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‘The Wanderer, is concerned with exploring a process.’

The poem of 'The Wanderer' seems to be a great source of disagreement. It is generally agreed that the surviving copy is from the tenth century, but the age of the original appears to be unknown. Critical studies seem to suggest that it has one, two or three narrators. It is also suggested that it is wholly pagan in origin, a blending of pagan and Christian or wholly Christian. The divergence of opinion on such factual basics of the poem could make it difficult to form a convincing analysis on any aspects of its contents. It would be easy to sit on the fence of opinion and simply take the middle line: Two narrators and a mix of pagan and Christian. The process that 'The Wanderer' is concerned with does suggest to me that it embodies a transforming process from heroic-pagan to Christian connotations. As to how many speakers there are, I do not find it necessary to interpret that greatly in the meaning. What is certain is that we have a dark and brooding, almost apocalyptic, piece of excellent literature that can help us to look into the minds of the Anglo-Saxon culture in early England. We are privileged to have some real insight into the heroic problems of exile and its possible reconciliation.

The first lines of the poem seem to be hopeful with mentions of mercy. We are soon plunged however into the terrible plight of the anhaga. By using ‘wyrd bið ful aræd’ the narrator seems to be telling us that events are fixed, invoking “clearly pagan and Germanic” ideas. This theme is continued for quite a while and is evident when he tells us of his loss of companionship and subsequent solitude. His language is highly heroic. He is speaking of his kinsmen and warrior friends in such a way as to revere them. He bemoans his loss and here appears to be mirroring the ‘Maxim I’:
‘Earm biþ se þe sceal ana lifgan,
wineleas wunian hafaþ him wyrd geteod;’
(The man who has to live by himself is miserable, fate has dictated that he should; live without friends.) In the narrator’s explanation of the nobleness of silent suffering, we can see strong parallels in Odin’s Hávamál. Number twenty-nine, for example, states that

hraðmælt tunga,
nema haldendur eigi,
oft sér ógott um gelur.
(‘the hasty tongue sings its own mishap if it be not bridled in.)
And number forty-eight instructs us that
Mildir, fræknir
menn best lifa,
sjaldan sút ala;
(‘Most blest is he who lives free and bold and nurses never a grief,’)
These lines and many others that deal with exile in the first half of the poem have obvious Germanic pagan connotations. The themes are based upon a long culture of oral tradition that values the heroic. The inflexibility of the writers stance in lines 12 – 14 is, however, confounded later in lines 70 – 72 when the narrator (or perhaps a second) states that complaints can be uttered as long as they are understood beforehand and a cure to them is known. This statement is significant as it marks a departure from the traditional heroic ideals. The speaker has obviously undergone changes through their experience and with these opposite views on silence can be seen to “represent the…rejection of…the Wanderer’s culture.’ This is highlighted several times and is also central to the pseudo gnomic lines 65b – 69 where we are given rhetorical advice on the wise-man which appears to be outside of the anhaga’s experience. This is very similar to the sermonising found in Latin writing of the time. Through this we begin to see a possible Christian lesson. By becoming wise, though still made to suffer, we can have hope of a lasting happiness with God. We are given the impression that the first few lines are from the poet’s younger days. The ‘geara iu’ of line 22a is used several times in other poems. One such instance is in 'The Dream of the Rood' at line 28a. Other examples are in ‘Vainglory’ at line 57a, and ‘The Order of the World” at line 11a. The contexts in which these words are used make it obvious that “all these things happened a long time ago.” In all but one instance the time frame is hundreds of years. A recognisably perceived fact is that wisdom comes with age. The way the poem is structured from the beginning has lead many to believe that it comes from at least two speakers. Whether this is true, or it is simply the same speaker at different stages of their life, it is obvious that we have a difference in age and understanding. Pearsall states that this is what makes the poem such a success “the creation of a poetic persona … going through the process of acquiring wisdom.” The break at line 57 seems to be the reason why scholars feel that there two voices. The use of the first person of ‘my mind should not grow dark’ could be seen to suggest this. There is no reason, however to conclude that this cannot be a single long-suffering narrator who is here excusing their own apocalyptic language on the fate of man.
The dream sequences of lines 37-57 show the apex of The Wanderer's sorrow. Taunted by his visions and filled with heroic metaphor of liege lords and frozen landscapes we see that if there is no cure for his plight he will be as doomed as his language suggests. The bewailing of loss by the anhaga and only little use of happy memories of his earlier days tells us that he is not mourning for “happiness that has been lost, but of the event that has caused loss of happiness.” . From line 57 we see a movement from the mourning of the solitary one to the sorrow of the world at large. This is emphasised by the speaker’s rhetorical questioning of ‘what has become of the horse…’ which is full with ‘what of’s’ ‘where are’s’ and alases. This again is reminiscent of the hávamál but goes on to expound wisdom to any would be readers. The anhaga has a real need to “progress in wisdom from futile hope of Earthly amelioration” to recognising the transient nature of life. By doing this it becomes obvious why such dark language is used. The problem inherent in a heroic-pagan world with no after-life is in desperate need of a cure. Rather than concentrate on his own problems, the narrator has seen the need to view mankind on a broader level in “an effort to alleviate personal sorrow…and the necessity of seeking for lasting satisfaction.” This is the larger issue that the whole poem seems to be targeted at addressing. The storyteller(s) concentrate on painting a vivid world of doomed heroes and crumbling glories. Using heavy rhetoric and apposing ideas such as the ones on silence, although highly respectful and bemoaning its loss, seems to offer real criticism of the heroic ideals held by the Germanic tribes and the Anglo-Saxon’s in particular. It is not until line 111 that we have any cure offered to us. Up until this point the protagonist has been seen to “embody the predicament of mortality in…heroic life, and the…need for Christian consolation.” We have another reversal in line 107 when the wyrd of previous mentions becomes de-emphasised with wyrda. This is not the all-controlling Fate that is implied by wyrd. It is also only confined to the earth. Heaven is not victim to its unforgiving forces.
The closing lines of the poem, from 111 – 115, begins with ‘ Swa cwæð snottor on mode, (thus spoke the wise one) which again suggests the idea of a different speaker for the second part of the poem. It also suggests a third possible voice for the closing statement. Here we are finally given “the comfort of the Christian moral offered, that security is to be found in the mercy of God.” This emphasises the fact that the poem is a solution to its own problem. It tells us that suffering is necessary for us to become wise and find God. It explains the process required to gain wisdom from our youth and misfortune. To use this wisdom to consider Humankind as a whole rather than concentrate on our own adversity and through this realisation find and trust in God who will have mercy on us. Though fond of the Heroic ideals that have been prevalent for so long the relater(s) have moved “from basically pre-Christian or pagan concerns to Christian ones.”
There may be stronger and other connotations relating to Christianity throughout the poem. Of interest to me is the use of geara iu which has been mentioned above. Two possibilities come to mind when we consider the time span usually attached to these words. In ‘Vainglory’ it is put into the context of Gods kingdom long ago. In 'The Dream of the Rood' it is with Christ’s crucifixion, again several hundred years earlier than the poem. ‘The Order of the World’ is concerned with ancient poetry. Both ‘Guthlac’ and ‘Boethius’ are obviously Christian in origin and contain the same words, always in the first half of a line. It seems to me to be a possibility that the liege lord could be Christ himself and the brave young warriors could be his disciples and saints. With the glories of the mead-halls as a metaphor for the glory of God’s Kingdom, it is easily understandable why someone would lament their exclusion from it, even if this is only for our short transitory lives.
The second possibility also relates to the first I have mentioned. Could this be Lucifer or Cain or even Adam lamenting their transgressions with God? The theme of mercy is something that any of these outcasts would surely hold in everlasting hope. These are possibly the most famous exiles in Christian thought and are doomed to never be reunited with God. Lucifer could also be lamenting the fallen angels who died during his war in Heaven
‘Gemon he selesecgas’
He remembers the hall warriors. Before this he was obviously a favourite of the Lord
‘þinceð him ond mode þæt he his mondryhten
clyppe ond cysse ond on cneo lecge
Honda ond heafod
(He thinks in his mind that he his lord is embracing and kissing and on knee laying his hands and head.) The earthly metaphors however would not take into account his residence in Hell. Certainly Cain was forced to walk the Earth and remain forever friendless. I have seen no secondary evidence of this idea and it may be proven to be ridiculous. However, reading through the poem with this idea in mind it did not seem to be impossible and actually lends itself to the extremely cataclysmic language of the piece. The first part could be seen as the exile of one of these after there initial sin. Even the line ‘long ago, I covered my gold-friend with the darkness of the earth’ could be a reference to the travesty of sin committed by these men. The second part would therefore refer to the lessons learned by these protagonists after there long exile. There is a bitterness about the poem which we could expect from them. It would be (and often is) easy to blame fate for the misfortunes suffered. Even God may be apportioned some blame in line 85, ‘thus the Creator of men has destroyed this dwelling place’. The poem would then conclude with the natural wish for these to find reconciliation with God.

