Religion and or spirituality have played a large role in shaping mankind’s life and behavior throughout the course of history. In The Seafarer, translated by Burton Raffel, spirituality is not only a central theme, but also helps illustrate the differences that various religions can have on one’s life span. In the poem, these two cultural practices are known as Paganism and Christianity, both of which have a direct effect in the life of the seafarer. Paganism is mainly the
In “The Seafarer,” “The Wanderer,” and “The Wife’s Lament” the narrator reveals many Anglo-Saxon ideals that present loneliness as a terrifying prospect. In each poem, a person is stranded to face the terrors of the Anglo-Saxon era on their own, with little to no reconcile for their hardships. While many aspects of the narrators change, such as gender or occupation, they are all elegies that present a mournful tone. In “The Seafarer,” “The wanderer,” and “The Wife’s Lament” the narrators discuss
At the beginning of the poem, the seafarer reminisces on his past. The speaker vividly describes his sufferings in life on the sea. He describes his loneliness, the cold conditions of the sea and his seclusion on the sea in contrast to his past life on the land with his kinsmen, happiness
This is clear at times in works such as “The Seafarer.” In this poem the author begins by describing a man’s life on the water, at first relating his time to the natural events that had to do
As the fifteenth century encompassed the first occurrence of European seafarers laying their eyes upon the New World, it set forth a new distinction within the course of history. Once these maritime voyages took place, numerous European nations sought out land in the New World to settle upon, such that they could exercise their dominion over it, as well as the natives whom already lived there for centuries prior. Furthermore, as these European colonists arrived throughout different parts of the
In the Anglo Saxon Era, the theme of fate v. free will was represented in many texts and this shows the people of that era strongly believed the God controlled their fate. In the epic poem The Seafarer “A fool is the one who does not fear his Lord-- death comes to him unprepared. Blessed is he who lives humbly-- to him comes forgiveness from heaven. God set that spirit within him,because he believed in His might (Shmoop 116-118).” In these lines show the connection between fate and God. People believed