“Ulysses” by Alfred Lord Tennyson Essay Example

idleness and his aged wife. In the lines 22-23 he talks of an item made of steel that has not been used, and may son rust and lose its luster. He brought out the unused energy in him that he needs to get rid of by engaging in some useful activities. In the lines 24-25 he shows his lack of content and insists that even if he was out of the Ithaca, he would still yearn for more as long as he has breath.

Perseverance was another theme in the poem. Ulysses never gives up; when he sets himself to do something, he has to do it. In the lines 6-7 he says that he cannot rest, he will keep moving on despite his challenges. He will keep drinking until there’s nothing more to drink. In the lines 58-61 he sacrifices every decent thing he has on the island for his dream of sailing far and wide.

Ulysses’ high ambitions in life are as a result of his death approaching. He wants to leave a legacy after his death. In the lines 19-21 he moves in order to lengthen the distance between him and his death. In the lines 22-24 he talks of one being figuratively dead if they have breath and they cannot do something to make themselves shine. In the lines 59-60 he wants to keep sailing until he dies; he will either die when he gets to the climax of his voyage or die before getting there. In the lines 62-64 he appreciates the fact that he will have to die and go to the heavens where happiness is abundant. Tennyson brings out

the theme of mortality remarkably well.

Old age has caused Ulysses to smell his death and that is why he wants to enjoy himself before he finally passes away. In the line 3 he mentions his aged wife, who he considered as boring company; yet we expect them to be around the same age, but he makes his wife look older than him. In the lines 49-50 Ulysses knows that the elderly should be accorded respect and that elderly have things to attend to,, but he choses traveling over the other activities. In the lines 55-56 he is in the twilight of his life because both darkness and light can be seen. This is similar to old age since one is neither dead nor a youth. In the lines 65-67 the change of might is associated with old age, where one’s strength is no longer the same as it was in his youthful days.

Exploration is another theme in this poem. Even after traveling for a long time, Ulysses wants to travel further and make new discoveries. In the lines 12-14 he likens himself to a predator that is always in the move in search of something new. In the lines 19-21 he wants to travel to the lands, where no one else has been before. In the lines 24-25 he says that one lifetime is not enough for him to travel to the places he wants to go to before his death. Lines’ 26-29 express the following idea: keep exploring if you have breath.

The setting of the poem is symbolic. It starts in the palace and then changes to the port. This shows

that the pleasures in the palace were not enough to make the king happy and he had to look for that happiness somewhere else.

The title of the poem is relevant as Ulysses was a mythical Greek king, who fought in the Trojan War and conquered all his enemies despite the challenges. Tennyson’s poem brings out Ulysses as a man, who is ready to fight in order to attain his goals.

Tennyson’s tribulations have been illustrated in this poem. We should not let shortcomings deter us from achieving our goals. On the contrary, we need to be focused and only stop when there is nothing else that can be done. This poem is an encouragement to the readers to pursue their goals in life fearlessly.