Symmetry And Balance In Cynewulf And Cyneheard

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þa oþ he ofslog þone aldormon þe him lengest wunode. Ond hiene þa Cynewulf on Andred adræfde; one he þær wunade oþþæt hiene an swan ofstang æt Pfyfetesflodan; ond he wræc þone aldormon Cumbran.

Here in this year Cynewulf deprived Sigebryht of his kingdom for unrighteous deeds, except for Hamshire; and he retained that until he killed the aldorman who had been with him the longest. And then Cynewulf drove him into the Weald, and Sigebryht lived there until a swineheard killed him at the river Privett; and he avenged the aldorman Cumbra.

In this passage we see that even a swineheard, who may have had very little direct contact with the aldorman Cumbra, chooses to avenge his leader’s death by killing Sigebryht, his murderer. The implication is that the code of heroism extended farther than the class of warrior men. Even unimportant men such as swineheards, may have felt an obligation to serve their lord. Whether or not many of the less influencial Anglo-Saxon males truly felt this way, the actions of the swineheard suggest that the heroic code of conduct deemed they should.
The code of heroism often included revenge killing, as “the requirements of vengeance and loyalty to family and to group were powerful forces in Anglo-Saxon society, and royal law-codes both recognized and sought to control them.” The inclusion of the narrative of Cynewulf and Cyneheard in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle suggests that this warrior type of behavior was encouraged. This narrative, one of the longest entries in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, is a clear indication that it’s themes are of notable importance to those in power. Katherine O’Brien O’Keefe argues in her essay, “Heroic values and Christian ethics”

That it would seem to be a textbook illustration of the themes of heroic conduct found in secular poetry should not be surprising. The appearance of these themes through Old English literature demonstrates the...