The seafarer has its origins in the old english period of english literature, 4501100, a time when very few people knew how to read or. Oct 19, 2008 the seafarer is an old english poem recorded in the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. In the past it has been frequently referred to as an elegy, a poem that. Composed in old english, the poem is a monologue delivered by. The wanderer is an old english poem preserved only in an anthology known as the exeter book a manuscript dating from the late 10th century. It snowed from the north, binding the earth in ice. For further study the seafarer was first discovered in the exeter book, a handcopied manuscript containing the largest known collection of old english poetry, which is kept at exeter cathedral, england. Introduction the seafarer was first discovered in the exeter book, a hand. Unesco lists exeter book among worlds principal cultural. Exeter book, the largest extant collection of old english poetry. This is probably preserved entire, but in interpolated form.
The seafarer is a poem of 124 lines, of unknown date and authorship, preserved in the exeter book. Description of text a modernised translation of the seafarer, abridged from the anglo saxon of the exeter book. As with the other translations of old english ive provided for this course, the translation below is rough and ready. The seafarer and the other poems in the exeter book provide the chief source of anglosaxon poetry. I ordered this book to do research for a series of short stories im planning. The poem is an elegy, characterized by an attitude of melancholy toward earthly life while, perhaps in allegory, looking forward to the life to come. He remembers terrible cold and loneliness, and hearing the sounds of seabirds instead of the mead hall. The seafarer, with other poems including the wanderer in lesson 8, is found in the exeter book, a latter 10th century volume of anglosaxon poetry. The exeter book is an anthology, or collection of old english poetry, compiled in tenthcentury anglosaxon england. All three poems survive in the exeter book, a manuscript of anglosaxon poems produced by a single scribe around a. The seafarer poem the seafarer is an old english poem giving a firstperson account of a man alone on the sea.
While many scholars have described the seafarer as an insular sailors lamentations concluding with faith in gods ultimate mercy, just as many scholars have identified the poem as an account of a wanderer, pilgrim, or. The exeter book is our only surviving source for most works it contains, the most famous of which are the wanderer, the seafarer, widsith, wulf and eadwacer, the wifes lament, and a great collection of the witty riddles at which the old english poets excelled. The exeter book, exeter cathedral library ms 3501, also known as the codex exoniensis, is a tenthcentury book or codex which is an anthology of anglosaxon poetry. The poem consists of 124 lines, followed by the single word amen and is recorded only in the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. Hyperlinks to annotations are added inline in the text, in bolded brackets. Mcgee lectures the exeter book s seafarer the seafarer and the wanderer. Seafowls, loudness was for me laughter, the mews singing all my meaddrink. The seafarer was first discovered in the exeter book, a.
The seafarer has its origins in the old english period of english literature, 4501100, a time when very few people knew how to read or write. Following these are a number of shorter religious verses intermingled with poems of. The book is recognized today as a key text from the benedictine revival of the. While we cant say for sure that its based on the poem, we think this monologue, performed by an irish actor, shows that the play addresses many of the same themes. The seafarer anglosaxon narrative poetry project rutgers. The seafarer is one of the most famous anglosaxon elegies and is found only in the exeter book. In the seafarer, such a figure reminds a monastic audience of its purpose for renouncing the world. Text exeter book poetrywifes lament, seafarer, wanderer.
The unique copy of the seafarer is found in the exeter book. The seafarer is an old english poem recorded in the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. The seafarer is found in exeter, cathedral chapter library, ms 3501, the exeter book. Choose from 177 different sets of the seafarer, the wanderer, and the wifes lament flashcards on quizlet. Storms, on the stonecliffs beaten, fell on the stern. Translated by burton raffel the seafarer 1st hour genius. Bought this because i was asked to comment on a friends translation of the poem.
Its been translated multiple times, most notably by american. The seafarer is an ancient anglosaxon poem in which the elderly seafarer reminisces about his life spent sailing on the open ocean. It has most often, though not always, been categorised. It is 124 lines and is commonly referred to as an elegy, a poem that mourns a loss or more generally a sorrowful piece of writing. Mike bintley explores these poems, which include the wanderer and the wifes lament, and highlights the parallels between the elegies and the riddles in the exeter book.
