“Uly
sse
s”
Written By Alfred Lord
Tennyson
The Poet
Lord Alfred Tennyson was born in England (in 1809) where he published his
first work “Poems, By Two Brothers” in 1827. He studied at Trinity College
within the University of Cambridge and was awarded The Chancellor’s
Medal for one of his first pieces, “Timbuktu”. Tennyson published his first
solo collection of poems in 1830, called “Poems Chiefly Lyrical”. He gained
popularity with such works as “Mariana” and “Claribel” which brought him
to the attention of many esteemed writers due to his unique style paired
with the sentiment of the topics he covered in his works. Many of his most
notable works were based on classical mythological themes and written in
blank verse, a style of regular metric and unrhymed lines. Such works
include “Idylls of the King”, “Tithonus”, and “Ulysses”. “Ulysses” was
composed in the first few weeks after Tennyson learned about the death of
The Poem
It little profits that an idle king,
By this still hearth, among these barren crags,
Match'd with an aged wife, I mete and dole
Unequal laws unto a savage race,
That hoard, and sleep, and feed, and know not me.
I cannot rest from travel: I will drink
Life to the lee:s All times I have enjoy'd
Greatly, have suffer'd greatly, both with those
That loved me, and alone, on shore, and when
Thro' scudding drifts the rainy Hyades
Vext the dim sea: I am become a name;
For always roaming with a hungry heart
Much have I seen and known; cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honour'd of them all;
And drunk delight of battle with my peers,
Far on the ringing plains of windy Troy.
I am a part of all that I have met;
Yet all experience is an arch wherethro'
Gleams that untravell'd world whose margin fades
For ever and forever when I move.
How dull it is to pause, to make an end,
To rust unburnish'd, not to shine in use!
As tho' to breathe were life! Life piled on life
Were all too little, and of one to me
Little remains: but every hour is saved
From that eternal silence, something more,
A bringer of new things; and vile it were
For some three suns to store and hoard myself,
And this gray spirit yearning in desire
To follow knowledge like a sinking star,
Beyond the utmost bound of human thought.
This is my son, mine own Telemachus,
To whom I leave the sceptre and the isle,—
Well-loved of me, discerning to fulfil
This labour, by slow prudence to make mild
A rugged people, and thro' soft degrees
Subdue them to the useful and the good.
Most blameless is he, centred in the sphere
Of common duties, decent not to fail
In offices of tenderness, and pay
Meet adoration to my household gods,
When I am gone. He works his work, I mine.
There lies the port; the vessel puffs her sail:
There gloom the dark, broad seas. My mariners,
Souls that have toil'd, and wrought, and thought with me—
That ever with a frolic welcome took
The thunder and the sunshine, and opposed
Free hearts, free foreheads—you and I are old;
Old age hath yet his honour and his toil;
Death closes all: but something ere the end,
Some work of noble note, may yet be done,
Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods.
The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks:
The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep
Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends,
'T is not too late to seek a newer world.
Push off, and sitting well in order smite
The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds
To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths
Of all the western stars, until I die.
It may be that the gulfs will wash us down:
It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles,
And see the great Achilles, whom we knew.
