“The Dream of the Rood” Response
“The Dream of the Rood” was preserved in the 10th-century Vercelli Book, but some believe it may be as old as the 8th-century Ruthwell Cross. It is one of the oldest works of the Old English Literature. The word Rood in the title comes from an Old English word rōd ‘pole’, or as we would say ‘crucifix’. In “The Dream of the Rood”, the author uses the rood as a cross — becoming the instrument of the savior’s death. It is described how it suffered nails and insults to fulfill God’s will. The overall theme is represented of the crucifixion, through a battle taking place. In this poem, both Christ and the cross triumph, and they are seen as heroes or heroic. This story explains the crucifixion of Christ from a different point of view based on a retold occurrence. It is illustrated from a man’s perspective, his dream to be exact, where he narrates what he saw. The living God is portrayed as a fearless hero, that he should be feared, due to his sacrificial nature — sacrificing himself to save humanity. A great example of this begins in line 96, “…tell them in words that it is the tree of glory on which Almighty God suffered for mankind’s many sins and Adam’s ancient deeds.”
In addition, this poem was a great “marketing” scheme to convert Anglo-Saxon pagans to Christianity. It showed God as someone who should be feared, as well as someone who loved them enough to give up his life. The lines mentioning his gruesome death would catch the pagan’s attention in hopes of luring them in. This helped the Anglo-Saxon pagan audience to understand that Christ was both a heroic individual, but also experienced a brutal death that saved them from their sins. It was expected that after hearing this message conversion to Christianity would occur.
In the end, I believe the author did a great job in bringing a new perspective to relay this message to those of other faiths, specifically pagans that would possibly convert to Christianity. The use of the word ‘rood’ and its meaning of crucifixion as an object made the story intriguing and helped provide a real-life example. This piece was thought out and brought a unique view to the crucifixion story.
