8 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD ‘And his fame at last may live with the angels For ever and ever, in the joy of life eternal 60 Amongst the heavenly host. Days of great glory In the kingdom of earth are gone forever: Kings and emperors and gold-giving lords Are no longer as they used to be— 285 Once they wrought deeds of greatest renown, Lived in most lordly spendour; Such excellence proved ephemeral, those joys have passed away; ‘Weaklings thrive and hold sway in the world, Enjoy it only through their own labours; all honour is laid low; 90 ‘The earth's flower ages and withers ‘As now does every man throughout this middle-world® Old age grasps his hand, his face grows pale, Grey-haired he mourns; he knows that his former friends, The sons of princes, have been placed in the earth a5. Then, when he dies, his lifeless body Cannot taste sweetness, feel the sharpness of pain, fia hand or be lost in reveries of the mind, ‘Though a brother may bury his kinsman Amongst the dead, strew his grave with gold 00 And the many treasures he wished to take with him, ‘The shining gold which a man stores on earth Is of no assistance to his sinful soul Confronted at the last by God's wrath. Great is the fear of God; through Him the world turns. 105. He created the mighty plains, ‘The face of the earth and the sky above, Foolish is he who fears not his Lord: death will find him unprepared. Blessed is the humble man: he will find mercy in Heaven, God gave man a soul to have faith in His great strength. ‘rmiddle-wordd—the world, which was Fought af as the center ofthe universe between the upper and the lower regions QUESTIONS 1. What hardships of the sea does the narrator relate? 2. What attractive power does the sea have on the seafarer? 3. How does the speaker emphasize the transitory nature of earthly things? 4, What Christian elements are emphasized? 5. What concept of fame or glory is presented? 6. Give examples of particularly descriptive words and phrases.