Fate. What Are You Destined to Do?-7

The main reoccurring motif I found in From A History of the English Church and People, “The Seafarer” and “The Wife’s Lament” was the idea of fate or what one was destined to do. All believe God is the reason for which they do what they do and how they carry out their lives. In the first work, From A History of the English Church and People, a man by the name of Caedmon was blessed with the ability to interpret scriptures in the Bible and turn it into beautiful poetry. “So skillful was he in composing religious and devotional songs that, when any passage of Scripture was explained to him by interpreters, he could quickly turn it into delightful and moving poetry in his own English tongue.” He received as a gift from God and as a result could compose only religious verses. One night he has a dream and is told to sing about “the Creation of all things.” He immediately began to sing verses he had never seen or heard before. Caedmon was very obedient to God’s will and was rewarded for that. In “The Seafarer,” the man’s destiny is to pioneer the sea. He enjoys the different characteristics of the sea and the excitement it brings. Being out on the sea can get pretty rough as well and praises God for bringing him through these trying times. The line, “Grown so brave, or so graced by God, that he feels no fear as the sails unfurl,” says it all. He also talks about those who God rewards for praising him. “Death leaps at the fools who forget their God. He who lives humbly has angels from Heaven to carry him courage and strength and belief.” The motif of exile is shared in “The Wife’s Lament.” The poem is about a wife who feels God had abandoned her. She’s gone all her life suffering grief and banishment and is looking towards God for guidance but feels distant. Through these poems, it’s clear that motifs were popular in Anglo-Saxon culture. It’s clear they mainly centered around Christianity and faith in God.