Tennyson's "Ulysses": quest for knowledge and confronting mortality in old age

Ulysses has experienced his share of adventures and journeys however he is still not at peace with himself. Because of his perseverance in the quest for knowledge, he wants to continue his quest for knowledge even in old age

Summary and the main themes that are present in the poem

Brief Summary of the poem

Death- The author relates hope, quest for knowledge with that of old age and coming of death.

Time- This theme is brought out in the aging of Ulysses and how with age, everyone's skill and function begins to decline.

Setting and mood bring out the essence of the poem

The setting is indicative of the idleness and frustration that is being experienced by the author.

The author's mood starts off in a frustrated tone but becomes contemplative both negatively and positively throughout the poem.

Literary Devices used and Tone of Poem

A. The author makes use of metaphors throughout the poem to bring about the theme of perseverance and quest for knowledge.

B. The overall tone is representative of the thesis mentioned earlier in the paper.

In this poem, Tennyson writes about the Ulysses who is now old and has experienced all the adventures of the battle at Troy and throughout his Odyssey. Throughout the poem, Ulysses talks about this urge to continue his adventures to satisfy his inquisitiveness. He does not care how famous or respected he gets by the people he is ruling because his main desire is to seek "something more."

Ulysses seems to address many different groups of people in this poem, however throughout all the parts his major emphasis is on the quest for knowledge. It has been said that the main point here is that Ulysses is wants to understand life beyond death. Ulysses main goal is not death but is to find the life in death. He wants to dive deep into the spiritual reality that he might confront right after death.

Keeping this in mind, the mood of poem starts off from being inspirational to inquisitive to depressing in the end. The end of the poem also brings about hope and inspires the reader to continue their search for knowledge and not be focused on yield or the gain. The author states that major benefit and richness is attained from the experience of the journey and not just the destination itself.

Themes of the poem

Death

The theme of death is present in this poem by Tennyson as he talks about an old hero reminiscing all he has done in his life. Even though in the start of the poem, death is not a prominent poem, the story line leads to that in the end. The hero goes through all that he has achieved and all that he wants to achieve later on. In talking about his future, he also talks about the old hero searching life and in doing so coming to his death.

Time

Along with death, another major theme prominent in this poem is that of time. Just like many of this other words, "Ulysses" also talks about the implications of time. His emphasis on the fact that with time many things fade away and therefore everyone should make use of the time that they have got. In the poem, Ulysses mentions and refers to himself like a sword that should be used or else it would have rust on it (Rowlinson, 1994) This therefor shows that with time, every knowledge and skill does decrease. Therefore, if someone has the ability to work or have the quest for knowledge, they should work on that.

Mood

The mood of the poem is quite contemplative. Throughout the poem, Ulysses is remembering and going through all the experiences he has gone though in the past. He is going over what has happened and how he feels about that. In doing so, he mentions the events that he has enjoyed and the ones that he has suffered. Therefore, the mood is not entirely happy and nor it is depressing. The mood is over all balanced and ends on a depressing and inspirational note. In other words, the author is trying to emphasis on how everyone has to attain death therefore they should make most of the time that they have.

Literary devices used

Metaphor is one of the major literary devices that the author has used throughout the poem. These literary devices help in setting the majestic and inspirational setting that is required for the poem. In line 19 of the poem, the author talks about his experiences like that of an arch. Furthermore, he talks about drinking life to the lees. Here, the author is trying to emphasis that he cannot rest and he will make the most of life that he can. A similar connotation is present when the author writes "roaming with a hungry heart." This basically refers to the knowledge thirsty heart and the mind that one should have. Another point where metaphor is used is in line 55, where the author states that "the slow moon climbs." This also relates to the idle mood that the author feels now as there is no adventure or journey present.

Overall attitude of the narrator

Keeping this in mind, the overall tone of the poem is sharing, inspirational and educational. Ulysses contemplates the events in his life and gives his opinion about them. He appreciates what he has done but he keeps on the repeating the need for more adventures and more journeys. The narrator is overall friendly and clear as he goes over his past experiences but he also gives his negative opinions about the laziness that is prevalent in the people around him. The tone at the end of the poem is both inspirational and depressing because even though the author brings up death, he also talk about hope and the courage to do more in the time that is left. In the last part of the poem, the author states "o strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." This summarizes the main point of poem that everyone should work to seek and find not only the treasure but benefit from the adventure and the journey. Therefore, the overall attitude is inspirational, friendly and contemplative at the same time.