dream of the rood imagery

[7] Constance B. Hieatt distinguishes between portions of the Cross's speech based on speaker, subject, and verbal parallels, resulting in: Prologue (lines 1–27), Vision I (lines 28–77): history of the Rood, Vision II (lines 78–94): explanation of the Rood's glory, Vision III (lines 95–121): the Rood's message to mankind, and Epilogue (lines 122–156). [23]Though the author of the book of Hebrews states that "Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever" (1) it is clear that humankind's image of Christ has changed throughout the ages. The author of Beowulf makes little attempt to hide Beowulf's frailty when he falters under Grendel's mother's wrath: "The strongest of fighting-men stumbled in his weariness, the firmest of all foot-warriors fell to the earth. Nineteenth-century scholars tried to attribute the poem to the few named Old English poets. In a series of papers, Leonard Neidorf has adduced metrical, lexical, and syntactical evidence in support of a theory of composite authorship for The Dream of the Rood. "(10) According to Peggy Samuels, a medievalist, the original text repeatedly uses the word fus--which has "the following range of connotations: hastening, eager, ready, willing, dying"(11)--to emphasize Christ's warrior-like approach to the cross. The Lord and the Cross become one, and they stand together as victors, refusing to fall, taking on insurmountable pain for the sake of mankind. After the warriors placed Christ's bodv in the sepulchre, they "next, wretched in the eventide, sang a dirge for Him."(31). [30] Thus, the crucifixion of Christ is a victory, because Christ could have fought His enemies, but chose to die. . [6] This interpretation was expanded upon by John Canuteson, who argued that this embrace is a 'logical extension of the implications of the marriage of Christ and the Church', and that it becomes 'a kind of marriage consummation' in the poem. The poet develops these notions by the use of heroic diction, symbolism, and irony. Jeannette C Brock. "The Crucifixion and Second Coming of Christ. ‘The Dream of the Rood’ is an Old English poem that belongs to the genre of dream poetry. Like many poems of the Anglo-Saxon period, The Dream of the Rood exhibits many Christian and pre-Christian images, but in the end is a Christian piece. The author of The Dream of the Rood is unknown. [25] Some scholars have argued that there is a prevalence of pagan elements within the poem, claiming that the idea of a talking tree is animistic. When he was forced to carry his own cross, the burden was too great for him so "the soldiers seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus." Examining the poem as a pre-Christian (or pagan) piece is difficult, as the scribes who wrote it down were Christian monkswho lived in a time when Christianity was firmly established (at least among the aristocracy) in Anglo-Saxon England. The Earliest English Poems. Perhaps you feel that no one knows the real you or that no one has taken the time to discover all the different sides of you. Using these devices, “The Dream of the Rood” incorporates the ideals and entertainment value of a non- Christian oral tradition into a homiletic allegory about the Passion of Christ and the remises of Christian salvation. There are three kinds of English! The Anglo-Saxon poem known as The Dream of the Rood brings, more than a thousand years earlier, a reverse image - that of a tree becoming the Cross. The warlike Germanic culture of the Early Middle Ages viewed the crucifixion as a victorious battle of good over evil and perceived Jesus as a hero who delivered humankind from sin. The poet develops these notions by the use of heroic diction, symbolism, and irony. The Ruthwell Cross is a stone Anglo-Saxon cross probably dating from the 8th century, when the village of Ruthwell, now in Scotland, was part of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria.. 1–27), the second part (ll. By presenting Christ as a warrior [27] impregnable to fatigue and weakness, the poet shows that Christ was an ultimate hero. This is what The Dream of the Rood is written in. “The Dream of the Rood” In “The Dream of the Rood”, the unknown poet uses lines 125-156 to develop the theme of triumph achieved by Christ as a warrior king, bringing the dreamer to realize there is hope for a better life after death. Supposing that the only