Tennyson's Poems of Ulysses

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses and analyzes two poems by Alfred Lord Tennyson that were derived from Homer and which concern different periods in the life of Ulysses: "The Lotos-Eaters" and "Ulysses." The paper describes how Tennyson addresses the attitudes and feelings of Ulysses through the poems, as well as the heroic reputation of Ulysses.

From the Paper:

"The poem "Ulysses" was written a decade after "The Lotos-Eaters" and addresses the attitudes and feelings of Ulysses after the events of The Odyssey. The subject of the poem is thought to be as much Tennyson's recently deceased friend Henry Hallam as Ulysses, though Tennyson finds in the later years of the Greek hero certain evocations of his friend and of his own melancholy at his friend's death. Ulysses in the poem is on his death-bed, as was Hallam before, and this allows Tennyson to create a dramatic situation in which the dying Ulysses speaks to many of his dead sailors. Ulysses by this time has lost faith in the gods, in himself, and even in the future of his kingdom, and this loss of faith is the central issue in the poem and may reflect Tennyson's own questioning of what he has accepted as true in his life."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Grob, Alan. "Tennyson's 'The Lotos-Eaters': Two Versions of Art." Modern Philology, Vol. 62, No. 2 (November 1964), 118-129.
• Gurka, John E. "The Voices of Ulysses and Prufrock." The English Journal, Vol. 55, No. 2 (February 1966), 205-207
• Halio, Jay L. " 'Prothalamion,' 'Ulysses,' and Intention in Poetry." College English, Vol. 22, No. 6 (Mar., 1961), 390-394.
• Lattimore, Richard (tr.). The Odyssey of Homer. New York: Harper Collins, 1967.
• MacLaren, Malcolm. "Tennyson's Epicurean Lotos-Eaters." The Classical Journal, Vol. 56, No. 6 (March 1961), 259-267.

More papers on Tennyson's Poems of Ulysses:

• Analytical Essay # 56184 : "Alfred Lord Tennyson"
• Analytical Essay # 3708 : "The Significance of Alfred, Lord Tennyson"
• Analytical Essay # 61602 : "Ulysses"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: