Designations for the Christian God in Old English Poetry
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Naming the Divine: Designations for the Christian God in Old English Poetry (2 Volumes) Volume 1 Carolin Maud Esser Centre for Medieval Studies University of York PhD October 2006 Abstract This thesis studies designations for the Christian God as part of Old English poetic diction. Cynewulf knew that for mankind, the name of the Redeemer is inexpressible and unfathomable.1 A name – for Cynewulf – expresses the quality of that which is named. In the case of God, that quality transcends our understanding and the true name therefore cannot be known. However, the Christian God can be comprehended through his manifestations in this world and thus potentially bears all names. Designations for God in Old English poetry inhabit a position at the meeting point of Christian theological thought and Old English poetic diction. This thesis analyses the usage of these designations. The analysis is approached from different perspectives within three case studies. The first study is an analysis of the field of rulership/authority among the designations. It is primarily based upon the findings of my database of designations for God in Old English poetry. The following chapter examines the theme of the fall of the angels in the accounts of Genesis A, Genesis B, and Christ and Satan and explores how such a theme influences the choice of designations for God. Close readings, with special consideration of doctrinal and poetic context, form an increasingly important part of the methodology of this and the final case study. The third study concentrates on the Advent Lyrics in order to investigate the designations within the immediate context of the poem itself. I conclude that the designations for God are by no means alliterative fillers, but both tools for a sophisticated poetic style and worthy subjects of poetic endeavour. This study therefore offers new perspectives on how these designations function as prominent structural elements and as versatile and innovative vehicles of theological and cultural traditions in Old English poetry. 1 Elene l. 465. ii Table of Contents Volume 1 Lists of Illustrations, Tables and Figures........................................................................v Acknowledgements........................................................................................................vi Author’s Declaration.....................................................................................................vii 1. Introduction................................................................................................................ 1 1.1. Designations for God: Some Thoughts towards a Definition........................... 4 1.2. Aim of the thesis..............................................................................................14 2. Language and Literature as Carriers of (Christian) Meaning................................... 20 2.1. The Christian Tradition................................................................................... 20 2.1.1. The ‘Romanisation’ of Christianity........................................................ 23 2.1.2. Christianizing Anglo-Saxon England..................................................... 25 2.1.3. Christian Doctrine and Old English Poetry............................................ 28 2.2. Old English Poetic Diction as Means to Generate Meaning........................... 36 2.2.1. Old English Poetry and the Formula...................................................... 37 2.2.2. Some Thoughts on the Nature of the Formula in Old English Poetry....40 2.2.3. Juxtapositions, Variations, and Appositions.......................................... 45 2.2.4. Nominal Compounds.............................................................................. 48 2.3. The Study of Designations for God in Old English Poetry............................. 50 2.3.1. Existing Studies of the Field...................................................................53 2.3.2. The Scope of the Thesis......................................................................... 56 3. Be heofonlicum Cyninge: The Lord and King of Heaven........................................ 58 3.1. The Authority of God: On the Field of Divine Rulership and Authority........ 60 3.1.1. Central Terms Expressing Rulership and Authority.............................. 62 3.2. Cyning............................................................................................................. 84 3.2.1. Heaven-King...........................................................................................96 3.3. Conclusion..................................................................................................... 104 4. Defining the Divine through the Other: Naming God and Satan........................... 107 4.1. Introduction of Theme of Conflict between God and Satan..........................110 4.1.1. The Other.............................................................................................. 110 4.1.2. The Fall of the Angels.......................................................................... 115 4.2. Analysis: Genesis A....................................................................................... 123 4.3. Analysis: Genesis B....................................................................................... 135 4.4. Analysis: Christ and Satan.............................................................................147 4.5. Conclusion..................................................................................................... 162 5. Calling upon the Name of God: The Advent Lyrics............................................... 166 5.1. Lyric I: O Rex Gentium................................................................................. 170 5.2. Lyric II: O Clavis David................................................................................ 179 5.3. Lyric V: O Oriens..........................................................................................189 5.4. Lyric VI: O Emmanuel.................................................................................. 198 5.5. Lyric VIII: O Rex Pacifice............................................................................ 209 5.6. Lyric X: O Coelorum Domine....................................................................... 222 5.7. Conclusion..................................................................................................... 224 6. Conclusion: Beyond the Supermodels....................................................................227 iii Volume 2 Appendix A: Designations for God............................................................................ 239 Appendix B: Lord and King of Heaven.................................................................... 247 Appendix C: Defining God through the Other........................................................... 267 Appendix D: Calling upon the Name of God............................................................. 298 Definitions and Abbreviations....................................................................................305 Bibliography............................................................................................................... 307 Glossary...................................................................................................................... 319 iv List of Illustrations Appendix: 1. MS Junius 11, p. 6 (selection) 276 2. MS Junius 11, p. 2 (selection) 276 3. MS Junius 11, p.3 277 4. MS Junius 11, p. 16 278 5. MS Junius 11, p. 16 (detail) 278 6. MS Junius 11, p. 17 279 7. MS Junius 11, p. 7 (selection) 279 List of Tables 1. Table 1: Frequency Rulership / Authority 62 Appendix: 1. Rulership / Auth Central Terms and Extensions in Poetry 247 2. [Cyning] + Extensions 250 3. Occurrences of [heaven] + [king] 251 4. Features – Individual Designations 252 5. Central Terms for God in the Junius 11 Passages 267 6. Designations within the Fall of the Angel Sections of MS Junius 11 268 Lists 1. Designations for God: Central Terms (with extending terms) 239 2. Designations for God: Extensions (with central terms) 243 List of Figures 1. Set Model, Designations for God 228 Appendix: 1. Hierarchy of the Wordfield [Rulership / Authority] 249 2. Repetition of Epithets in Genesis B, ll. 256-300 275 v Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisors Mary Garrison and Elizabeth Tyler for their generosity in sharing knowledge and advice, their support, both academically and in general, and for their encouragement in finding my own voice. I am also very grateful to Charles D. Wright for many inspiring talks and his enthusiasm during my research visit to Illinois. I am indebted to the WUN (Worldwide Universities Network) for funding my research exchange to the University of Illinois, U-C, and to the Lynne Grundy Foundation for supporting my work on chapter four and two conference papers for the International Congresses in Leeds and Kalamazoo. I would also like to thank Wilhelm Busse and Joachim Utz who led me here and many members of the scholarly community for their support for those at the beginning - George H. Brown, Bill East, Stephen Glosecky, Ed Haymes, and William Schipper, to name but few. Furthermore, I would like to thank Bernard Muir for kindly allowing me to use extensive extracts of text and images from his editions of the Exeter Book and MS Junius 11. Thank you also to Hannah Burrows, John Clay, Alice Jorgensen, Shannon Lewis- Simpson, Regina Longjaloux, Christine Phillips, Mike Tyler, the Lords