The Dream of the Rood

The oldest-known example of Anglo-Saxon Christian poetry in English literature, “Dream of the Rood” is a doorway between wildly-different cultures and philosophies. While the poem’s themes are strongly Christian, its imagery recalls the Anglo-Saxon culture of warriors and knights, and its symbolism traces a continuity between Christianity and “pagan” traditions like the Celtic and the Norse. The tension between these sometimes-paradoxical schools of thought and images lends the poem great depth both as a literary and as a historical text. Using parallelisms, paradoxes, irony, and juxtaposition, the unknown poet creates a Christian poem reflective of its syncretic, vibrant time.

For ease of understanding, the long poem can be divided into three parts. In Part 1, the unnamed speaker directly addresses the reader and describes his dream and its subject: the tree or the “rood.” Part 2 is the speech of the rood, where the rood addresses the poem’s speaker, and through him, the reader. The final part of the poem sums up the poem’s messages.

The poem begins with “What,” (Line 1) establishing a rallying call to the listener. In this rhetorical style, often found in oral storytelling and bardic traditions, the speaker sets up a direct engagement between speaker and audience, immersing the reader into the world of the poem. After calling attention to the dream that affected him so deeply, the first-person speaker goes on to describe it for the reader. The dream occurs in the “middest night” (Line 2), a phrase which establishes the quietness and solitude of the hour. Other people—the speaker’s family, friends, and most of humanity—have gone to sleep. It is not specified if the speaker himself is asleep or awake, leaving it open to interpretation that the dream may be an urgent waking vision.

Describing others as “chatterers” (Line 3) or those who speak, is an example of synecdoche, where a part or quality is used to describe the whole entity. Here, the quality of speech is used to describe humans. While “chatterers” was a common synecdoche for people during the time the poem was composed, its specific use here sets up a contrast between the noisy, chattering world of the others and the quiet, private universe of the speaker and his dream.

Having set up the stage for this private universe, the speaker swiftly plunges into his dream. It is not specified if he is asleep while receiving the dream, or awake. From context, it can be concluded that the dream is more like a vision or a revelation, which is typical of dream-vision literature of the earliest Middle Ages. The allegorical elements of the poem also become more apparent from this point, with the coming of the tree being an allegory for the second coming of Christ. It should be noted here though that while “Dream of the Rood” is classified as an allegory, the Christian and mystical allegory is quite direct. The poem draws its power more from its emotional appeal.

From Line 4 onward the speaker describes the tree that dominates his dream, “dragged out in dazzle, brightliest of beams” (Line 6a). The tree’s description is hyperbolic, showing that its vision has overwhelmed the senses of the speaker. The hyperbole sharpens the sense that this is no mere dream, but a rapturous, prophetic experience which cannot be contained in words. Though the speaker suggests that the tree is a sign, connected with the “rood” or Christian cross of the poem’s title, he calls it a tree—and not a rood—in most instances in the poem. In the poem’s imagery as well, the image of the tree and the cross are used interchangeably.

The fluidity with which tree and rood morph into each other can be attributed to two facts: First, a wooden cross does trace its origins to a tree; second, the pre-existing sacred symbol of axis mundi or the Tree of Life in Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, and other pre-Christian traditions became transmuted to the rood in Christian imagery. That the two images coexist and often mutate into each other in the poem shows a living continuum between “pagan” (i.e., ancient, pre-Christian) and Christian mythologies. “Dream of the Rood” was composed in the early Middle Ages, in which the Anglo-Saxon ethos was still adapting to the Christianity that had made its way into England through the Romans (See: Background). In Norse mythology and the mythologies of Celtic-speaking groups, the Tree of Life spans heaven and Earth and is a symbol of wisdom and knowledge.

