Hello and welcome. You must be wondering why have I shown you this particular photograph of four stages of a banana. A banana that is fresh looking, a banana that is aging, a banana that is completely decaying and a banana that is completely a gone case. The reason is that's precisely what we are going to discuss in this particular poem, Tithonus, which is part of the IAC class 12. English literature syllabus written by Lord Alfred Tennyson.
Now beyond the textbook, this is a very important photograph because it shows you that anyone who is young, right, in the extreme left stage will also become like the extreme right stage at some point of time or the other. So in life, always be humble because you won't stay fresh forever. It's a great quote. and something which you can use in your presentations during public speaking. While I'm on it, in fact, I had received this particular comment on one of my videos a few weeks ago, okay, and I'll show it to you because it also shows the character of the person.
This was this video and this was the comment. Hindi me bola kar bute. Now I have no problem, you know, I know my age and by no stretch of imagination can I be classified as Buddha but if that's what makes this unknown person feel powerful so be it but that's precisely why I pointed out the banana thing because in life you need to be humble because what you're calling someone else will return to you one day and karma is very powerful it hits back with interest and it hits back so strongly that you will feel, oh man, why did I say that at that time?
So always in life, be kind. You don't know what the other person is going through in life. So always be kind to people. And this is something which I always say, even at the risk of sounding very boring, that always be kind to people. Because when you are kind, you will get the same kindness with interest from different people.
Okay, now let's get... started with the poem. Now, Lord Alfred Tennyson was one of the most celebrated Victorian poets of English in the 19th century. He served as poet laureate, which means in the court of England, you know, it's a title for over 40 years. So that shows, you know, the kind of influence he had on the literature of that time.
And his poetry is known to explore different aspects of the human condition and themes of... mortality, love and nature. Okay, let me tell you one more thing.
My videos are in detail. So, if you like a video that can finish a complicated poem in 12-15 minutes, it's your wish. Okay, point number two. Both Chitunas and Bithuvan, I tried my best to also prepare the same video in Hindi.
Because there are some students who prefer to learn it in Hindi. Though I personally think, till you come to ISC class 12th, you should get used to understanding in English. But then I thought to myself, the kind of translation words that I was getting are not the kind of words that you can ever use in your examination.
Got it? So that won't be of any use to you. So in that, keeping that in mind, keeping your best interest in mind, I decided that I will explain this in simple English and trust me, if you have trusted me over the last three years, trust me on this one. This will help you much more to understand it in English rather than in Hindi or any vernacular language.
I can explain it in Tamil also. I can explain it in my own Malayalam and Telugu also. Okay.
Who was Titinus? Obviously, you need to know who is this main character. I will speak a bit in Hindi.
Those of you who don't understand Hindi don't think you are missing out on anything. In Greek mythology, Tithonus was a handsome Trojan prince. Trojan means as in from the kingdom of Troy, the son of King Lamadon and a lover of the goddess Eos.
So Tithonus was the lover of Eos whose other name was Aurora in Roman mythology. She was the goddess of the dawn, dawn as in the morning time when it is sunrise. Eos fell in love with Tritonus and abducted him from Troy to live with her in the east.
So she took the initiative and she kidnapped him from Troy. and make him live with her in the east because east is where she is the goddess of the dawn so she lives in the east eos wanted tithonus to stay with her forever so she pleaded she prayed to zeus who is the king of the gods like our hindu mythology indra devta is zeus the king of the gods to grant him immortality grant tithonus immortality so that he never dies however She makes a mistake. She makes a flawed.
Flawed means a mistake, a wish which had a mistake. There was an error in that wish because she forgot to ask for eternal youth. She asked for immortality, but she did not say that he should never grow old also, that he should always remain youthful.
So the gift in a way became a curse because he did not die, but he became progressively very, very old. So, Titinus did indeed live forever, but as time passed, he grew older and feebler, just like the four bananas I showed. Okay, his body withering away.
