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Introduction on the characters portrayed by Tennyson in Ulysses
Tennyson's Ulysses essay
Alfred lord tennyson ulysses analysis
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Ulysses by Arthur Lord Tennyson has been called one of the greatest poems in the English language. It has been cited as a key motivator to the English people when their country was going through tough times, and spurred them on to make it back on top. So what could this poem have said that was so profound? Actually, Tennyson didn’t say anything about the English people at all. He wrote the poem after the death of his friend Arthur Henry Hallam, which affected him deeply and changed the way he thought. To begin to understand this, Glenn Everett will provide a little background. “He and Tennyson knew each other only four years, but their intense friendship had major influence on the poet. On a visit to Somersby, Hallam met and later became engaged to Emily Tennyson, and the two friends looked forward to a life-long companionship. Hallam's death from illness in 1833 (he was only 22) shocked Tennyson profoundly, and his grief lead to most of his best poetry.” So knowing this, what is it that makes this poem so great? To answer this, we will need to know about the protagonist, Ulysses. We will examine Ulysses from Arthur Lord Tennyson’s poem Ulysses for his purpose, his feelings on age, and his attitude toward life in general.
Initially, Ulysses will be examined for his purpose in the poem Ulysses. What is it that Ulysses wants to accomplish? He has already completed all the events told of in The Odyssey, and is settled down in Ithica. What more could he want to do? According to Tennyson, it is this. “Push off, and siting 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. (Lines 58-61)” He is not accustomed to easy living. Ulysses is growing re...
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... sea of life which tosses us as we wrestle against it. There we find the thrill and the meaning of our lives as we battle without hope of ever finding a home. For Ulysses, the struggle was the meaning.”
Works Cited
Chaudhry, Disha. "Critical Analysis of 'Ulysses' by Alfred Lord Tennyson." : Critical Analysis of 'Ulysses' by Alfred Lord Tennyson. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
Everett, Glenn. "Alfred Lord Tennyson: A Brief Biography." Alfred Lord Tennyson: A Brief Biography. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2014.
Mantho, Marc. "Literary Analysis: Tennyson’s "Ulysses"" Mgmantho.files.wordpress.com. Wordpress, n.d. Web. 6 Apr. 2014.
Messerly, John G., PhD. "Tennyson: Ulysses and the Meaning of Life." The Meaning of Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
Rukhaya, M. K. "A Literary Analysis of "Ulysses" by Alfred Tennyson." Bright Hub Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
"John William Waterhouse's Ulysses and the Sirens." John William Waterhouse's Ulysses and the Sirens. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2014.
Heberle, Mark. "Contemporary Literary Criticism." O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. Vol. 74. New York, 2001. 312.
Both Oedipus and Ulysses believe that knowledge is the key to fulfilling or, in some cases, avoiding the purpose of their lives. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus discovers his destiny and flees from home making him feel as though he succeeded in keeping the prophecy from coming true. So that he “might never see cruel fulfilment of that oracle,” (ii.797-798) Oedipus never returns to Corinth, the place where his parents rule. By not returning home, Oedipus assumes this will ensure that the prophecy will not happen and he can protect his parents. This reveals his desire to do what is right and how he feels his decision is beneficial for not only his parents, but himself as well. The idea that one can improve themselves through knowledge is also exhibited by Ulysses. Ulysses will not be satisfied until he has gained more knowledge from his experiences. He longs “to follow knowledge like a sinking star, beyond the utmost bounds of human thought.” (31-32). Ulysses wants to become more knowledgeable. His desire is to travel and learn. This desire is emphasized when he says his purpose in life is “to sail beyond the sunset, and the baths of all of the western stars, until I die.” (59-61). This reveals his feelings towards adventures. He believes there is more to adventuring than just gaining experiences and learning. Even though Oedipus and Ulysses want knowledge
Ulysses, in The Odyssey, is the hero who has been trying to get home to his love, Penelope, and also his beloved country. He has found himself at war with many different gods and people, including Neptune, who is not yet ...
Part of the genius of this piece is that it is like an onion, with many layers, and can be interpreted on many different levels. At first, I despised the character of Troy Maxson. I could not feel sympathy for a man who had achieved a certain level of satisfaction and stability in a life of struggle, and then threw it all away.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Tucker, Herbert F. “Maud and the Doom of Culture.” Critical Essays on Alfred Lord Tennyson. Ed. Herbert F. Tucker. New York: G. K. Hall, 1993. 174-194.
Trilling, Lionel. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Trilling, Lionel. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Trilling, Lionel. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Sutton, Brian. "Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby." Explicator 59.1 (Fall 2000): 37-39. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Linda Pavlovski. Vol. 157. Detroit: Gale, 2005. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.
Sutton, Brian. "Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby." Explicator 59.1 (Fall 2000): 37-39. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Linda Pavlovski. Vol. 157. Detroit: Gale, 2005. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 15 Jan. 2014.
Blunden, Edmund and Heinemann, Eds. “Tennyson.” Selected Poems. London: Heinemann Educational Books, 1960. p.1. print.
of his life; his life being the ship on which he talks about the sail.
'Ulysses' is both a lament and an inspiring poem. Even modern readers who are not so familiar with the classics, can visualize the heroic legend of Ulysses, and so is not prepared for what he finds in the poem— not Ulysses the hero but Ulysses the man.
Homer's Odyssey depicts the life of a middle-aged, while Tennyson's "Ulysses" describes Ulysses as an old man. The character's role in his son's life shifts. With maturity, Telemachus does not require as much guidance from his father. However, time does not alter the caring fellowship the man has with his crew, nor the willpower that he possesses in achieving his goals.