The speaker describes the tree as plated in gold, a description which reveals the prominence of Anglo-Saxon culture in the poem’s ethos. Gold and treasure were valued in Anglo-Saxon warrior culture and golden armor was symbolic of the paraphernalia of chivalry. Thus, from the very beginning, the poet represents the tree as embodying both Christian and Anglo-Saxon values. The tree is bedecked in gems “from foreign corners” (Line 7b), which indicates that the tree is spread all over the world, or that the reach of Christianity stretches across the globe. Significantly five gems are studded across its shoulders, suggesting the five places where Christ was wounded: the hands, the feet, and the side. This foreshadows the union between cross and Christ. Angels cradle the tree, invoking the image of cherubim tending to its branches.

It is in Line 10 that the poet introduces the poem’s key theme of The Hope of Transformation and salvation. The tree is “no longer some gallows for the guilty,” a reference to the punishment of crucifixion, in which individuals were nailed to a cross. Since this was the punishment meted out to Christ, the gallows reference explicitly links the tree and the rood. Significantly, the tree is no longer seen just as a symbol of pain and humiliation, but of hope and salvation as well. Just as the tree was elevated from being a symbol of pain, humans too can achieve salvation through Christ.

The line “every tree a winner, & this one most of all—” (Line 13) shows that while all trees/crosses are symbols of Christ, the tree that appears in the dream is not just the symbol but the specific tree on which Christ was crucified. The poet’s emphasis of this fact can be understood in the context of the early Christian religion’s focus on relics. Relics associated with Christ were highly prized and seen as embodiments of his grace, infused with healing power. Just when the speaker realizes that the rood he witnesses is the very rood that bore Christ, the speaker begins to see a separation between his own self and the Cross, comparing his own sinful state to the perfection of the rood, “joyfully aglow, garnished in golden” (Line 16a).

Even as the speaker describes the tree’s glory, he describes it as bearing scars that are “bandaged” by gemstones (Line 16b). While the blood and wounds signify Christian theology, the gems are indicative of regalia, important in eighth-century England’s evolving culture of kingdoms. The strangeness of the juxtaposition is intensified by the next few lines, where the speaker now sees the tree “sweat blood” (Line 20a) along its right side. Consumed by the strangeness, the speaker now sees the tree’s beauty as frightening. The shift from wonder to fright has its roots in both Christian philosophy and the aesthetic concept of the sublime. In Christian philosophy, Christ’s divinity is inextricably linked with his humanity, his fragility. Through his death and subsequent resurrection, he set a template for humans to achieve salvation. However, salvation is impossible without suffering. The tree with its gems and wounds represents this paradox. The speaker is afraid because he has not yet comprehended that the cross’s wounds and its gems are one and the same.

The sublime in literature refers to incredible descriptions and experiences that raise the reader into a state of wonder so extreme it is close to terror. Here, the sight of the bleeding golden cross is so overwhelming for the speaker that he can only stare at it in fright. He describes the tree as sometime streaming with blood, and sometimes “bedazzled with richness” (Line 23). So extreme is the speaker’s experience of the tree, time loses its meaning. He cannot remember for how “many long whens” (Line 24) he remains stunned, cradling the raw, bleeding tree.

The verb here shifts from witnessing the tree to cradling it, indicating yet another shift in the poem. The speaker has gone from passive viewer to an active engager with the rood, which foreshadows the deepening relationship between rood and speaker. Further, the image of the tree being cradled evokes the iconographic image of Mary, Christ’s mother, cradling his form after his crucifixion. Cradling also establishes the intimacy between speaker and rood, the follower and God.

From Line 28 onward, the tree begins to speak, adding another layer of narration to the poem. The tree too speaks in the first-person, its voice immediate and urgent. Both the speaker and the rood speaking in first-person is an example of parallelism and echo-play in the poem: Situations and instances are often repeated and paralleled in the poem, amplifying its themes. The tree describes its journey from forest to the site of crucifixion as an uprooting and a trauma. The forest symbolizes a peaceful communion with nature, invoking the poem’s pre-Christian themes. From this private, womb-like sanctuary, the tree is “dragged from secret dreaming” (Line 29b), cut down, hewn into a cross, and made a public “shivering spectacle” (Line 30b). The violence and humiliation meted out to the tree foreshadow the fate of Christ. The tree’s journey parallels the last journey of Christ, thus establishing that the tree is an absolute symbol of Christ. The tree’s description of its journey also sets up several binaries, such as those between peaceful nature and violent humanity, nature and techne or tools, or autonomy and subjugation—once the tree is dragged out of the forest, it loses its freedom—and private and public spheres.