So, Titinus Smith serves as a cautionary tale about the double-edged sword of wishes. That is, when you are wishing for something, be very careful. I talked about karma, right?
If you wish for others or for yourself, wish carefully. Because when you wish... Hindi mein samjhaya kar budde. You are calling me a budde without realizing that the same harsh tone. It's not about what you said.
The harshness of the tone will come back to you with interest. So please be kind to everyone in your life. Okay.
So you need to understand the importance of considering all aspects of what all could happen to you. Now. There is a twist in the tale.
Kahani mein twist. Kahani mein twist kya hai? That Tennyson actually altered the mythological story.
Jo main aapko bataya, that was the mythological story. But Tennyson actually changed it in this particular poem. In the poem, it is not Eos, but it is Tithonus himself who asks for immortality. He desires for immortality. And it is his lover, Aurora, who...
confers this gift that she is the one who says that okay you will be immortal and the source of the suffering is not her error in the way she formulates her request to zeus but the other goddesses they are referred to as strong hours in the poem the other goddesses who feel jealous they feel jealous and they feel envious and resentful of tithonus immortality and they kind of subject him to the ravages of time means they make him look more and more old which is why strong hours kind of convey the passage of time okay so the element of time becomes important what is the poem about we'll do this and then we'll get into the poem the poem deals with that and you need to know the poem deals with the concept of aging and death Tennyson, these are important keywords. Please remember this. Tennyson explores the fear of growing old because he is fearful of growing old. He always wants to remain young and therefore, he kind of wants to be immortal.
Then the second theme is by portraying Tithonus'predicament, Tennyson challenges the traditional romanticization of immortality. So he highlights the despair and the isolation that everyone will grow. I mean, I mean, will die, etc.
Only you will remain immortal. Now that can make you feel very, very isolated, right? Your people who you grew up with, they all die.
And you are the only one who does not die, right? So it is an endless life. So please remember these words and also endless life.
Then he uses a Greek mythology, to explore the subject and it shows Tennyson's interest in mythical figures. In terms of style, it uses a lot of imagery, and it showcases Tennyson's skill in creating strong visual language. And finally, from a human emotion point of view, the poem explores the complexities of human desire.
This is very important. This is very important because it shows the complexity of human desire you know we think we will be like this all our life that does not quite happen so it highlights the potential downsides of wishes granted without careful consideration so whatever you say Always be careful about what you wish for, what you ask for. You go to a temple or any place of worship, you say, God, help me do my exam well.
I should score high marks. If you also wish, I wish that so-and-so gets bad marks. Uska paper khatam hi na ho.
You know, that kind of thing. If you start wishing like that, then the whole thing can actually backfire. on you so never wish anything bad for anyone never wish anything without careful consideration this is a short note which just gently for your knowledge that can also be seen as a companion piece because tennyson's ulysses was one of his very famous works which is about the celebration of experiences in life okay then the themes of the poem mortality and immortality use in his answers. Mortality and immortality, time and decay.
I have already highlighted that. Yearning to be rid of his state that by the time he gets kind of fed up and the larger theme of the human existence and the effect on the mind. Okay. And finally, about the form of the poem, that the poem is a dramatic monologue. This is important.
You need to know that where the entire text is spoken by a single character. And through his words, we come to know about his mind written in blank verse. It was initially written in 1833 under the title of Tithon, but it was not appreciated. Nobody liked it.
And it was then republished in 1859, 1960 version of the Cornhill magazine under the title of Tithonus. When it found takers in this version, there were many additions to the original poem. Later, it was again published in his book, Enoch Arden in 1864. Okay, so I hope.
Aapko puri tara se samaj mein aagya. Now let's get to the explanation of the poem in absolute great detail. Okay, now let's get to the poem.
There are six stanzas approximately. So we will do it according to that. The woods decay, the woods decay and fall. The vapors weep their burthen to the ground. Man comes and tills a field and lies beneath.
