Table of Contents
Selected Poems of Tennyson
Tithonus
By Alfred, Lord Tennyson
The vapours weep their burthen to the ground,
Man comes and tills the field and lies beneath,
And after many a summer dies the swan.
Me only cruel immortality
Consumes: I wither slowly in thine arms,
Here at the quiet limit of the world,
A white-hair'd shadow roaming like a dream
The ever-silent spaces of the East,
Far-folded mists, and gleaming halls of morn.
So glorious in his beauty and thy choice,
Who madest him thy chosen, that he seem'd
To his great heart none other than a God!
I ask'd thee, 'Give me immortality.'
Then didst thou grant mine asking with a smile,
Like wealthy men, who care not how they give.
But thy strong Hours indignant work'd their wills,
And beat me down and marr'd and wasted me,
And tho' they could not end me, left me maim'd
To dwell in presence of immortal youth,
Immortal age beside immortal youth,
And all I was, in ashes. Can thy love,
Thy beauty, make amends, tho' even now,
Close over us, the silver star, thy guide,
Shines in those tremulous eyes that fill with tears
To hear me? Let me go: take back thy gift:
Why should a man desire in any way
To vary from the kindly race of men
Or pass beyond the goal of ordinance
Where all should pause, as is most meet for all?
A glimpse of that dark world where I was born.
Once more the old mysterious glimmer steals
From thy pure brows, and from thy shoulders pure,
And bosom beating with a heart renew'd.
Thy cheek begins to redden thro' the gloom,
Thy sweet eyes brighten slowly close to mine,
Ere yet they blind the stars, and the wild team
Which love thee, yearning for thy yoke, arise,
And shake the darkness from their loosen'd manes,
And beat the twilight into flakes of fire.
In silence, then before thine answer given
Departest, and thy tears are on my cheek.
And make me tremble lest a saying learnt,
In days far-off, on that dark earth, be true?
'The Gods themselves cannot recall their gifts.'
In days far-off, and with what other eyes
I used to watch—if I be he that watch'd—
The lucid outline forming round thee; saw
The dim curls kindle into sunny rings;
Changed with thy mystic change, and felt my blood
Glow with the glow that slowly crimson'd all
Thy presence and thy portals, while I lay,
Mouth, forehead, eyelids, growing dewy-warm
With kisses balmier than half-opening buds
Of April, and could hear the lips that kiss'd
Whispering I knew not what of wild and sweet,
Like that strange song I heard Apollo sing,
While Ilion like a mist rose into towers.
How can my nature longer mix with thine?
Coldly thy rosy shadows bathe me, cold
Are all thy lights, and cold my wrinkled feet
Upon thy glimmering thresholds, when the steam
Floats up from those dim fields about the homes
Of happy men that have the power to die,
And grassy barrows of the happier dead.
Release me, and restore me to the ground;
Thou seÃĢst all things, thou wilt see my grave:
Thou wilt renew thy beauty morn by morn;
I earth in earth forget these empty courts,
And thee returning on thy silver wheels.
Questions with Answers
Q-1. Write an essay on the elegiac note in Tennyson's poetry with reference to the poems you have read. [35th BCS]
Or,
Expand the note of melancholia that pervades Tennyson's "Tithonus" and "The Lotos Eaters" [34th BCS]
Answer
The Elegiac Note in Tennyson's Poetry
Alfred Lord Tennyson, the Victorian poet laureate, is renowned for his deeply elegiac tone, reflecting a blend of personal grief and universal human suffering. His poetry embodies a profound exploration of loss, mortality, and the quest for meaning, often through classical and mythological themes. In selected works like Tithonus, The Lotos-Eaters, Ulysses, and In Memoriam, Tennyson’s elegiac strain captures the essence of existential anguish and the inevitable passage of time.
Tithonus: A Cry Against Immortality
In Tithonus, Tennyson addresses the curse of immortality, which becomes a lamentation rather than a blessing. The titular character, who is granted eternal life without eternal youth, suffers an endless existence of decay. The poem’s elegiac tone emerges through vivid imagery of deterioration:
"The woods decay, the woods decay and fall..."
The cyclical decay of nature mirrors Tithonus’ endless suffering. His yearning for death encapsulates the poet’s meditation on the futility of resisting nature's laws. Tennyson’s exploration of immortality highlights the paradox of human desire—longing for eternal life yet dreading its consequences, an elegy for the natural balance disrupted.
The Lotos-Eaters: A Dream of Escape
The elegiac tone in The Lotos-Eaters lies in the sailors’ renunciation of their heroic endeavors. Exhausted by endless toil, they succumb to the lethargy induced by the magical lotus, expressing a mournful rejection of life’s struggles:
"Why should we only toil, the roof and crown of things?"
Through their lamentation, Tennyson delves into the existential fatigue and desire for oblivion. The poem’s hypnotic rhythm and sensuous imagery reinforce the theme of escapism, but the sailors’ choice also serves as an elegy to lost purpose and human ambition. Their withdrawal from action reflects a somber meditation on the tension between duty and the desire for rest.
Ulysses: A Defiance of Time and Death
While Ulysses celebrates human resilience, it carries an undercurrent of elegy. The aged hero laments the loss of his youthful vigor and the heroic life he once led:
"Yet all experience is an arch wherethrough / Gleams that untravel'd world..."
The poem’s reflective tone underscores the inevitability of death and the fleeting nature of glory. Ulysses’ resolve to "strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield" transforms his lament into a defiant elegy. Tennyson portrays the tension between resignation and perseverance, crafting a tribute to the human spirit's refusal to succumb to despair.
In Memoriam: A Monument to Grief
The most poignant expression of Tennyson’s elegiac sensibility is found in In Memoriam, written as a tribute to his close friend Arthur Hallam. The sequence of poems is a profound meditation on loss, love, and faith, exploring the tension between personal sorrow and the search for divine meaning. The opening lines set the tone of universal grief:
"I hold it true, whate'er befall; / I feel it, when I sorrow most..."
Tennyson’s grief evolves through the poem, from despair to a tentative reconciliation with faith and hope. The elegiac tone is balanced by the poet’s exploration of nature, eternity, and the soul’s immortality. The poem’s structure, marked by regular quatrains, reinforces the rhythmic inevitability of mourning and healing, making it one of the greatest elegies in English literature.
Conclusion
Tennyson’s elegiac note is a hallmark of his poetic oeuvre, reflecting the Victorian age's anxieties about mortality, faith, and progress. Through Tithonus, The Lotos-Eaters, Ulysses, and In Memoriam, he grapples with the transient nature of life and the enduring human spirit. His work resonates universally, offering solace in shared grief and inspiring courage in the face of inevitable loss. Tennyson transforms personal sorrow into a profound exploration of the human condition, solidifying his legacy as a master of elegy.