The seafarer poem project gutenberg selfpublishing. The exeter book, the seafarer, the wanderer, and the wifes. How are the exiles of the three speakers in the poems from. Learn the seafarer, the wanderer, and the wifes lament with free interactive flashcards. The seafarer is a 124line poem written in old english that scholars often view as a companion piece to the wanderer. Appleton, 1966 originally published in methuens old english library. The seafarer is an anglosaxon elegy that is composed in old english and was written down in the exeter book in the tenth century. The seafarer summary the seafarer was first discovered in the exeter book, a handcopied manuscript containing the largest known collection of old english poetry, which is kept at exeter cathedral, england. Exeter book the seafarer summary and analysis gradesaver. The seafarer exeter medieval texts and studies lup.
The seafarer has its origins in the old english period of english literature, 450. The poem consists of 124 lines, followed by the single word amen and is recorded only at folios 81 verso 83 recto of the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. The seafarer is an anglosaxon poem found in the exeter book, or the codex exoniensis, which was transcribed by christian monks in the tenth century. Who copied down the different poems in the exeter book, and created the manuscript that contains the seafarer. The seafarer is an anglosaxon or old english poem similar to the wanderer in representing the laments of an exile. Playwright conor mcpherson wrote a play called the seafarer in 2006. Nov 12, 2014 the seafarer is an old english poem recorded in the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. He describes the hardships of life on the sea, the beauty of.
It consists of 124 lines, followed by the single word amen. The unique copy of the seafarer is found in the exeter book, a manuscript anthology of old english poetry assembled about 975 c. The seafarer ppt 1 the seafarer translated by burton. Jan 29, 2018 exeter book in the seafarer poem how do they change the seasons. Whether this poem was composed by a monastic poet or interpolated for. The seafarer an anonymous poem of uncertain date, was. Written by an anonymous author and included in a tenthcentury manuscript known as the exeter book, the seafarer is a 125 line poem that tells the story from the point of view of a person who has spent a lot of time you guessed it seafaring. The elegies of the exeter book the british library. Like the wanderer, the poem most often associated with it, the seafarer describes the life of a wraecca, or exile, far from his home. It is told from the point of view of an old seafarer, who is reminiscing and evaluating his life as he has lived it.
However i would not have chosen this for the daily read and in fact dont have the time to read this poem again in its entirety today. The seafarer history the seafarer is an old english poem recorded in the exeter book, one of the four surviving manuscripts of old english poetry. In the first1 of these an eardstapa bewails the loss of lord and kinsmen, and relates in the third person the visions which appear to him in sleep. Housed in exeter cathedral since it was given to the institution by its first bishop, leofric, in the 11th century, the exeter book was written around 970.
The cold waters of lifes journeycommentary and analysis duration. The second2 poem is the fragmentary complaint of a seafarer who has suffered much upon. The seafarer is an anonymous anglosaxon eulogy that was found in the exeter book. The seafarer the wanderer home trivalley local schools. The seafarer is an old english poem of 124 lines preserved in the 10thcentury exeter book manuscript, which contains a wide assortment of anglosaxon poetry. The work was revised and completed by ida gordon and published in 1960 see the seafarer.
Pound iswas an incredibly wonderful poet this poem being an epic representative of that. The poems in the exeter book known as the old english elegies focus on loss, separation and the transience of earthly things. The seafarer an anonymous poem of uncertain date, was found in the exeter book, one of the four important collections of anglosaxon poetry that has survived. In addition to these and other secular poems, the exeter book contains religious verse, nearly 100 riddles, and a heroic narrative.
The poems christian message would seem to rule out any date. The seafarer summary the speaker of the seafarer announces that he can make a true song about himself and the suffering he has endured while traveling over the ocean in the middle of winter. The exeter book ezra pound modern period themes in the seafarer poem s metaphor of spirituality. Dec, 2016 the exeter book, the seafarer, the wanderer, and the wifes lament in the seafarer, which of the following is named as a threat issued by fate a illness b profit c shipwreck d lonliness the daily life of the author of the wifes lament can be best described as a content b lonely c busy d helpful. The seafarer is an old english poem giving a firstperson account of a man alone on the sea. The seafarer was first discovered in the exeter book, a handcopied manuscript containing the largest known collection of old english poetry, which is kept at exeter cathedral, england.