The second stanza begins with poet anticipating a “revelation”(9). He is expecting the “Second Coming”(10) but not the one of Christ, which was prophesised in the New Testament. He sees a “vast image”(12), which indicates something threatening and hostile. This new god takes the form of a lion, with “the head of a man”(14). A sphinx-like figure is in the “desert”(13), there is no civilisation and setting seems appropriate for the cataclysmic events, which precede the Second Coming, according to the Book of Revelations. The thought of the “rough beast”(20) moving is dreamlike and extremely ominous. Questions are raised, where is it going?
In Sailing to Byzantium, art is at the heart of the poem. The poem is based on wide reading about the city of Byzantium, now called Istanbul in Turkey, which had fascinated Yeats (Malins and Purkis, p.103). He opens this poem by admitting that as an elderly man he feels out of place in Ireland. The first stanza is packed with images of youth. It is full of vitality and fertility. “The young in one another’s arms, birds in the trees”(2). Using the aural technique of alliteration ("Fish, flesh, or fowl")(5) and creating a certain rhythm, Yeats emphasises the exuberance of youth.
He is disgusted at the effects of physical decay upon himself. The aged man is a mere scarecrow, “a tattered coat upon a stick”(10) (Smith, p.98). This can only be avoided if the soul reverts to its original activity, singing (Malins and Purkis, p.104) and therefore it must learn how to sing by “studying/Monuments of its own magnificence”(13-14). For this it is necessary to travel “to the holy city of Byzantium.”(16) In contrast to the time-bound world of Ireland and nature (with its “dying generations”)(3) the world of Byzantium and art, whose “Monuments of unageing intellect”(8) celebrate “the artifice of eternity” (24). (Smith, p.69) Yeats comments in A Vision: “I think that in early Byzantium, maybe never before or since n recorded history, religious, aesthetic and practical life were one.” (Yeats, p.279)
The reference to “holy” links to the next stanza and there is an air of paganistic ritualism with the use of “sages” and “holy fire”(17). He pleads with these holy men to liberate him from physical desires. The intensity of his physical pain is expressed in his pleas to the sages:
Consume my heart away; sick with desire
And fastened to a dying animal
It knows not what is it; (21-23)
By purification he will be enable to leave his body behind and to become an objet d’art.
He denounces everything that is natural, because naturals things are subject to disease (“sick”) and death (“dying”). The old man seeks the immortality that these artisans offer because the natural world that he lives in cannot escape transience and death. (Britzolakis) He wants to be reborn in the form of a beautiful and enduring work of art, a golden bird. “Gold” (28) is emphasised in this stanza, because of its beauty, but also for its endurance, for its permanence. The reference to the form of a bird reminds the reader of and contrasts with the real “birds in the trees”(2). And yet, the poem ends on a note of sensual longing. The bird, as an artistic creation, has it origins in the world of human desires. It too will sing of, “What is past, or passing, or to come.”(32)
The search for permanence appears to be less than satisfactory. The conflict between natural and artificial, youth and old age, and body and soul, remain unresolved. (Britzolakis)
Easter, 1916 is striking in not only for its political content, but also the way it is written with its contrasting imagery, themes and tone. It is an important poem from which the reader can ascertain Yeats’ opinion on the subject of the Easter Rising, those involved in it and Irish Nationalism as a whole. All this is achieved through the various techniques he employs including the nature of the form, diction and imagery, which combines to elucidate his chosen themes.
Yeats describes the people, or “vivid faces”(2), he sees in everyday life. They are insignificant to him as individuals, however each of them shares a certain bond with him. In lines 6 and 8, Yeats states that all he says to the people on the street are “polite meaningless words”(6). The fact that what he says to these people is always hollow shows how unimportant they are. And yet the lines: “Being certain that they and I / But lived where motley is worn,”(13-14) add to the fact that each citizen, like Yeats, is conscious that they share a common identity. The final line of the stanza: “A terrible beauty is born,”(16) describes the people of Ireland as they come together and work towards the goal of Irish independence from England. The birth of these united people is terrible because the fight for independence will inevitably cause bloodshed and death. It is also beautiful because the people are finally uniting and standing up for their beloved country (Britzolakis). This is the first time this line is introduced to the poem. It is repeated throughout the poem and creates the poem's main theme.