After the tree is transplanted into foreign soil, it spots “the first freeborn” (Line 33b), racing to mount it “merrily” (Line 34). These lines mark one of the poem’s classic sudden reversals of fortune, where utter dismay is soon followed by rising hope. The “first freeborn” is Christ, depicted in these lines as a young chivalrous prince, eager to mount his steed (the tree) toward a victorious battle. This interpretation of the somber moment of Christ’s crucifixion is in line with Christian theology in which the suffering of Christ is a disguised triumph and part of the divine plan. However, the image of Christ as a young, valiant prince is still unique and reflects the Anglo-Saxon culture of the poem’s audience. The heroic depiction of Christ as a warrior is peculiar to Anglo-Saxon poetry and would lose prominence in Christian iconography after the 10th century.

The rood stresses the divine plan again when it tells the speaker that though it could easily have felled the foes of Christ, it stands still, waiting for the Lord’s command. According to the heroic tradition, the rood—which now represents Christ’s steed or second-in-command—cannot stand idly by as his commander is injured. Nevertheless, Christian doctrine establishes Christ’s crucifixion. The poet reconciles these paradoxical images through the device of the divine plan: The rood watches Christ suffer because he knows Christ’s suffering is actually an act of triumph. Christ is rarely referred to by name in the poem, as is in keeping with a religious work which does not name the Lord. Instead, the poet uses epithets and literary devices like circumlocution—a roundabout description—synecdoche, and metaphor to identify Christ. Christ mounts the gallows of the tree, and is thus, “heightened and humiliated” (Line 40). While “heightened” is used literally, since the Lord was literally raised on the cross, it also has a figurative meaning, in that it signifies the exalted existence of Christ. Further, the paradoxical phrase “heightened and humiliated” spells out core Christian doctrine: the path to salvation lies through suffering.

The young man, an epithet the poet often uses for Christ, is plainly described as “god all-surpassing” (Line 39). Though Christ is known in Christian texts as the Son of God, Christianity follows the tenet that the Son is consubstantial (of the same essence) as the Father; hence Christ and God are the same in substance. The moment of the young man ascending the tree marks the union between Christ and cross. It is described in quasi-romantic language, with the tree trembling “in the man’s embrace” (Line 42). The tree here is the bride of Christ, like the Catholic church. It is in this moment of rapture that the tree becomes much more than a cross: a “rood—tree, tower, & sign” (Line 44). This is the first instance of “rood” being used in the poem’s body and shows how the moment of Christ’s ascent on the cross marks the tree’s ascent into divine symbol. The word “rood” can be traced to the Old Saxon “roda” and the Old Norse “rōtha,” which roughly means “pole.” The phrase “tree, tower, and sign” depicts a merging of pre-Christian and Christian symbolism with the Tree of Life blending with the “pagan” rood and the Christian cross to become a beacon (tower), the sign of Christ.

As rood and man become one, so do their wounds. The personified rood describes vividly how the foes “forced me through / with darkness, with nails” (Lines 46-47) with the act depicted as a violation, just like the tree being wrenched out of the peaceful forest. The “gashings” (Line 47) the tree underwent refer to the Roman soldiers whipping Christ on the cross. Suffering unites tree and Christ, till the rood is “all ooze, bedrooled with blood” (Line 47). The blood of Christ is an important symbol in Christian doctrine; by being bathed in the blood of Christ, the rood becomes inextricably linked with the Lord. The rood suffers with Christ, but also witnesses his agony on the hill of Golgotha.

As Christ suffers, the skies themselves weep, an example of pathetic fallacy, in which inanimate objects and natural phenomena are given human emotions. Crowds rush to the site of crucifixion, bowing before the perplexed rood, praising its greatness for holding up the Lord. The detailed depiction of the rood’s emotions shows how the poet imbues the stock story of the passion of the Christ with depth and realism. The rood functions as a three-dimensional character, its pain matched by its contradictory feelings of wonder and confusion.