Now woods is... smaller than a forest. Woods is smaller than a forest, not a forest.
But it's an area of land which is covered with a lot of growing trees. The woods decay and fall. What does it mean?
Now, woods are considered what? I mean, they are considered as something which is permanent, right? They are like unchanging part of nature. But here they are described as decaying and falling. So the poem is starting.
Please note down this. words which I am writing down, create your own notes, it will help you. So it is conveying a sense of impermanence, that's the image that is being conveyed. And this emphasizes that even grand, I mean, what seems to be very strong, what seems to be very grand, can actually eventually decay and die. So the repetition of the word decay, you know, two times he has mentioned.
So it underlines what? It underlines the relentless march of time. It underlines the relentless nature of time.
You know, with the passage of time, this will happen. Okay. So that's the essential nature of it.
So the woods don't just decay, they decay and fall. It highlights the inevitable process of their demise. This, the vapors weep their burdhan to the ground.
Now burdhan is an archaic means it actually is the word burdhan. Okay, burdhan being written as burdhan. Vapors is a reference to the moisture in the air.
Okay, this is a reference to the moisture in the air. So listen to this carefully. This means that the line is using personification. Personification by crediting the image of weeping to the moisture. when there is moisture he is trying to convey that it's almost as if the nature is weeping.
So the vapors are weeping or shedding their burden which is what I mean you would know that right the entire process of rainfall it is in the form of rainfall to the ground. So while it emphasizes nature's cycle of renewal because that's what you know it evaporates precipitation happens and then rainfall happens to the ground. So the rainfall has been portrayed as some kind of of a beeping.
And by the use of the poetic device of personification, it is also a product of decays. The vapors, the moisture, when it kind of falls down in the form of rain, it is also a product of decay because it takes place because of evaporation from water bodies. So from the water bodies, when it is evaporating, that is also some kind of a decay is what the poet is trying to convey. So.
This line, the vapors weep their birth into the ground is also an example of transferred epithet since it is an important poetic device. I will just highlight it. I hope you know what is transferred epithet and how it is spelled out here.
Let me just, though class 12, you should be knowing it. Transferred epithet, E-R-R-E-D. Now, an epithet is a word of praise which describes, for example, the quality of something for example a happy person a joyful person right so adjectives like happy are describing this noun uh like person transferred epithet is when this adjective is transferred to a different noun like let's say uh happy marriage anniversary or happy birthday so it is being transferred so in this case weep is the adjective describing the action describing the action um and transferred it is not literally the vapors that are weeping. Weeping is an action that humans do so it is being transferred to describe a non-human thing which is a non-human thing vapors.
So weeping is something which human beings do right we weep but here it has been that particular virtue has been transferred to vapors which is a non-human thing so it can also be seen as a poetic device of personification. The true subject here that is raining is implied but it is not directly mentioned. I mean that's what I have explained to you in terms of meaning. That's what it kind of conveys.
Man comes and tilts the field and lies beneath. Now if this is referring to the birth of man, then he works on the land that is tilts the field means then he does some work and eventually lies beneath means this is conveying death. Okay, this is conveying death. Man comes is conveying birth.
And this is conveying life in between birth and death. Okay, so this particular line, if you are asked just about this line, this is conveying the entire cycle of life and death. The entire cycle of life and death is conveyed. After many a summer dies a swan, me only cruel immortality consumes. So, after many a summer dies the swan.
Now, it talks about the death of the beautiful and majestic swan. Swan is called hans in Hindi. It reaches the end of its long life as signified by many a summer. Many a summer means after many years.
It is kind of saying after many years, the swan dies. So, the swan is mentioned because it is associated with what? It is associated with beauty.
It is associated with grace and that makes the death. even more poignant, even more sad and sorrowful. Okay, so what is the larger meaning? Because what Tennyson is creating is a very powerful image of the natural world constantly turning.