Whether there is any credence in my idea here or not, it does not remove the main points of the poem from the process that one must go through, to become wise and closer to the Kingdom of Heaven. There is a process of gaining experience from adversity and the clear meditation that comes with old age. If Christ is the dead liege lord then we also have the process of Christianity absorbing the heroic ideas and representing them in allegory. I am sure that this poem will continue to attract new translation and much reading due to its obviously learned and expertly crafted language, along with its use of allegory, gnomics and sermonising that entrap the reader into thought. It appeals in its bleak language that we all experience from time to time but heartens us with its hopeful message. The processes experienced by the speaker(s) are not confined to the poem. They are processes that we will all experience some time. The feeling of loss will come to everyone and maybe that is the point of this piece. Loss and disaster can be overcome if we are willing to open ourselves up to the process of believing and accepting God as our one true and constant master.
Or maybe its purely pagan.
Bibliography
Clemoes. P, ‘Mens absentia cogitans in The Seafarer and The Wanderer’, Medieval Literature and Civilisation,ed. By Pearsall. D.A, and Waldron. R.A, London, 1969

Greenfield. S. B, 'The Old English Elegies’, Continuations and Beginnings, ed. By E.G Stanley, London, 1966,

Pearsall. D, ‘Anglo-Saxon Religious Poems’, Old English and Middle English Poetry,Routledge, London, 1966,

Pope. J. C, Seven Old English Poems, Bobbs-Merrill, New York, 1966,



Bjork. R. E, ‘Sundor æt rune: the Voluntary Exile of the Wanderer’, Neophilologus, 73, Cambridge University Press, 1989

Gordon. I.L, ‘Traditional Themes in The Wanderer and The Seafarer’, Review of English Studies, 5, 1954

Richardson. J, ‘Two Notes on the Time Frame of ‘The Wanderer, (lines 22 and 73-87), Neophilologus, 73, Cambridge University Press, 1989



Bray. O, ‘Hávamál: Wisdom to Wanderers and Council to Guests’, Havamal – The Words of Othinn, 2001, http://anomy.net/havamal/

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