ll. 44, 42a, and 48b are stamped on metal strips
attached to the BRUSSELS CROSS, an 11th-century pro-
cessional cross and reliquary.
The Dream of the Rood is a visio (Latin for dream),
though some consider it a DREAM VISION. It is notewor-
thy for its use of the rhetorical fi gure prosopopoeia, in
which an inanimate object (the Cross) is given voice.
The poem also displays a skillful use of juxtaposition,
paradox, and metaphor. The dreamer opens by
recounting a dream in which he sees a glorious cross in
the air, wound with beams of light. The dreamer imme-
diately introduces one of the many paradoxes which
are a feature of his poetic style: the Cross has fi ve jew-
els on the crossbar (recalling Christ’s fi ve wounds);
thus, it is not at all the gallows of a wicked person. The
phrase an angel of the Lord identifi es the Cross with
Christ. The victorious tree is glorious, but the narrator
is stained with sin. Even though the cross is decorated
with gold and gems, the dreamer is able to see through
to the former struggle of the sufferers (Christ and the
Cross); he sees the moisture on the right side (the
Water of Baptism and the Blood of the Eucharist,
which fl owed from Christ’s right side). As the dreamer
contemplates this vision, which oscillates between a
gloriously adorned object and the instrument of the
Crucifi xion, he hears the Cross speak (ll. 27–121).
The Cross opens with its own history (ll. 27–33).
Enemies cut it down at the edge of a wood and fash-
ioned it into something on which to punish criminals.
They carried it on their shoulders and set it up on a
hill. The Crucifi xion narrative follows (ll. 33–56). The
Cross sees Christ, as a warrior hero, hastening toward
it. The Cross as a good retainer wishes to protect his
Lord, but on this occasion it dares not disobey Christ’s
command. It could have cut down all the enemies, but
it stands fast. The young hero ascends the Cross, which
trembles at the touch but dares not bend to the ground.
People drive nails through the Cross and Christ, and
both are smeared with the blood from Christ’s side.
The world grows dark. The Lord sends forth his spirit.
All creation weeps. Christ is on the Cross.
The Cross sees people coming for the Prince, and it
bends down to assist the Deposition (removal of Christ’s
body). In the sight of the Cross, they prepare a tomb
and bewail Christ’s passing in a song of sorrow. The
corpse grows cold (ll. 57–69). People cut down the
Cross and its companions and bury them in a deep pit
where afterward friends will fi nd them and decorate
them in gold and silver (ll. 70–77).
The Cross now addresses the dreamer, “his dear
hero,” and in a set of three paradoxes, explains the
importance of the Cross for humanity, an importance
confi rmed by the Lord of Glory and his mother, Mary
(ll. 78–94). The poem, which identifi ed the Cross with
Christ, now makes a link with Mary (the Crucifi xion
and the Annunciation are both supposed to have taken
place on the same date).
Once again addressed as “my dear hero,” the dreamer
is exhorted to narrate this vision of the Cross: the Cru-
cifi xion, the Resurrection, and the Ascension. Christ
will return on the Day of Judgment to judge all accord-
ing to their merits (ll. 95–114), and the Cross ends its
narration with three points (ll. 115–21): The Day of
Judgment will cause fear; those who carry the Cross in
their hearts need not fear; the Cross shows the way to
the kingdom of heaven.
The response of the dreamer is prayer with elne
mycle (great strength), the same phrase used to describe
Christ approaching the Cross (l. 34), and the Cross as
it bows down for the Deposition. Like Christ in the
tomb (l. 69), he is with mœte weorode (a small troop,
i.e., alone) (l. 124). The dreamer will devote himself to
devout contemplation of the Cross. His daily hope is
that the Cross will come to fetch him and carry him
physically (as the Cross once carried Christ) into the
joys of heaven. The fi nal section of the poem is a prayer
(ll. 144–156) to his friend Christ affi rming the central
mysteries of the Christian faith—the Crucifi xion, Res-
urrection, and Ascension.
The Dream of the Road is especially noteworthy for
its identifi cation of Christ as a Germanic hero, like
Beowulf (see BEOWULF). Christ approaches the Cross
without fear, removes his own clothes, and ascends the
rood. He calls upon his COMITATUS to remember and
then rewards them with the gold of eternal life. Some
critics have examined the idea of “volunteerism” within
this poem: The Cross presents itself as a loyal retainer,
but it also takes Christ’s Passion upon itself, becoming
a surrogate. Others have seen it as related to the devel-
opment of the monastic tradition, as an invitation to150 DREAM OF THE ROOD, THE