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Terms
Mete: Allot or measure out; usually refers to justice or harsh treatment
Lees: The sediment at the bottom of a bottle of wine; the last drop
Scudding Drifts: Rain Showers at Sea
Hyades: a group of stars in the constellation Taurus; often associated with rain
Sceptre: Ceremonial Staff symbolizing authority
Happy Isles: Refers to the Isles of the Blessed; a place Greek heroes would go when
Ulysses
TPFASTT
The poem
U
lysses
is a dramatic monologue written in blank verse about the life and spirit of Ulysses. Ulysses, a king, finds that he
cannot live life to the fullest staying in one place and grow old, but rather finds the thrill of life in exploring and discovering new
experiences. He battles with what is expected of his old age and challenges himself to live the rest of his days sailing the seas for more
experiences and thrills unknown. In the poem, Ulysses describes his stagnant, aging life to that of a weapon. “How dull it is to pause, to
make an end, To rust unburnish’d, not to shine in use!” Just as a weapon “rusts” when not used, Ulysses feels his spirit diminishing as he
stays in one place. He implies that in order “to shine”, one must explore and look past their “dull” old age. The narrator’s inspirational tone
in the poem places the reader in a position to empathize with his longing to find a sense of fulfilment in his life once again. Rather than to
let the course of human aging veer him from living the thrills of life, he voices an impassioned monologue that rouses a sense of duty to the
self and what you owe to your own life in terms of living. The poem’s direction starts off with Ulysses talking about his sentiments on old
age along with the values of adventure, then to his son who will inherit his status as king as he plans to sail to live his life, and ends with him
looking towards the ships, once again preparing to sail for his life’s meaning. Rather than being the name of a man, the poem symbolizes
U
lysses
as a free-spirit, a monument to all those who seek to grasp what is beyond their own knowledge in order to lessen the gap between
them and the unknown. Ultimately, the poem relays to us that going through life with a sense of familiarity and being comfortable
Questions
-What is literally occurring in the poem?
-How does the poem’s enjambed lines add to
U
lysses
’s expression of “
To sail
beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. “?
-What is the importance of the last line, “To strive, to seek, to find and not to
yield.”? What does it say about Ulysses and his men?
-What is the purpose of dividing the poem into four paragraph-like parts? Where
are the shifts?
-Does Ulysses seem at peace with death at hand or is there anything left undone
in his life?
BJ’s Analysis
Despite being a king, Ulysses finds life empty and useless without a sense of
direction or path. To find a sense of purpose, Ulysses must go on an adventure as he
states, “I will drink life to the lees.” In other words, his feelings of ecstasy come from
the thrill of an adventure. In this poem, he reveals that he is close to death, although
he refuses to “Rust unburnish’d.” Tennyson then shifts to Ulysses talking about his
son and how he must carry out his duty to “subdue” “A rugged people.” Ulysses will
soon be gone and and his son will carry his legacy. His work shall be his own. While
Ulysses desires to go on adventures, he looks out for the people he leaves behind
including those close to him. He concludes his poem saying that although time and
fate have made him weak, he remains strong by his will and compares him and his
Analysis- Nick
The poem begins with Ulysses speaking about how the little impact that a king has when just sitting around a fire with his wife
while making laws for the “savage race” which he allots rewards and punishments to, unequally. His subjects are presented as barbarians
that do not know him and serve the purpose of eating and sleeping. After presenting this opening addressing morals, Alfred Lord
Tennyson chooses to take a shift and let Ulysses describe more about his restless spirit that does not want to waste a minute of life. Being
adventurous, he seeks to explore the oceans and live life to the fullest (“drink life to the lees”). Now although he is adventurous, he still
depicts the rough times that he has experienced both with and without those closest to him. No matter whether on dry land or in
destructive storms, there have been both good and bad times. Next Ulysses goes more into the good times; of becoming more known
around the world by roaming and being honored everywhere he goes. He still describes that his desire to explore as many places as he can
and take in as many experiences as he can. Another part of going everywhere for Ulysses was leaving a part of him everywhere he went,
meaning that he fully was not belonging in Ithaca. Throughout many of the lines in the poem, Ulysses continues to describe his need for
adventure, basically reiterating that if he were not a soldier, he would simply be rusting like an unused instrument. For Ulysses life is more
than just going through it naturally, it’s about adventure for him. In line 30, Ulysses references himself as an old spirit, shifting to the idea
that he is near the end of his days. “
To
fo
llo
w
k
no
w
ledg
e l
ik
e a si
nk
ing
st
ar,
”
So as Ulysses comes to his end, he chases knowledge that is
slowly disappearing or he himself is “sinking” as he gets closer and closer to his death. Ulysses then introduces his son who is the “rightful”
to person to civilize the untamed people of Ithaca. He leaves all that he has with his son to carry on his legacy. Ulysses then shifts to the
port of Ithaca where he describes a ship preparing to set sail while also describing the responsibilities and hardships of the elders.