You know, everything, whether it is woods, whether it is rainfall, whether it is people, even beautiful creatures like swans experience death and become part. of a continuous cycle and later this in this poem abhita we have not been introduced to tithonus so this cycle is contrasted with tithonus who will not die who has become immortal so he is unable to find release in death so initially itself what alfred tennyson is saying is that this is the natural cycle of life and death and later on it is contrasted with what tithonus is going through okay so that is what is the poem all about Okay, I hope you understood till here. Me only cruel immortality consumes.
While the natural world experiences a cycle of death and renewal, Tithonus is trapped in a state of slow decline. Okay, me only. Now you're talking about Tithonus. Me only cruel immortality consumes. Now Tithonus is talking about himself.
That while the entire world is you know full of life and death cuss cycle it's experiencing that particular life and cycle of life and death. Chitunas is trapped in cruel immortality. So in this line, Chitunas is expressing his despair by saying cruel immortality. This is an important key phrase because immortality, which was once a gift he desired, he wanted immortality. Now it has become a curse, which is why it is consuming him.
So the immortality is eating him up. Consuming him means it is eating him up. Me only, me only cruel immortality of this, me only means what?
That he is the one who is cursed. Usko as though he thought he was getting a wish granted to him. But he realizes now that ye toh shrak hai, that this is a curse. Because around him, he is seeing the natural cycle of life and death.
I wither slowly in thine arms. Thine means your arms. It's an archaic word of your.
So wither means to slowly disappear. Wither means to... disappear slowly okay become weak so thine means your so i become weak slowly in your arms so uh and he's talking about whose arms he's talking about the arms of his beloved yours with who is the goddess of the dawn i told you about this at the beginning here at the quiet limit of the world.
Now, this line again emphasizes the isolation that Tithonus is feeling. He's stuck at the edge of the world. He's unable to participate in the cycle.
It's almost as if he's a witness to everything. He's unable to participate in the cycle of life and death. He's absolutely alone.
Quiet means he's absolutely alone and lonely. A white-haired shadow roaming like a dream. Now, this is the imagery. of tithonus he's a white hair means very old uh shadow roaming like a dream like he's a very weak frail kind of a person who is white hair and he's no longer just like you see in the thumbnail so uh that's what he has become and that's a very sad kind of a figure he's no longer a vibrant presence and roaming like a dream and he almost like a ghost completely white. So the ever silent spaces of the east far folded mists and gleaming halls of morn.
Morn means morning. So he is saying that gleaming means to shine brightly. So the lions are describing the very beautiful world which surround Tithonus.
He roams around the silent and vast landscapes of the east. That's where Eos is, which is she's associated with the east direction because she's the goddess of dawn. And the mist and the gleaming halls create a sense of absolute beauty. But they also highlight the coldness and emptiness of his own immortal existence. He's trapped in this endless cycle.
Okay, so the gift given to Tithonus has become a curse. So that's as far as the first stanza is concerned. Let's move to stanza number two.
Alas, for this grey shadow wants a man so glorious in his beauty and thy choice. Now here Tithonus is lamenting. He's kind of, you know, saying, what kind of a life it is, what kind of a situation I am in.
Now he's now a shadow. Grey again conveys something which is very dull. and he has become a shadow.
So you see again this is an important key phrase. He's become like a gray shadow of compared to the initially when he was younger he was a vibrant kind of a person. So glorious once a man so glorious in his beauty and thy choice.
So this is kind of highlighting what he has lost. He was once a beautiful handsome kind of a person and he was thy choice means the choice of yours he was worthy of being chosen by the goddess of the dawn that's why she chose him because he was so good looking who made us him thy chosen that he seemed to his great heart none more than a god so he says that having been chosen by yours it elevated him to a godlike status in his own eyes great art means you know it elevated him that to some kind of greatness almost godlike status made us is an archaic form of made that made him okay made him a lot of archaic language tennyson has used in this poem because he is talking about a mythological story so he felt that he was nothing less than a god himself i asked thee give me immortality this line reveals the source of his suffering i asked thee thee means i asked you give me immortality that I want to become immortal. I don't want to die.
