""
is about a once great warrior trying to come to terms with being an older, less active king.
Although this is a poem about Ulysses refusing to accept a more passive lifestyle as an older
man, the poem can easily be read more generally as anfor making the most of your time, facing
obstacles, and refusing to rest on your laurels.
In the first part of the
poem, Ulysses expresses his boredom with his slow-paced life. Then, he reminisces about his
adventures and knows that his son is more apt for this type of life. Ulysses needs
adventure.
From line 44 until the end is basically a motivational speech.
This entire final section is filled with encouraging lines. The final part of the poem/speech is
the most rousing:
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and
tho'We are not now that strength which in old days
Mov'd
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. (65-70)
This
section can be applied to one individual although, in a modern context, it does sound more like
a speech given by a coach to a team or by a sergeant to his/her soldiers.
Some critics have noted that this is a poem about Ulysses being selfish. He doesn't
want to sit at home and be with his family. He only wants adventure, for the experience but also
for the accolades.
Other interpretations consider the poem as a message of
battling through life's hardships to have richer experiences and not to give up. Those hardships
and obstacles are described literally and metaphorically in this poem as the forces of nature.
These include the seas ("It may be that gulfs wash us down"), weather ("That ever
with a frolic welcome took / The thunder and the sunshine"), and time ('Tis not too late to
seek a newer world").
Thinking of time, this poem is basically saying
"it's not too late; we can still succeed."
No comments:
Post a Comment