“The wanderer” is a Poem conserved only in an anthology known as the “Exeter Book”, a manuscript dating from the late 10th century. It has 115 lines of alliterative verse. As happened normally in Anglo-Saxon verse, the composer and compiler are anonymous, and within the manuscript the poem is untitled.
The Wanderer conveys the meditations of a solitary man in exile who remember his past happiness as a member of his lord's band of retainers, but also meditates about his present adversities and suffering as well as the values of self-control and faith in the heavenly Lord.
There many ways in which one can sympathize with the character of wanderer, but the strongest connection can be made by the fact that we all have a glorious or more attractive past event to which we would like to go back to. Also, to the fact that sometimes the difficulties that we face give us no other option than to turn our prayers and needs to God seeking for his mercy and help.