Okay, he had himself wished from Eos, the boon of immortality, but now that wish has become a curse. So these lines depict Tithonus'very tragic realization. Give me immortality.
This line is very important. I asked the give me immortality. It kind of depicts the tragic realization that what did I ask for? was wishing for a life beyond mortality but he did not understand the true cost of such a gift and therefore he's now left with an empty existence he's forever you know thinking about what a beautiful life i had earlier how i was so active but now he's gray and old and white hair okay then didst thou grant mine without you asking with a smile like wealthy men who care not how they give now the bitterness in titanus and the careless manner in which the grish was granted comes out okay so he's saying you know he's feeling very bitter at this point in time you know he you know he criticizes yours you know that you granted my with asking with a smile like wealthy men who care not the case you did not even care about what you are giving you also did not you know you Apply your mind to, what am I giving to this man, to the person I love, right?
So he kind of criticizes Eos as he feels that she granted his wish for immortality very readily without considering or at least she also did not think about the consequences. Yes, he did not think about the consequences, but she also did not. So that is something which he feels very bitter about. So he's comparing her with who?
This is an important comparison that is being made. So please make a note of it. Of two wealthy people who give away gifts without understanding their true value.
They give away gifts without understanding what the value of the gift is. Okay. But thy strong hours indignant work their wills.
So now hours is a personification of time. As I mentioned to you in the introduction, this is a personification of time. So.
he says and they are highlighted as goddesses so indignant what is the meaning of indignant that they were annoyed okay the goddesses of time they were annoyed with tithonus's wishes and therefore they took their revenge they worked their wills means they took their revenge and worked against his desire for immortality okay and beat me and marred me and wasted me Maad means to spoil or ruin. Ruin would be a correct word. To spoil and ruin.
All these are important, but there are lots of key words in this particular poem. So please keep marking them, which you can use in your answers. So maad means to spoil or ruin.
The Aas take their revenge by inflicting a terrible curse. You know, they inflict a terrible curse. They beat him down.
Beat me down means that they are kind of representing the passage of time. that weakens and ages Tithonus. This you know he's of course not going to die.
He will be immortal, he will not die but he will also be very very very old. So the use of words like marred and wasted, it kind of emphasizes the destruction of his, the vitality of his youth that he's talking about. That when he was young he was so beautiful, he was so good looking and that's what he kind of feels bad about and that's the kind of revenge the goddesses the strong arse have taken on him and though they could not end me left me maimed so but the arse obviously cannot kill him because he is immortal but they left him maimed. Maimed means to leave somebody very injured they'll to leave somebody very injured a broken and incomplete version of his former self that you know he was someone who was kind of you know in a very broken kind of state not a patch on what he was before to dwell in presence of immortal youth immortal age beside immortal youth and all i was in ashes now these lines are very sad are extremely sad because titanus realizes that he is condemned to exist forever but more importantly in the presence of you know beside immortal youth that he is immortal age his age is immortal but he is beside immortal youth you know in the presence of an eternally youthful uh yours a constant reminder of what he has lost he describes himself as immortal age next to her immortal youth and that kind of highlights the contrast so it's not clear how can her youth also be immortal because youth also goes away but anyway that's what he says so this is the contrast that has been picturized so the final image of all i was in ashes signifies the complete destruction of his former self that you know he is no longer what he used to be at one point in time. Can thy love thy beauty make immense though even now close over us the silver star thy guide.
So Tithonus now directly addresses Eos. He wonders if Eos'love and beauty can compensate him for the suffering. He implies that even her presence cannot erase the pain of his immortality because the pain of his immortality which he thought at one point of time was an advantage.
Now he realizes it's a curse. So he says that it cannot wipe away the pain of his immortality, though even now closed over us. So he says that this is a bit of a descriptive kind of a line. The silver star is a reference to Venus.