Although Ulysses knows that death is near, he still believes that he can do things comparable to men who fought in the Trojan War in the
little time he has left. He wants to carry on a legacy after his death; something to be proud of. For Ulysses, he legitimately believed that it
was never too late to explore new lands. In the end, Ulysses describes him and his sailmates saying they are all one and are strong together
Analysis: Jade
In the poem
U
lysses
by Lord Tennyson, his use of enjambment being incorporated
into the structure help to convey the message of
U
lysses
’s passion of looking beyond
and past the world’s margin. It adds a sense of unbounded adventure to the whole
work and even goes as far to mirror
U
lysses
’s passion. Seeing the whole poem as a
monologue, we get to understand that
U
lysses
is not content with the stagnant
normalcy of being king and his unbridled passion to once again set out for an
adventure. The allusion to Achilles and the place to where he was taken after death
could also signify
U
lysses
’s desire must go beyond the tangible. What the world has
to offer may not satisfy him and so his spirit, after the event of his death, will most
likely still crave the feeling of living (ironically) from more yet to be discovered
experiences. Overall, the poem explores the truth that being settled prevents an
“Me
rlin
An
d
Viv
ie
n”
Written By Alfred Lord
Merlin and Vivien
TPFASTT
Merl
in and V
ivi
en
is a poem telling of a time between Merlin, a great magician,
and Vivien, one considered a harlot. The speaker of the poem is Merlin, who is
trying to convince Merlin to teach her a charm. She goes from speaking about love
and faith, how they interact and collide with one another, then shifts to how the root
of love is evil. In the poem, Vivien uses Merlin’s loneliness to get what she wants. By
convincing him that she can give him what she wants, he puts his trust in her. With
her final line, “Trust me not at all or all in all” she forces Merlin to make a decision in
which he is at a loss. The thought of missing out on something with Vivien compels
Questions
-How does Vivien use love as weapon against Merlin to get what she wants?
-How does the lute’s silence and the moldy seed in the fruit play into the Viviens
intents towards Merlin?
-What does this poem say about love and attachment to others?
-What is different about the message of this poem as opposed to “Ulysses”?
What were the purposes of using mythology to present an idea in the poems?
-In what ways does this poem connect to “Ulysses?”
Analysis: Jade
In “Merlin and Vivien”, through Vivien’s use of manipulative rhetoric she convinces
Merlin to hand over the charm that ends up resulting in his own tragic demise. She
plays at Merlin’s loneliness and jeers at him with several quips about love in order to
lower his guard. Through the repetition of love, Vivien aims to attack Merlin’s
loneliness and absence of a lover. She also attacks his certainty of her evil ploys by
making love a general evil, like a fruit “rotting inward”. She finally pushes Merlin
through an ultimatum, forcing him to choose in the moment: “ ...trust me not at all or
Analysis-Nick
“Merlin and Vivien” portrays Vivien to be manipulative and pure evil as she
leads Merlin to his own self-destruction. The idea of the whole poem is not to love
single maidens at all, because remaining a virgin is more fitting for a knight. Lord
Alfred Tennyson is addressing multiple issues at the time period as he presents the
idea that love is like a pitted fruit that is rotting from within. In the end, he questions
whether it is worth keeping, whether his partner would want him to keep it. The
tone of the entire poem is subtly dark and depressing. The meaning is hidden
beneath many layers of diction much like how darkness was hidden deep at the root
BJ Analysis
In this poem, Vivien is the speaker in which she is trying to deceive Merlin, a
sage and helper to King Arthur. She starts off by using rhetoric that capitalizes on
Merlin’s loneliness. As Merlin tries to resist every attempt of Vivien’s deception, he
is unable to shake off the constant chatters and enticements of Vivien. The words of
Vivien take its place in Merlin as he is tricked into telling her the secret of the charm.
With this poem, Alfred Lord Tennyson uses mythology as a way to get his point
