His heathenish spirit,
Christian values often associate pagans with ignorance and evil. However, I wonder this creates unnecessary conflict between different beliefs. At the most fundamental level, I believe people should respect one another regardless of their religious beliefs.
Nor lief nor loth one
It's interesting that I couldn't even guess the meaning of this phrase. I expect to encounter many similar difficulties when reading Old English poetry.
The Dreamof the Rood uses alliteration rather thanrhyme; it is divided into half-lines (witha pause, or caesura, in the middle) thatvary between short rhythmic sections andlonger hypermetrical sections (with moresyllables).
I was excited when I saw these poetic techniques for the first time. There are so many techniques, such as alliteration, half-lines, and caesura. I also think the people who identified these techniques in such old poems and explained them to us are really impressive.
All angels of God beheld it,Fair through future ages; ’twas no criminal’s cross indeed
The cross is no longer seen as an instrument of execution. It's transformed into a symbol of salvation and glory. As I grew up in a church, I heard this several times before. While not until I thought about it again did I realize what a brilliant contrast it was.