Please make a note of this. It's a reference to Venus, which is the morning star, just like she's a goddess of the dawn. So Silver Star is associated, Venus is associated with Eos because both of them are associated with sunrise.
And that's why they guide, you know, they guide the people on Earth. So while Eos sheds tears listening to his request, tremulous means unsteady and shaky, you know, which means unsteady, which is kind of shaking. The star's presence, the star's presence kind of signifies the ongoing cycle of dawn. highlighting the contrast between her, Eos'eternal youth and his ever-aging state. You know that he is going on becoming old while she remains young forever.
And that kind of highlights the contrast between the two because the star keeps on moving every day, every 24 hours. Let me go take back thy gift. So, Tritonus now makes a direct appeal. he begs Eos to take back the unwanted gift of immortality. Ki mujhe abhi yeh nahi chahiye.
Why should a man desire in any way to vary from the kindly race of men or pass beyond the goal of ordinance where all should pass as is most meet for all? So he says that these lines are expressing Tithonus'newfound acceptance of mortality, that it would be better if one actually dies because he questions his past desire. to be different from other men he didn't want to be like other men kindly means gentle here it is being used as in the form of an adjective ordinance the goal of ordinance means the natural order of things you know ordinance means the natural order of things which means the cycle of life and death uh with you know the life is the birth is the beginning point and death is the end point So he now realizes that the goal of the natural order of things is something to be respected, not surpassed.
You know, it is something which everybody has to follow. Meet means the logical conclusion, the logical end of life. So he says that why should he trespass beyond the reasonable limits of human life, the boundary where everybody actually should stop and not cross. So basically, the second stanza.
though I have split it up into three parts. The second stanza shows the transformation that has taken place in Tutanus, that he is now wiser, he has realized that he has made a mistake, he has realized the bad experience he has had and he now understands the value of a natural cycle of life and death, a natural lifespan and he also realizes that death brings with itself some kind of peace. So he is begging yours to release him from his curse and allow him to rejoin the kindly race of men.
the gentle rays of men therefore he wants to experience the natural cycle of life and death stanza three a soft air fans the cloud apart there comes a glimpse of the dark world where i was born now the literal translation of this is that a soft air which means a gentle breeze Parts the clouds, you know, fancy clouds means it kind of separates the clouds and that reveals a glimpse of the dark world where Tithonus was born. It is the mortal world. He now wants to return to that mortal world.
The dark world can also be seen as literal. That is the world before dawn when it is dark. OK, and metaphorical as in the world of mortality where people actually will.
die at the end of the natural life cycle. Once more the old mysterious glimmer steals from thy pure brows and from thy shoulders pure and bosom beating with a heart renewed. Tithonus is associating the presence of Eos, I'm going slow so that you can note this down, Tithonus associates the presence of his lover Eos with a mysterious glimmer. You know, he's associating her presence with a mysterious glimmer, which kind of conveys what? It conveys beauty.
It also conveys a sense of the unknown, mysterious, and it also conveys some kind as of something bad is about to happen to him. So once more, the old mysterious glimmer steals. So he's describing her.
physical beauty as pure rose, pure shoulders and a heart renewed bosom beating. It kind of highlights a contrast between what her youth is, which is absolutely eternal and his own state, which is that of decay, that she has complete youth, eternal youth while he is having to decay. Okay. So the use of steels, the word steels here.
It kind of, you know, adds a sense of secrecy, adds a sense of villainous nature to her arrival, you know, as well as something negative. Okay. The cheeks, the cheek begins to redden through the gloom.
Thy sweet eyes brighten slowly close to mine before they blind the stars and the wild team which love thee. Now, this line continues the description of Eos's. arrival, her approach towards him. So the colour slowly returning to her face as the dawn breaks creates a very beautiful image. But, you know, as far as Chitones is concerned, you know, we all feel good when it is a new day because there's so much of work to be done, so much to be achieved during the day.
