Cynewulf

Cynewulf is one of only two poets, along with Cædmon, mentioned by name as composers of religious verse during the Old English period. Little is known about Cynewulf aside from the runic signatures concluding the four poems attributed to him: The Fates of the Apostles, Christ II (The Ascension), Juliana, and Elene. Cynewulf’s language suggests an association with the English midlands, and his writings have been most often dated to the ninth century, although some critics argue for a later date; see also Date and Language of Cynewulf’s Writings. In his signed poems, Cynewulf utilizes runes in acrostic passages to spell out his name; these passages also meditate on the transitory nature of earthly life, contemplate the coming Judgment, and request the reader’s prayers for the poet’s soul. Most of Cynewulf’s signed poems, written in alliterative verse, belong to the broader genre of hagiography, “the writing of the sacred” or the legends of the saints. While The Fates of the Apostles presents a brief martyrology, Juliana and Elene incorporate longer hagiographical narratives. Christ II (The Ascension) focuses not on the lives of the saints but rather on the Ascension of Christ; it has therefore frequently been associated with two other poems not currently attributed to Cynewulf, Christ I and Christ III. In composing his four signed poems, Cynewulf depends strongly on Latin sources but diverges from them frequently, expanding on his material to provide exegetical insight into scripture, examine theological problems, develop unique personae, and celebrate his Germanic cultural milieu. In recent years, his poetry has received significant attention for the fearless speech and conduct of his saintly heroines, Elene (Helen), the mother of the emperor Constantine, and Juliana, a virgin martyr, both of whom lived in the fourth century ce. Cynewulf has also received significant recent critical attention for his complex portrayal of Jews and Judaism; see Representations of Jews in Elene. For discussion of relevant historical and literary contexts, see the separate Oxford Bibliographies articles “Pre-Conquest England,” “English Prosody,” and “Old English Religious Poetry.”