidents that followed the crucifixion. The Cross .then speaks to the poet about the miserable predicament of Christ. The foes mocked Christ and the Rood and alter the crucifixion they left the place leaving Christ nailed on the Cross. Later on the friends and the devoted followers of Chris came and lamented their lords death. They dug a arrive on the hill and laid him there. The Rood also reveals that the enemies took the Cross and threw it in a deep pit. But, luckily the friends of Jesus found it out and decked it with gold and gems. Since then, the devotees have been worshipping the Cross, because it bore Christ. A Christian has to bear the symbol of Cross on his breast to redeem his soul from sin. After his death, Christs soul ascended to heaven but would come back on the Day of Judgment for the salvation of mankind. The Rood relates all these incidents of deep religious significance to the poet and inspires him to write about the predicament of Christ. The Food commands the poet to convey the message of Christs resurrection to his followers. Christ suffered from the many sins of mankind and for Adams sin of the old. Christ will come back to this world to help mankind: The Lord rose up to help man with His great might. The third part of the poem s a lifeless moralising. The poem reveals the poets profound sense of religious devotion for the Cross. In describing his dream, the poet is overwhelmed with religious sentiments, which constitute the theme of the poem. The dreamer-poet believes that the Cross will fetch him from this fleeting life and take him to heaven. He is full of joy to think that he will be able to enjoy happiness in the midst of saints of heaven. He hopes that Christ, who suffered on the Cross, would be his friend and after his death he will be able to enjoy eternal happiness in heaven. The Dream Of The Rood may be described as a Cross-cult devoted poem. The personification of the cross allows a moral as well as physical parallel to establish relationship between Christ and the Cross. The significance of life, death and resurrection of Christ is no where fully realied in Old English verse except in The Dream Of The Rood. The poem is essentially religious, because its appeal is universal and spontaneous to all believers. This dramatic monologue has an unpredictability and fascination of its own, partly because it is so different from the most familiar Christian verses of the later Middle Ages. It is indeed a memorable religious poem with ecstasy of devotional feelings. The tragic story of crucifixion stirs our emotion and fills our heart with reverence and woe.