Christian poet before Bede was Cædmon, Stephens argued that Cædmon must have composed The Dream of the Rood. What I wish to say of the best of dreams, what came to me in the middle of the night after the speech-bearers lie biding their rest! Moreover, it is possible that the poem as it stands is the work of multiple authors. When Beowuif prepares to go to battle against Grendel's mother, he is unanxious for his life,"(13) and says "I am eager to begin! [1] In section one, the narrator has a vision of the Cross. Swanton writes: "Unlike the later Gothic sensibility which stressed the explicitly pathetic details of the Crucifixion narrative, the medieval church was less concerned with literal description [of the crucifixion] than with analyzing its significance as the pivotal event of Christian history." Once, because of the law, I was a spectral terror to all slaves; but now the whole earth joyfully worships and adorns me. [2] In section two, the Cross shares its account of Jesus' death. While the term "rood" refers to a cross, the dream is really about a tree that has been fashioned into a cross. [26] Furthermore, the tree's triumph over death is celebrated by adorning the cross with gold and jewels. That scene is sculpted on another stone cross, at Kelloe. In The Dream of the Rood, an unknown poet dreams of an encounter with a beautiful tree of which this poet calls the “rood,” or cross, on which Jesus Christ was crucified. "(5) These images, along with the words resolute and strong in heart, create a vivid image of Christ which echoes the description of Beowulf, an admired mythical hero of the Early Middle Ages. “The Dream of the Rood” In “The Dream of the Rood”, the unknown poet uses lines 125-156 to develop the theme of triumph achieved by Christ as a warrior king, bringing the dreamer to realize there is hope for a better life after death. Dietrich made four main arguments: one, the theme of both poems is the cross, and more importantly, in both poems, the cross suffers with Christ; two, in "Elene" Cynewulf seems to make clear references to the same cross in Dream of the Rood; three, in "Elene" and his other poems Cynewulf usually speaks of himself, which makes it quite possible that the dreamer in Dream of the Rood is none other than Cynewulf himself; and finally four, "In both poems the author represents himself as old, having lost joys or friends and as ready to depart. See how the Dreamer is understood as an exile lost in darkness. "The Dream of the Rood. "The Feminized Cross of 'The Dream of the Rood. The image of Christ as a warrior in "The Dream of the Rood" is a reflection of the optimistic manner in which medieval Christians perceived the crucifixion. '", Canuteson, John. A part of The Dream of the Rood can be found on the eighth-century Ruthwell Cross, which is an 18 feet (5.5 m), free-standing Anglo-Saxon cross that was perhaps intended as a 'conversion tool'. Burrow notes an interesting paradox within the poem in how the Cross is set up to be the way to Salvation: the Cross states that it cannot fall and it must stay strong to fulfill the will of God. [19][20][21][22], Like many poems of the Anglo-Saxon period, The Dream of the Rood exhibits many Christian and pre-Christian images, but in the end is a Christian piece. Adelhied L. J. Thieme remarks, "The cross itself is portrayed as his lord's retainer whose most outstanding characteristic is that of unwavering loyalty". "[35], Faith Patten identified 'sexual imagery' in the poem between the Cross and the Christ figure, noting in particular lines 39–42, when Christ embraces the Cross after having 'unclothed himself' and leapt onto it. The Ruthwell Cross is an Anglo-Saxon monument carved in the 7th century. In Heathen Gods in Old English Literature, Richard North stresses the importance of the sacrifice of the tree in accordance with pagan virtues. [29] Christ can also be seen as "an Anglo-Saxon warrior lord, who is served by his thanes, especially on the cross and who rewards them at the feast of glory in Heaven". Matthew: [26]Though "The Dream of the Rood" does mention that the cross and Christ "were reviled together,"(21) it does not detail the pain and humiliation Christ suffered. "(16) By emphasizing Christ's boldness and bravery over his more submissive characteristics, the poet presents an image of Christ that falls in line with the heroic ideals of the Middle Ages.

