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  • Essay / Religious Beliefs in Anglo-Saxon Society

    Synthesis Essay on the Anglo-SaxonsThe Anglo-Saxons were a religious group of people, as were other generations of people. Religion played a role in the lives of the Anglo-Saxons and was therefore reflected in their writings. Poems written by the Anglo-Saxons showed significant signs of religious influence, including "The Seafarer", "The Wanderer", and "The Wife's Lament". Each author of each poem gives their own testimony regarding God's influence on their situation. The Anglo-Saxons practiced their beliefs beyond religious establishments by writing them down in their poems. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on 'Why violent video games should not be banned'?Get the original essay The Anglo-Saxons seemed to have correlated their daily lives with their religious beliefs, as shown in 'The Seafarer'. The poem is written by a man who loves the sea and is mentally exhausted by living on land. He understands the difficulties of traveling by sea, but simply cannot stay away. “Becoming so brave, or so blessed by God, that he feels no fear when the sails are unfurled…” The writer is not afraid of what the sea offers him and associates his bravery with being blessed by God. Religion may have motivated many actions among the Anglo-Saxons, as they believed themselves to be protected and therefore fearless. The Anglo-Saxons, being religious, did not have conflicting evolutionary ideals, instead pointing to God for everything. The writer goes on to explain how God essentially created the Earth and life itself. “We all fear God. He turns the Earth, He makes it oscillate firmly in space, He gives life to the world and light to the sky. Death leaps upon fools who forget their God. Scientific beliefs such as evolution may have been non-existent for the Anglo-Saxons, as the author of "The Seafarer" notes about how everyone fears God and how He gave life to the world. Religion played a key role in everything the Anglo-Saxons believed in, from their daily activities to the foundation of their lives itself. The Anglo-Saxons often turned to religion and to God in times of distress to find the best way out of a bad situation. As “The Wanderer” shows, the writer finds himself alone after the massacre of many people he once knew. With nowhere else to turn, the speaker turns to his religion for comfort. “This solitary traveler longs for the grace, the mercy of God…” The speaker turns to God in his solitary journey to remedy the trials he has just experienced. The Anglo-Saxons believed and supported God's impact on their lives despite what they experienced. The Anglo-Saxons looked to God and religion as the reason behind everything they did. “It is good to find grace in God, the celestial rock where all our hopes rest.” The speaker goes on to state that giving one's life to God despite difficulties is a good thing, because religion holds all the hope in the world. “The Wanderer” gives the example of one resident among many others who may have found himself in a situation of solitude and who, in turn, turned to God. The Anglo-Saxons believed greatly in religion as their only source of hope in the face of difficulties such as war. As the speaker of “The Wanderer” argues, the Anglo-Saxons sought religion in times of distress. “The Wife's Lament” is a poem written by the “wife” of a man who himself seems exiled and the speaker is searching for him. However, the speaker of the poem is herself exiled and forced by her husband's relative to stay in the woods.