In Which There is No Cicero, I Am a Bard, and St. Boniface is Awesome

 I realize that this post is pretty late (and short) and I didn't write anything last week so...sorry about that.

November 3--7th, 2014

The Dream of the Rood: So I had to read this for everyone over lunch on Monday and try to sound like an Anglo-Saxon bard. That proved a little difficult, because someone saying "Please pass the chicken" during your attempt at a dramatic pause kind of ruins the effect. All the same, I like how dramatic this poem is. I also thought it was interesting how similar this idea is to a modern writing prompt many writers use: telling a story (in this case, the crucifixion) from the point of view of a character no one really thinks about. Of course, the cross (or 'rood') is a very important element in the crucifixion story, but no one thinks about what it would have said if it could have talked. The rood is an interesting character. It sounds honored to have Christ hanging from it, making itself sound like a sort of throne for Him.

The Correspondence of St. Boniface:
Letter #1: I wish I could write persuasive essays like St. Boniface. He quotes Scripture eleven times (I counted) and obviously is passionate about what he's writing about. He says: "Can there be a more fitting pursuit in youth or a more valuable possession in old age than a knowledge of Holy Writ? In the midst of storms it will preserve you from the dangers of shipwreck and guide you to the shore of an enchanting paradise and the ever-lasting bliss of the angels." That was probably a whole lot more effective than just saying "don't do drugs, stay in school" like we say now.

Letter #3: This letter from Pope Gregory III makes St. Boniface sound like a government agent going on a secret mission. I think Christians took evangelization a lot more seriously at that time than we do now. I also like the line "bound by the shackles of paganism".

In Which Cicero is Mean, Lancelot is Depressed, and I Write an Anglo-Saxon Poem

October 27th -- 31st, 2014


Instead of writing about everything I do each day, from now on (I think) I'm going to write about the things (poems, certain aspects of stories, etc.) that stand out the most for me in my whole week's reading. And also science, because it's cool.

Idylls of the King (Lancelot and Elaine) by Alfred, Lord Tennyson: I finished this poem today (Monday). It was a bit disappointing--I know it's supposed to be a tragedy, but (spoiler alert) why did Elaine die? It seemed kind of pointless to me. She learned that Lancelot didn't love her back, which made her sad at first, but then she told her father that she was able to die happy because she had loved the greatest of all men. And then she just...died. Did I miss something here? It seems like the only purpose her death served was to show Lancelot that Elaine had loved him much more than Guinivere did, because Guinivere's love was prideful and jealous while Elaine's was pure and honest. The story ended with Lancelot thinking he was a terrible person and realizing that Guinivere probably didn't love him after all.

Cicero: First Oration Against Cataline (Translation): Cicero's getting personal now. He says he's going to leave out the embarrassing, disgraceful details of Cataline's private life, but Cicero has a way of just glossing over some things and making them stand out all the same. It's interesting to see Cicero's use of repeating rhetorical questions ("What mark of domestic disgrace does not brand your life? What dishonor of private affairs does not cling to your reputation?" (lines 258-259), etc.). People still use questions the same way in public speaking today.

Caedmon's Hymn:  I found the literal translation here, which is interesting because I can see the connections between Old English and modern English. For example 'Weard' = 'guardian' (like 'ward' in modern English), 'Faeder' = 'father', and 'aelmihtig' = 'almighty'. And this website has a translation guide for Bede's story of Caedmon's life. It's pretty much the most detailed translation guide I've ever seen for anything. Ever.
Now onto the imagery Caedmon's Hymn conjures. Caedmon makes the earth sound like kind of a house for men, giving it a feeling a safety--calling heaven a 'roof', and God who built it for us the 'Guardian of mankind'. It makes me think that Caedmon saw the world as something that God made for us as a king might make a kingdom for his people.

Anglo-Saxon Poetry: Okay, so I'm really bad at riddles of any kind, but I actually liked these riddles. I wasn't able to guess any of them but the language and imagery of them was really cool. The Anglo-Saxons seemed to like to try to see the beauty and intrigue in their every day objects.
And finally, here's a riddle I wrote, which may be the most obvious riddle ever:

I die each autumn, but come alive in spring
I cannot move, but the slightest breeze tosses me
I shelter men by day, but my clawed fingers frighten them on moonlit nights
I am killed by men daily, though I am much stronger than them
What am I?