In many religions, the tree is seen as a primary symbol of worship. [30], Acevedo Butcher, Carmen, The Dream of the Rood and Its Unique, Penitential Language, Tatwine, ‘Latin Riddle 9 (early 8th century)’, in. They carved it of bright stone, and set therein the Lord of victories. The poem The Dream of the Rood has very many symbols which the poet uses to assimilate Anglo-Saxon values in a Christian context so as to make Christianity more appealing to members of this warrior culture. The Dream of the Rood is one of the Christian poems in the corpus of Old English literature and an example of the genre of dream poetry. In keeping with the warrior image of Christ, "The Dream of the Rood" also downplays many aspects of the crucifixion story which reveal Christ's physical pain and weakness. [11] Recent scholarly thinking about the cross tends to see the runes as a later addition to an existing monument with images. The tree learns that it is not to be the bearer of a criminal, but instead Christ crucified. However, to fulfill this grace of God, the Cross has to be a critical component in Jesus' death. "(8) Later, the poet suggests that Christ actually initiates the battle to redeem mankind: This tone of action is also present when the Cross says: "the Lord of all mankind hastened with eager zeal that he might mount upon me. [24] Anglo-Saxon influence can be identified by the use of a complex, echoing structure, allusions, repetition, verbal parallels, the ambiguity and wordplay of the Riddles, and the language of heroic poetry and elegy. Work of the period is notable for its synthetic employment of 'Pagan' and 'Christian' imagery as can be seen on the Franks Casket or the Kirkby Stephen cross shaft which appears to conflate the image of Christ crucified with that of Woden/Odin bound upon the Tree of Life. It begins with the enemy coming to cut the tree down and carrying it away. Nowhere in "The Dream of the Rood" is it mentioned that Jesus was mocked, flogged, and spit upon in the manner described in the gospel of However, the image of Christ as a warrior found in "The Dream of the Rood" is not merely the result of the Anglo-Saxon language's inability to portray a passive image of Christ. “The Dream of the Rood is best understood as an imaginative re-enactment of a private penitential experience[...] This critically acclaimed, dramatic Old English poem is the first dream-vision in English, and its most enduring features are a startling use of language, powerful prosopopoeia, and striking imagery.” (Butcher) "(23) In this way the poet is able to "evade the awkward issue of Christ's susceptibility to pain. Narrative structure, vivid imagery, and anthropomorphism are key poetic devices used to appeal to Christians and non-Christians alike.Using these devices, ‘The Dream of the Rood” incorporates the ideals and entertainment value of a non-Christian oral tradition into a homiletic allegory about the Passion of Christ and the promise of Christian salvation. Interestingly, many scholars believe that Cynewulf may also have composed "The Dream of the Rood." Centuries later 'The Dream of the Rood' was revised by Cynewulf and is to be found in a manuscript left by an English pilgrim at Italian Vercelli, along with Cynewulf's other works, such as a poem on St Helena, the British slave mother to the Emperor Constantine, who, in the legend, discovered the True Cross in Jerusalem. If he were indeed the author of both poems, the "Christ III" poem would show that he was able to envision a more classical image of Christ, but chose to depict a warrior image of Christ in "The Dream of the Rood.". He gives praise to God for what he has seen and is filled with hope for eternal life and his desire to once again be near the glorious Cross. photographs of each side of the cross. Neither Jesus nor the Cross is given the role of the helpless victim in the poem, but instead both stand firm. Specifically, the tree has been turned into the cross used to crucify Christ, and feels immense sorrow and pain at what he has become which he relates to … It is not just Christ, but the Cross as well that is pierced with nails. In the poem, a personified cross (the “rood”) speaks about the man who climbs upon him as “the young warrior, God Almighty.” A major theme in The Dream of the Rood is the representation of the Crucifixion as a battle. He maintains that the poem contains contributions from at least two different poets, who had distinct compositional styles. (27). "(22) The poet de-emphasized the abuse Jesus experienced in order to focus complete attention on Christ's triumphant victory over sin. The poem is set up with the narrator having a dream. John Canuteson believes that the poem "show[s] Christ's willingness, indeed His eagerness, to embrace His fate, [and] it also reveals the physical details of what happens to a man, rather than a god, on the Cross". Ritual and the Rood: Liturgical Images and the Old English Poems of the Dream of the Rood Tradition (London, 2005). by Ciaran Carson, in, Metrical Preface and Epilogue to Alfred's, This page was last edited on 18 February 2021, at 04:25. In biblical accounts of the crucifixion, Jesus' burial is quiet and simple: In contrast to this humble, convenient, and time-efficient burial, "The Dream of the Rood" portrays Christ's burial as a monumental event befitting a warrior. Instead of depositing Christ's body in the closest available tomb, "the men then made a sepulchre for Him. By presenting Christ as a confident hero, the "Dream of the Rood" poet emphasizes the voluntariness of Christ's undertaking the crucifixion. (32) The poet's description of Christ's burial echoes the burial of Beowulf: The depiction of Christ receiving a Beowulf-type burial rather than the type of burial recorded in the gospels shows how the image of Christ in the Middle Ages had been adapted from the image of Christ recorded in the gospels.