Although Yeats commemorates the martyrs of Easter 1916 (Britzolakis), He conveys their humanity and imperfections. He illustrates the stagnant indifference and conformity in Ireland through his description of the leading figures in the Easter Rebellion. Yeats characterizes Constance Markievicz as a figure of “ignorant good-will, / Her night in argument / Until her voice grew shrill”(18-20). Through this portrayal of Markievicz, Yeats suggests that the dream of Irish independence has not yet become reality because people talked of rebellion and politics, but before Easter 1916, they obediently followed Home Rule rather than actively pursing change. The imagery of Markievicz arguing, “Until her voice grew shrill”(20) but maintaining a life of “ignorant good-will”(18) illustrates the deceptive nature of appearances. Although these figures purposefully lobbied for Irish independence, there contributions had primarily consisted of lofty ideas and passionate discussions rather that thoughtful action. They maintained the appearance of dedicated revolutionaries, but until “A terrible beauty is born”(40) they continue to merely appear to desire change rather than actively pursue change.
Yeats continues to describe Patrick Pearse, “a man who had kept a school”(24) and Thomas MacDonagh, “his helper and friend”(26). Pearse and McDonough were both members of the Gallic League and were actively involved in Ireland's fight for independence (O’Connor, p.141). Yeats portrays these two figures favourably, but he emphasizes the simplicity of their lives by alluding to their skill as writers and educators. By focusing on their daily life, rather than their political involvement, Yeats suggests the humanity of Ireland's heroes and indicates that common citizens have the ability to effect a change in society.
Yeats portrays John MacBride, an Irish revolutionary and the estranged husband of Maud Gonne, as a “drunken, vainglorious lout”(32) (Smith, p.42). Although Yeats personally despised MacBride because “He had done most bitter wrong / To some who are near my heart”(33-34), Yeats maintains that “He, too, has been changed in his turn”(38). Yeats implies that the figures of the Easter Rebellion should be respected for their participation in an event that will evoke change in Ireland. Yeats conveys the imagery of imperfect figures as heroes to emphasize this change. Evaluated on their individual merits, the participants of the Easter Rebellion are one of many insignificant figures shouting to be heard until their “voice grew shrill”(20). Because they took action and passionately evoked change in Irish society, Yeats memorialises these individuals as heroes and patriots despite their personal merits prior to the Rebellion.
In the final lines of stanza two, Yeats indicates that these individuals have “Transformed utterly”(39). Through their efforts to instigate change in Ireland, these figures establish their own coming of age. Yeats emphasizes that by rebelling against the established ruling class, the martyrs of the Easter Rebellion overcome their former weaknesses and establish their memory as heroes. Rather than subject to English rule, Ireland progresses down a path of independence, responsibility, change, and hardship as “A terrible beauty is born”(40).
The use of “stone” in lines 43 and 56 is symbolic to the poem. A stone represents an inanimate object that stays the same. Parallel with the theme of change, Yeats includes the idea that clouds change minute by minute. The state of constancy is the important aspect of this world. The stone will forever be a stone, as will the deaths of those mentioned earlier. The stone, whose purpose is “to trouble the living stream,” hinders the flowing of the water.
Amidst all of this change, the stone is a symbol of consistency, as it does not move from its position on the bottom of the stream (Britzolakis). In line 57-58, Yeats expresses the heart in a transformation, becoming steady like the stone. “Too long a sacrifice”(57) in regards to war, has caused the heart to become a stone, bringing detrimental effects upon the hearts of all men. When this occurs, the responsibility the world must take is to love each corrupted soul, calling each by name “as a mother names her child/When sleep at last has come”(63). However, sleep is a metaphor for death and these men die in consequence of their failure to change among the changing events around them. (Britzolakis) The reference to “needless death”
Yeats “writes out in a verse,”(74) as he does in many of his poems to convey enlightenment and understanding to affect the future readers. He leaves this poem as a legacy and memorial to those people - MacDonagh, MacBride, Connolly, and Pearse - who are all untied by their dedication to the heroic dream, giving Ireland everything they could. Yeats continues to say that wherever the spirit of Ireland lies, represented by people wearing the colour “green,” those people will be forever changed. The terrible beauty, dying for this heroic dream, has been born.
Yeats embraced Modernism and its underlying artistic philosophies. The mythical nature of Byzantium and the
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