The poem is thought to have been inspired by a bout of seasickness.
Crossing the Bar by Alfred Lord Tennyson
And they came quickly: Both poems use the quatrain form, both contain sea imagery, and, perhaps most significantly of all, both poems are elegies: Tennyson would, of course, go on to write a more famous elegy about his friend, In Memoriam A. He later commented of the Pilot who we can analyse as a representative of God — presumably, in fact, God himself: It shows Tennyson confronting death at the end of his long life and choosing to face it stoically: This is such a moving poem for its quiet stoicism — a great choice for a funeral reading.
- Crossing the Bar - Wikipedia.
- Analysis of Crossing the Bar by Alfred Lord Tennyson.
- Crossing the Bar.
And was it read at his funeral? You cannot instruct people not to be sad when you die and then write such a sad poem which may or may not be read aloud.
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If you do want it read, better to give them a copy each to read to themselves or take home with them. But, too late now.
Interesting Literature
It is a beautiful poem. Reblogged this on Writing, events, competitions and even some self-penned bits and commented: An oft-used poem when telling the sad news that a member of the Great Brotherhood known as the Royal Navy has passed away, very apt,very moving. For the past year, my choir has been singing an arrangement of this poem by the composer Gwyneth Walker. It is written in free verse in four stanzas which each contain four lines.
It contains a strict ABAB rhyming pattern. Despite the gloomy subject matter the poem is never dull or gloomy in its tone, perhaps the rhyming pattern was put in place in order to avoid this. It seems to view death almost as an adventure.
- Crossing the Bar;
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- Crossing the Bar - Wikisource, the free online library.
The poem is presumably not autobiographical It is nearly impossible to write a poem whilst dead! Sunset and evening star, And one clear call for me! And may there be no moaning of the bar, When I put out to sea,. The very first line of this stanza puts the poem in a particular time of day. The evening star that it describes is another name for Venus, Venus is known as both the Evening Star and the Morning star dependent on whether it is winter or summer which means this poem is based in the winter.
Perhaps this line is meant to be taken literally. Throughout this poem the narrator makes references to being at sea. Travelling at sea is used as a metaphor for the journey from life on into death.
A Short Analysis of Tennyson’s ‘Crossing the Bar’ | Interesting Literature
But such a tide as moving seems asleep, Too full for sound and foam, When that which drew from out the boundless deep Turns again home. The first line of this stanza is rather quaint sounding. It describes the current being very minimal. It does so in a way that sounds beautiful.
Crossing the Bar Summary
Dying in their sleep perhaps? The idea of the full tide suggests that the metaphorical ship that is being sailed is in deep water. The third line of this stanza is even more nuanced. It then continues to say it turns again home.