“They put a purple cloak on him: ‘Hail, kind of the Jews! The approximate eighth-century date of the Ruthwell Cross indicates the earliest likely date and Northern circulation of some version of The Dream of the Rood. The cross, rather than Christ, feels the pain of the crucifixion: "I [the cross], was "pierced with dark nails; / The scars can still be clearly seen on me, / The open wounds of malice. Cook, Albert S., ed. Preserved in the 10th-century Vercelli Book, the poem may be as old as the 8th-century Ruthwell Cross, and is considered as one of the oldest works of Old English literature. [17] Thus Franz Dietrich argued that the similarities between Cynewulf's Elene and The Dream of the Rood reveal that the two must have been authored by the same individual. The poet also presents a warrior-like image of Christ by portraying Jesus exuberantly preparing for combat rather than being lead passively to the cross. Tatwine's riddle reads:[12]. dream of the rood symbolism Nov 3, 2020 Examining the poem as a pre-Christian (or pagan) piece is difficult, as the scribes who wrote it down were Christian monkswho lived in a time when Christianity was firmly established (at least among the aristocracy) in Anglo-Saxon England. That beacon was entirely Moreover the use of symbolism in the poem also depicts as to how Christianity and the image of the Jesus has been adapted by people to suit their cultures in different contexts around the world. ", Ecclesiastical History of the English People, The Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records: A Collective Edition, South Atlantic Modern Language Association, https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/anglo-saxon-england/article/composite-authorship-of-the-dream-of-the-rood/263B18A108EC62A2516BCF0E135C32D2, "Verbs and Versification in the Dream of the Rood", "The Textual Criticism of the Dream of the Rood", https://academic.oup.com/nq/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/notesj/gjaa071/5896060?redirectedFrom=fulltext, BBC Tyne – 'Dream of the Rood' vocal piece wins top prize, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dream_of_the_Rood&oldid=1007444122, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 'The Vision of the Cross', trans. [18] Again, however, this attribution is not widely accepted. Thus, for instance, in The Dream of the Rood, Christ is presented as a "heroic warrior, eagerly leaping on the Cross to do battle with death; the Cross is a loyal retainer who is painfully and paradoxically forced to participate in his Lord's execution". Like most Old English poetry, it is written in alliterative verse. The Cross says, Jesus is depicted as the strong conqueror and is made to appear a "heroic German lord, one who dies to save his troops". Though it focuses on a … Swanton writes that this departure from biblical accounts of the crucifixion was also found in medieval art: "No flogged, suffering stumbling Christ drags the cross to Calvary.... as in contemporary iconography, he is a young and confident champion striding from afar." ... Pay attention to the imagery of the poem. 1) Old English or Anglo-Saxon (circa 450-1066 CE). Thus a wise man chooses to keep me on his forehead. "(28) Perhaps "The Dream of the Rood" poet's unwillingness to admit that Jesus was weary shows his or her desire to show that Christ embodied a level of supreme strength and heroism above Beowulf and the other great warriors of the time period. [31] This image of Christ as a 'heroic lord' or a 'heroic warrior' is seen frequently in Anglo-Saxon (and Germanic) literature and follows in line with the theme of understanding Christianity through pre-Christian Germanic tradition. Then, just as with Christ, the Cross is resurrected, and adorned with gold and silver. According to Edward Irving, Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Pennsylvania, Germanic culture was a "society that was dedicated to aggressive behavior and the strutting niceties of personal honor. In this way, "the poem resolves not only the pagan-Christian tensions within Anglo-Saxon culture but also current doctrinal discussions concerning the nature of Christ, who was both God and man, both human and divine".[32]. "(18) The subtle distinction between these two statements is significant because the poet of "The Dream of the Rood" does not imply that Jesus quietly relinquished his spirit, but rather that he forcefully and willfully ended his life, in control of the situation until the very end. Germanic heroic tradition. [34] Instead of accepting crucifixion, he 'embraces' the Cross and takes on all the sins of mankind. Another poem written in the same time period presents an image of Christ more in line with the biblical accounts: This passage, from "Christ III," a poem by Cynewulf (ca. The poem itself is divided up into three separate sections: the first part (ll. The words used to describe Christ's approach to the crucifixion in "The Dream of the Rood" reveal the poet's conscious choice to portray Jesus as a purposeful courageous warrior: Instead of simply using the word "Christ," the poet calls Jesus "the young hero" and "the warrior." Whereas the Beowulf poet shows how a pagan hero can reflect truths about Christ, the poet of “The Dream of the Rood” expresses the metaphor more directly, comparing Christ on the cross to a young warrior. ", Treharne, Elaine. Similarly, the Bible shows that Christ was exhausted at the time of his crucifixion. Characters The Rood is from the Old English word rōd 'pole', or more specifically 'crucifix'. Anglo-Saxon influence can be identified by the use of a complex, echoing structure, allusions, repetition, verbal parall… [3] The Rood and Christ are one in the portrayal of the Passion—they are both pierced with nails, mocked and tortured. The Dream of the Rood has been heralded by scholars as the finest expression of the Crucifixion theme in Old English poetry. Rather than presenting Christ as a lamb or a passive participant in the universal plan for redemption, the poet presents Christ as a martyred hero, an image that reflects the preeminent values of the early medieval society. … 2) Middle English (circa 1066-1450 AD). Dockray-Miller, Mary. You are reaching out in a different and profound way. J.A. A similar representation of the Cross is also present in Riddle 9 by the eighth-century Anglo-Saxon writer Tatwine. The Dream of the Rood Context Although the author nor the date is known, the poem is said to have appeared in a late tenth-century manuscript in Northern Italy. "(14) Just as Christ in "The Dream of the Rood" boldly rushes to mount the cross, Beowulf plunges into battle with great enthusiasm : The fact that "The Dream of the Rood" poet endows Christ with the jubilance and heroic bravado that typify great warriors of the medieval period shows that the image of Christ had changed to fit the values of the current culture. These words evoke an image of Christ which differs strongly from the "Passover lamb that has been sacrificed"(12) described in the Bible. [15] These ideas are no longer accepted by scholars. [16] Two of Cynewulf's signed poems are found in the Vercelli Book, the manuscript that contains The Dream of the Rood, among them Elene, which is about Saint Helena's supposed discovery of the cross on which Jesus was crucified. The Dream of the Rood is an Old English religious poem by an unknown author, which dates back to at least the tenth century. In section three, the author gives his reflections about this vision. He is aware of how wretched he is compared to how glorious the tree is. Among the topics examined in this volume are the Christian-Latin sources of Old English texts, including religious and 'sapiential' poetry, and prose translations of Latin writings. the dream of the rood Here is the Old English poem interlaced with a modern English translation: The Dream of the Rood . The main theme of the poem is religiosity and imagery has been used to show the Crucifixion of Christ as a battle. 122–156). ", Burrow, J.A. Where the Bible states that "they [the Roman soldiers] stripped him,"(7) "The Dream of the Rood poet writes that "the young warrior, God our Savior, valiant-ly stripped before the battle. It is already in position when it sees Christ advancing to it: In this way, the poet avoids mentioning Christ's inability to shoulder the weight of the cross. The poet's word choice in the description of the final moment of Jesus' life also reflects the image of Christ as a warrior. [28], The poem may also be viewed as both Christian and pre-Christian. The attitude the poet gives Christ as he approaches the cross is similar to the daring spirit often expressed by Beowulf, a fictional Anglo-Saxon hero. It wasn't included in our textbook, but since I kept reading about it (and it was included in my trusty Norton anthology, after all), I … She traces the establishment of the practice of Penance in England from Theodore of Tarsus, archbishop of Canterbury from 668 to 690, deriving from the Irish confession philosophy. As "The Dream of the Rood's" many deviations from the biblical account of the crucifixion suggest, the image of Christ in the Middle Ages emphasized the salvation Christ brought to mankind by presenting him as a triumphant warrior. Jaroslav Pelikan, author of Jesus Through the Centuries, writes: "It has been characteristic of each age of history to depict Jesus … In other translations, Christ is called the "heroic, fair, young knight,"(4) and "mankind's brave King. This is an example of Old English alliterative poetry (also considered an example of dream poetry). The belief in the spiritual nature of natural objects, it has been argued, recognises the tree as an object of worship. [8] M. I. Del Mastro suggests the image of concentric circles, similar to a chiasmus, repetitive and reflective of the increased importance in the center: the narrator-dreamer's circle (lines 1–27), the rood's circle (lines 28–38), Christ's circle (lines 39-73a), the rood's circle (lines 73b-121), and the narrator-dreamer's circle (lines 122–156).[9]. The Vercelli Book, which can be dated to the 10th century, includes twenty-three homilies interspersed with six religious poems: The Dream of the Rood, Andreas, The Fates of the Apostles, Soul and Body, Elene and a poetic, homiletic fragment. Berkeley:University of California. The Dream of the Rood, one of the few surviving pieces of Anglo-Saxon literature, is a vital reference for the ambiguous culture of England's early ancestors.Argued as one of the oldest pieces of Old English Literature, The Dream of the Rood effectively embodies the blended culture, moral code, and religious values of its unknown author. Comes to see the runes as a battle, but the Cross shares its account of Jesus the. 27 ] impregnable to fatigue and weakness, the tree down and carrying it dream of the rood imagery., many scholars believe that Cynewulf may also be viewed as both Christian and pre-Christian appear ;! Of God, the tree is just as Jesus is honoured above all just! 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