Night is a time for rest. But as far as Chitones is concerned, he's thinking, one more day I have to live. You know, it signifies the start of another.
unwanted day okay her eyes Eos's eyes though described as sweet you know he describes the eyes as thy sweet eyes thy means your your sweet eyes uh they however bring him no comfort you know they're because their brilliance will outshine the stars and another odd symbol and that's another order symbol of the natural order he can no longer participate in you know so he feels pretty much of an outcast you know someone who is left out of whatever is to be done in this natural cycle of life and death and the wild team which love the yearning for thy yoke the thy is all referring to yours uh so he says that you know it is these lines are creating a very these lines are full of imagery okay visual imagery. So they are kind of painting a very powerful image of Eos's chariot driven by horses. These wild horses, you know, the wild horses that he's talking about, the wild team, the wild horses, they're personified as creatures who love Eos and they want to hear her command.
And that is kind of, you know, symbolizes the dawn because dawn kaise aata hai? Sunrise, if you ever get up early in the morning and you see the dawn, it has a force of its own. It may seem gentle, but the red and yellow and blue colors, it has a sense of energy and vitality, you know. So they shake the darkness from their loosened manes. The loosened manes are like, you know, the open hair.
You know, they beat the twilight into flakes of fire. You know, that's a very vivid description. imagery of the approach of day, the very forceful approach of day.
Flake means a flash. Flake means a flash. So the imagery is emphasizing the power of the cycle of nature and the helplessness that Tithonus feels within it. You know that he's not feeling happy that it's yet another day. He's feeling sad that it is yet another day.
And these lines are kind of conveying the force and the energy with which... the dawn breaks. So it is a very unsettling, normally dawn is seen as a positive imagery, but here it is a very unsettling, uncomfortable picture of dawn and that is because of the way Tithonus feels it because it's all from Tithonus'point of view.
He is the one who is relating it. So he is talking about how he perceives dawn as it is breaking in the morning. Let's move to stanza 4. Lo, ever dost thou growest beautiful in silence, then before thine answer given departest, and thy tears are on my cheek.
Lo means to convey a sense of wonderment. Okay, a sense of amazement, a sense of wonderment. Titinus acknowledges Eos'beauty using lo to emphasize it. And however, even while he praises her, there's a sense of resignation. There's a sense of detachment in his tone.
He has seen her beauty countless times and it no longer brings him any kind of joy. Growers is the archaic form of grow. Okay. This is the archaic form of grow. In silence, then before thine answer given.
So he's saying that, so this describes. Eos's silent arrival and departure. He says that before you give me any answer, you leave me, your tears are still wet on my face.
The lack of communication between Eos and Tithonus, it highlights the emotional distance that has come between them. He no longer feels like, you know, oh God, she's so beautiful anymore. He's more bothered and worried about his own state of affairs. So Tithonus pleads with her throughout the poem, but she remains largely unresponsive and Eos'tears are also a source of confusion for Tithonus. Thy tears are on my cheek because he wonders are they tears of sympathy?
He is wondering. He doesn't know. Are they tears that she is feeling sympathetic for him or they are an expression of frustration at the fact that he is going on requesting her time and again.
So her silence combined with the tears, it creates a sense of mystery. It also creates a sense of what shall I say emotional complexity. You know, it creates a sense of mystery and emotional complexity.
Use this. You know, it is not easy the kind of relationship that they are sharing at this point in time. Departist is the archaic form of depart. Why will thou ever scare me? with tears with thy tears and make me tremble lest a saying learned so he's saying that he's directly questioning yose's tears he says that they frighten him because they hint at a deeper truth that he fears and these lines reveal a source of fear for tithunus that he's feeling scared he remembers his saying from his mortal life that the gods themselves cannot recall their gifts you know he remembers what he had learned and heard before.
