Caedmon's Hymn Essay by Andrea

English Literature
Fabin Oyarzn Ros

Pedagoga en Ingls
Sede Puerto Montt
Cdmons Hymn Essay
During the course of history, Cdmons Hymn has been considered one the three earliest
remaining poems in Old English. The nine lined old English poem was composed by
Cdmon, a Celtic herdsman who was born in Northumbria. It has been widely known that
Cdmon was ignorant of poetry, but somehow he could master poetry, composing songs
and poems of the Creation, Genesis, Exodus, Incarnation, Resurrection, among others.
Notwithstanding, what seems to be remarkable in the analysis of Cdmon's Hymn is the
context in which it took place, the intention of the writer and the type of verse and richness
in the style.
Firstly, when it comes to the context, it is noteworthy to mention the Christian literature of
Anglo-Saxon England, in which the majority of verses written at that time were paraphrase
of Old Testament stories in the attempt to emphasize faith rewarded and the figure of Christ
as primary theme. Additionally, Saxon and Scandinavian cultures were crucial for
Cdmon; in terms of how Saxon language influenced the means Cdmon used to express
his vision of the creation, since he lived approximately in the eighth century England,
which was still influenced by Saxon language and culture. Finally, it is essential to note that
the poetry of Cdmon was transmitted orally, which means he composed and sang his
poetry as it was considered to be a social act, similar to storytelling today, the role of
Druids (Celts) or the Scops (Anglo-Saxon) in the past, hence monks certainly wrote all this
down to keep record of ecclesiastical poetry.
Secondly, the intention of the writer was to recite and sing about the establishment of the
universe and the creation of the earth, through the use of a style rich in formulas, often
noun phrases, kennings (a compound expression in Old English and Old Norse poetry with
metaphorical meaning), fancy word-play, and alliteration (the linking of words, or stressed
syllables, by use of the same initial letter). Yet, in the attempt to interpret the intention of
the writer we will realize that in the first line, heaven-kingdom's Guardian, means there is
a kingdom in heaven, as well as in the earth ruled by Anglo-Saxon. Further, the image of
heaven as a roof and of the Lord as a protector is merely an Anglo-Saxon feature. In fact,
Puerto Montt, 2015

English Literature
Fabin Oyarzn Ros
Pedagoga en Ingls
Sede Puerto Montt
it is profusely admirable the concise writing, beauty and how in nine lines of his hymn
Cdmon provided six different formulas for saying God (keeper of Heaven's kingdom,
Father of glory, Eternal Lord, holy Creator, keeper of mankind, and Almighty Lord),
feature known as variation.
Thirdly, as we state in the preceding paragraph, Cdmon composed in alliterative verse,

creating a highly musical tone. The use of four-stress lines, each with a medial caesura (a
pause in the middle), in which at least two of the four stressed words alliterate
(honour/heaven, might/mind), as well as the kennings, are ancient accentual meter of
poetry, common feature of Anglo-Saxon compositions. Nonetheless, Caedmon is indeed
considered to be the first English poet, hence it is fair enough to believe that Cdmon
coined the Christian poetic formulas, which afterwards influenced later poets.
In light of the above, doubtlessly Cdmon will be always considered the earliest Anglo-
Saxon Christian poet of the Old English Period, whose composition will remain until the
end of the times due to his epic style rich in formulas and unique in vocabulary, variation
and beauty of language.
Puerto Montt, 2015

English Literature
Fabin Oyarzn Ros
Pedagoga en Ingls
Sede Puerto Montt
Bibliography
Michael, A. (2013). A History of English Literature (3rd ed., pp. 20-25).: MACMILLAN
CHILDRENS BOOKS.
O'Donell, D. P. (2005). Cdmon's Hymn: A multimedia study, edition and archive.

Retrieved from:
https://books.google.cl/books?id=8iEAcwwTMoIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=caedmon&hl
=es&sa=X&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAGoVChMI-
breqai0xwIVhEGQCh15XAGF#v=onepage&q=caedmon&f=false
Names: Andrea Valentina Millar Andrade;
Valeska Paz Molina Contreras
Subject: Literature in English
Date: August 21st, 2015
Puerto Montt, 2015

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English Literature

Fabin Oyarzn Ros

Cdmons Hymn Essay

Puerto Montt, 2015

Thirdly, as we state in the preceding paragraph, Cdmon composed in alliterative verse,

Puerto Montt, 2015

O'Donell, D. P. (2005). Cdmon's Hymn: A multimedia study, edition and archive.

Names: Andrea Valentina Millar Andrade;

Valeska Paz Molina Contreras

Subject: Literature in English

Date: August 21st, 2015

Puerto Montt, 2015

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