Analyzing Poem When You Are Old by William Butler Yeats

When You Are Old

When you are old and grey and full of sleep, 1
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,         2
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look, 3
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep, 4

How many loved your moment of glad grace,         5
And love your beauty with love false or true, 6
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,         7
And love the sorrows of your changing face; 8

And bending down beside the glowing bars, 9
Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled,        10
And paced upon the mountains overhead        11
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.        12

( William Butler Yeats)



Introduction

The poem is one of the experience of the speaker (william butler yeats). This literary work was dedicated to someone whom he loved at that time. He was deeply in love with a girl, Maude Gonne,  and although Gonne did not return his love, she became a closed friend to him. Most of the poems in the collection were written for or about Gonne such as this poem, when you are old. The major theme which yeats used to his literary work especially in the poem of ‘when you are old’ is about aging. It is marked by the image of an older Maud Gonne (the woman with whom Yeats was in love) in the poem ‘ when you are old ’. The genre of this poem is romanticism.

Biography of William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was born in County Dublin on June 13, 1865. He moved with his family to London at a young age and came back to Dublin again when he was fifteens. He studied in Metropolitan School of Art. Yeats' early poetry focuses on ancient Irish epics as well as the contemporary nationalist movement that was gaining force in Ireland. In 1889, Yeats met the love of his life, an Irish named Maude Gonne. Unfortunately, Maude did not return his love, and after refusing his marriage proposals three times, she married Major John MacBridge in 1903. What inspired Yeats to write the poem ‘when you are old’  is someone whom he loves, Maude Gonne.

Summary

The poem tells us that the speaker (William Butler Yeats) told to a woman who is old and having not power to do anything, she just slept over to spend her life and doing lazy time in a house. It is marked on the sentence “ old and grey”.Yeats asked her to read a book that refers to memories of her youth in order to remember what happened with them ( Yeats and Old woman), recalling the days when he (Yeats)  was in her life and very much in love with her (old woman).

The speaker asked to the old woman to remember how many people loved her when she was younger but only one man loved her as she grew older and he is Yeats itself. It gives understanding that when old woman was a younger, Yeats was so in love with her but he was refused to be her boyfriend and she prefered to choose another boy rather than Yeats. However yeats still kept his love to her until the woman grew older and the face was changing not to be beautiful again.

This poem also tells us that the speaker remains the old woman how  patiently him wait her for long time until she grew older and became less beautiful. Yeats regret why the old woman did not accept him as a boyfriend but choose the other. He was ignored and forgotten.

Theme :

This poem uses theme “love”. It tells us about the condition when the speaker was younger and was in love with someone.

Rhyme scheme : A B B A

Meter : This poem uses iambic pentameter . Iambic ,the poem is started by unstressed and followed by stressed, two syllables. Pentameter, the poem consist of five foots.

Imagery :  the poem uses organic imagery. Organic imagery is marked on the sentence “ slowly read....”, it gives understanding about gesture of reading.

Symbol : 

Book is symbol of memories of youth. Stars is symbol of people who love old woman but not Yeats.

Methapor :

Book is described as a memories.