Epithets to describe Christ continue to be a prominent motif in the poem. For instance, in Line 67a, the speaker uses the phrase “player of fortune,” or the maker of destiny, to describe Christ, highlighting the irony that others are building him a resting place. The tomb his disciples build is carved from “carbuncle, chalcedony” (Line 66b), referring to the gemstones of red garnet and quartz. The regal hues of these gems befit the cradle of a young chivalrous prince, continuing the depiction of Christ as a valiant warrior. In the next few stanzas, the rood describes the dirge for Christ and his own almost-terrible fate. After Christ is removed from the rood, the rood is cut down mercilessly. The separation from Christ represents a psychic wound for the rood, signifying that anyone who takes the path away from the Christian faith meets an uncertain fate. However, the separation for the rood is superficial and temporary: Since it stood with Christ, signifying its constancy and loyalty, it is rescued from ignominy. In a reversal of its brutal removal from the forest, the rood is now dragged up from the discarded pit and dressed by Christ’s followers in gold and silver.

Not only does the rood’s second raising mirror the resurrection of Christ, it also shows humans that they too can achieve salvation. Significantly, right after describing its own salvation, the rood addresses the speaker directly, calling him “O you mortal thing you” (Line 79a). The emphasis on the speaker as a “mortal thing” only underscores that mortality is an illusion: Eternal life awaits the speaker and all human beings if they follow the path of the rood. From this point onward, the poem’s Christian message becomes more pronounced. The rood explains why it chose to communicate with the speaker at this particular time in history. It is because “the season is very much upon us” (Line 80b), when humans are finally ready to receive and understand the message of the rood. The allusion to “the hall” evokes the image of a king’s hall or court, reminiscent of the poem’s heroic imagery.

Animistic and “pagan” elements feature in the complex image of people ready to receive the message of the rood: “clenched to earth, rooted wide & broad / worthy me” (Lines 81b-82a). Humanity is ready for the rood’s hope because it is rooted in Christian faith. However, the metaphor used to describe the faithful is that of the Tree of Life, which spans the world and forms a bridge between Earth and heaven. All beings are part of this tree of life. The image is from several pre-Christian traditions, including the Norse. In Norse mythology, the great tree Yggdrasill unites all planes of existence. The poet’s use of these common symbols shows both the synergistic ethos of his time, as well as how Christian doctrine itself draws on many animistic symbols, speaking to the Coexistence of Pre-Christian and Christian Values.

The rood is mightier than ever, with the power to heal humanity. Just like Mary was chosen above all womenkind to be the mother of Christ, the rood was chosen over all trees to be his symbol. The rood establishes the parallels between itself and Mary to reinforce that, like Mary, it too is worthy of worship. Now that the truth about the rood has been revealed to the speaker, the speaker must in turn disclose it to all humanity. This passage stresses the centrality of divine revelation and the word in Christian and biblical doctrine. The word of God is holy in both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, capable of engendering great change. Transmission of religious philosophy takes place through words; thus the word is evangelical. Hence, the rood exhorts the poem’s speaker to “speak it wordfully / to all humanity” (Lines 96a-b) the message that God suffered for humanity’s endless sins, beginning from Adam’s original transgression.

The biblical allusion to the fall of Adam establishes why Christianity offers humans hope and The Promise of the Afterlife. When Adam ate the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, he and Eve were expelled from Paradise. On Earth, the lot of human beings—the descendants of Adam and Eve—was to be only hard work and suffering. However, because Christ took on the sins of humanity and paid for them through his suffering, good Christians can ascend to Heaven in the afterlife. More importantly, through his own example, Christ showed humans the potential of goodness within. The next few stanzas of the poem establish this message of redemption and hope as represented by Christ. For instance, Christ is described as the “helpmeet to humankind” (Line 102b), the friend of humans. Although he tasted death, he “shot into the heavens” (Line 103), offering humans the hope that they too can find eternal life.

However, the rood declares—as per Christian doctrine—that the path to this eternal life will not be easy. Though Christ is a kind lord, he will seek account of human deeds on Judgment Day. On that day, he will return to Earth—described here as the “middle yard” (Line 104a), or the middle layer between heaven and hell—with his angels and judge the deeds of humans. Only the good and godly will be allowed into the company of God, the saints, and angels. The rood refers to human life as a “loan” from God, which is Christian doctrine. Since life is a loan from God, humans must repay this loan with good deeds. Judgment Day will be a trial by fire for humans, and the rood implies people will shiver before the inquiry of God and his angels.

The rood’s tone in this section is apocalyptic and prophetic, in the manner of biblical preachers, its vocabulary sharp and grim. Christ is now the “potentate” (Line 111), or strict monarch rather than a young prince. On Judgment Day, Christ will ask people if anyone will volunteer to “drink death’s bitters” (Line 112) for him, the way he did once for humanity. Though humanity will have no answer, the rood reassures the speaker they need not fear: Carrying the sign of the rood in their heart, or believing in Christ and the church will be enough to absolve them. The question here is why Christ should ask the rhetorical question, when human salvation is not dependent on its answer. This conundrum can be resolved if one considers that the rood raises the question to establish the magnitude of Christ’s sacrifice: No one can repay his debt because no one can match the selflessness of his act.

As the rood concludes its message, the speaker’s narration takes over the poem once again. The tone of the speaker changes in this last section, now resembling that of a biblical preacher. It becomes more public, and the movement is away from the private voice of the opening lines. The private, mystical vision concluded, the speaker now assumes a public-facing persona. In the last section of the poem, the speaker sums up the rood’s lessons and his own plans to the reader. The focus shifts to the future, and a vital part of this future is the afterlife in heaven. The speaker prays to the rood—an act both Christian and pre-Christian, since the tree is a divine symbol in pre-Christian mythologies—that he now firmly follows the Christian path. Significantly, the speaker notes that he has few friends on Earth, but will find great company in heaven. Though the poem does not tell the reader much about the psychological state of the speaker, this rare detail establishes a poignancy to his narration and also highlights a key reason why he finds the afterlife so appealing. The speaker’s present life may be lonely and less than perfect, but the vision of the afterlife infuses him with The Hope of Transformation.

In keeping with this optimistic view of the afterlife, the speaker imagines the day when he will be in heaven, seated at the table of the Lord, a place of merriment and eternal companionship. Again, the dinner table is reminiscent of Anglo-Saxon culture, a site of celebration and meeting in a leader’s welcoming hall. In this section, the poem’s tone grows more didactic, with the speaker often referring to human life as transient and a loan from the Lord. Repetitions occur as a thematic and literary device, underscoring the message of Christ’s sacrifice for humanity. For instance, in Lines 144b-146, the speaker reminds the reader once again that Christ climbed the gallows for the sins of humans, while Lines 147-149 again bolster the idea that Christ has given humans everlasting life.

These repetitions serve to enhance the evangelical nature of the poem: The poet is showcasing the appeal of Christianity to exhort more and more people to join the relatively new religion. In the last section, the poet uses many contradictory images to sum up the lessons of suffering as salvation and death as eternal life. The afterlife is described as a renewed garden, “draped in fruits & every fairness” (Line 148), but to get there one must first weather the “burning” (Line 149), or the fires of Judgment Day.

The image here is a paradox: a fresh garden and a devouring fire. In this heaven the many who survive Judgment Day—the good believers—live, and here is where the speaker hopes to be ultimately. He suggests that the reader, too, can achieve life beyond death if they follow in the footsteps of the cross. As the poem ends, the speaker once again describes Christ’s ascension as a victorious triumph while the dwellers of heaven are described as abiding “in all that splendor” (Line 155a). Further, the speaker emphasizes the act of climbing, as if ascending the Tree of Life. With these images, the poet promises to his audience a Christian afterlife, but presents them in terms that would most appeal to their Anglo-Saxon and Celtic cultural values.