The history of British Literature has always been the themes of loneliness, bravery, and isolation. The reason authors write about these themes because most of the authors have experiences to do with misery and challenges with their lifestyles.”The Wanderer” and “The Seafarer” are about two men who set sail on the sea.They suffer from loneliness and being free from society. They chose to be free from society to travel the world and to search for a new lord to serve. The two famous Anglo Saxon poems “The Seafarer” and “The Wanderer” have so much in common dealing with bravery and isolation set at sea. “The Wanderer” and “The Seafarer” are important because in today’s world we still face the same issues in life even though they didn’t have technology compared to what today’s world has.
The Seafarer and The Wanderer both are very brave. They are sailing across the miserable wintery sea as they do what they love in life. Also, we don’t actually know the names of these characters so we go by the Seafarer and the Wanderer.The Seafarer and The Wanderer are very brave because they are sailing across the sea dealing with loneliness,misery, and seeking for better things in life.The Seafarer says that land dwellers can’t feel the pain of spending winter in exile at sea,one is miserable in the cold.No one really knows what the seafarer meant by this but the impression that is given is that people who sail the sea are tough and that he is forced to sail the sea.The Seafarer remembers the awful cold days, and listening to the seabirds call instead of the mead hall.He has no earthly companion protecting him.The weather continues to worsen as snow and hail fell but that never stopped the brave seafarer from doing what he loves.The Seafarer fears his life as he sails across the roaring waves that could crash over his ship and the long wintery days of suffering.(“The Seafarer: Poem Summary, Themes & Analysis”) His feet would be cold and he was starving like no other and only a seaman could understand this.The Wanderer has lost his loved ones and his lord.He believes a brave man should forget sad thoughts but store them away in his heart and never speak of them.This means keeping sad thoughts too close can be a struggle with how you handle it but if thoughts are kept close and stored away there will be peace.
”The Seafarer” and “The Wanderer” also show the struggles with isolation, a common problem in the Anglo-Saxon period.The lonely Seafarer tells that all he could hear was the roaring sea waves swishing back and forth. Sometimes the Seafarer listens to the calling of birds and pretends that it is the sounds of sailors, drinking mead, and singing songs. The Seafarer tells the people who die and want to go to Heaven that they must honor God and do great deeds against the Devil. The reason the Seafarer is doing this to ensure he has a way into Heaven. Although the Seafarer feels like he is getting too old to do what he loves which was sailing and living on the ship. ¨All the admonish that willing mid leaping to journeys, always set in thoughts travelling on a quickening tide.¨ (Applebee. 86) The Seafarer feels like he should take more journeys to sea and surround himself with strangers because he is so alone.” He claims that there is no man in the world who would be fearless about a treacherous sea journey, no matter how courageous, strong, or good he might be, and no matter how benevolent God has been to him in the past.” (“The Seafarer: Poem Summary, Themes & Analysis”) The reason the Wanderer feels isolated is because his kind lord died of old age and he has been forced out by his country.The Wanderer had a feeling in his heart so he left home to sail in the coldness of winter and the rough waves to find a new lord. He was lonely searching for the comfort and pleasure of a new mead-hall, but he never found one.The Wanderer can’t avoid going to sea because his life is his fate. Fate means it’s beyond a person’s control.The lonely traveler searches for grace for the mercy of God; grief holds the traveler back from things. (Applebee. 90)
The poems are famous today but were also important in Anglo-Saxon times.In Anglo-Saxon times men were suppose to be brave and unemotional.In todays society these poems are so important now because we can relate to them resulting in isolation, depression, and pain.The Wanderer and the Seafarer shows important Anglo-Saxon ideals and values. The Anglo-Saxon society was male dominant and patriotic. The people of this time shared many things in common like repetition, marital values, and many others.The revenge cycle was a strong belief that they practiced.Experts believe these poems are important because they struggled through tough times and survived through the worst conditions of the weather.These poems are important now because they both relate to modern day people.Today we are more connected to technology but more people are unhappy now then they were back in Anglo-Saxon period. These poems can relate to the workforce in today’s society because people choose now to go off for long periods of time risking their life. Military men can relate to the Seafarer and the Wanderer because all three of them are suffering weather conditions, survival, and loneliness.
The theme of the Seafarer is to travel the world and figure what the outcome is.Loneliness and isolation make up the theme of the poem. The Seafarer says that his feelings are discouragement from being alone at sea with his thoughts of home and God. He expresses his feelings of suffering and despair on the cold sea voyage.This story tells how the sea took the character and swept him back and forth in regret,fear, and pain. (Applebee. 85-89)The lesson explains some of the deep and dark aspects of life.The purpose of this short story deals with death, and spiritual journeys.
The Wanderer is out to find his dear lord to save him from the evil things in life.The Wanderer describes his thoughts and emotions of a person who is forced to travel far from his homeland alone. He has lost his kinsmen and lord in war, the wanderer travels far to find a new lord, the only person to provide the shelter, protection, and support he needs to survive. ¨Weary with winter i wandered out on the frozen waves,hoping to find a place,a people, a lord to replace my lost ones.¨ (Applebee. 91) The Wanderer expresses that no matter how hard a man tries to control his emotions he will never avoid his fate. (“The Wanderer” Summary and Analysis’.) Both fate and the natural world are described to be threatening forces outside of the humans’ control.This poem is about the journey of life to find greater things in life.
“The Seafarer” and “The Wanderer” are both famous anglo-saxon poems. They both demonstrate bravery and isolation set at sea. In the time of “The Seafarer” and “The Wanderer”, many modern day issues were encountered even though they were set far in the past.“The Seafarer” and “The Wanderer” are two famous poems that show bravery and the struggle of isolation while traveling the world and discovering an outcome.