So if even the gods cannot take back their gifts, in this case the gift that has been given, in this case that is the gift of immortality, his situation seems rather hopeless. If this is going to be the case, he is rather in a hopeless situation that they cannot recall means take back. The gods cannot take back their gifts which means that he is forever trapped in this miserable state.
So by this we come to know of what he is going through. his relationship with Eos and the fact that, you know, gods cannot take back their gifts. So he's feeling rather hopeless at his miserable condition.
Stanza five, Amy, Amy. So this is an exclamation of what do you say of lament? You know, he's lamenting. He's feeling rather sad. So he's, this is an expression of lament to express sadness and regret.
So he says. with what another heart in days far off and with what other eyes. So here, Titinus is reflecting on how he was in the past. He had a different heart, full of youth, full of passion, full of love, full of innocence.
And he had other eyes in a way of seeing the world and his lover with fresh wonder and excitement. And that is something which he is not able to experience anymore. I used to watch, he says, if I be he that watch. So this line kind of adds a layer of doubt and despair that the speaker is so changed he questions if he was even the one who used to watch his lover you know the tithoness that is now is not able to relate to the tithoness who was there before you understand that's the major difference it's almost as if we are talking of two different tithonesses that the tithoness now is not able to relate to the tithoness in his young life so he says the speaker's past experience of watching his lover Eos and he watched the lucid outline okay lucid outline which means a beautiful image you know he's he's kind of complimenting her beauty but he says he's not able to relate to it anymore and it kind of you know witnessed the transformation of the dim girl so he's all expressions of her beauty sunny rings these are all keywords that you can use for Eos sunny rings dim curls and he witnessed the transformation of the dim curls into sunny rings. So it kind of also highlights the kind of fascination that Tithonus had with Eos.
So the deeper explanation is that it creates a very powerful contrast between the speaker's passionate past and his present state of regret. That's very important. So he's mourning, he's feeling sad about the loss of his youthful self.
and the way he used to see the world his lover with a lot of love and wonderment changed with the mystic change and felt my blood the speaker feels transformed by eos's presence and it's a very mysterious and powerful change he feels his own blood respond to her mystical power and mystic change suggests something very magical about her presence mystic change means there is something very mysterious and also something very magical about her presence glow with the glow that slowly crimson all their presence and type portals while i lay so this imagery is suggesting again a surge of passion and desire within tetanus crimson means that the face becomes blushed you know it's like purple red in color uh and it also kind of you know shows a lot of passion and also a hint of secrecy it describes you know just by the presence of Eos how he is feeling so the two important phrases are blood glowing and the crimson color these two are important phrases blood glow and the crimson color portals could be a reference to the physical beauty of Eos while I lay it suggests a state of complete surrender okay it kind of conveys surrender of Tithonus that he's kind of you know completely receptive to the experience he's talking about the past so the next one the mouth forehead eyelids etc he's kind of creating a very sensual kind of a picture and each body part that he's describing it is emphasizing the intimate relationship they had the intimacy of their encounter the mouth for the kisses the forehead for the closeness the eyelids hinting at vulnerability a lot of sensation the kisses are described as balmier which means more pleasant more pleasant that's what this word means than delicate spring flowers they know that they are more pleasant than even delicate spring flowers emphasizing their tenderness and awakening effect the reference to april to the month of april it kind of you know means the beginning of new love the spring season so it's it's a reference to the new season out there so basically these lines are creating a very vivid picture of very passionate love and sensuality and the effect of the speaker's lover, that is Eos'effect on Tithonus. So it's a moment of intense connection. Of April and could hear the lips that kiss whispering, I knew not what of wild and sweet. So he's saying that... The whispers add another element of intimacy, another element of layer of secrecy, while suggests passion, while sweet indicates pleasantness.
Keep noting down these words. The speaker does not understand the specific words, but the emotions conveyed are very clear, intense and delightful. Like that strange.
Now, whenever I have told you, whenever you use the word like or as, that's a use of a simile. So that is using a powerful image to describe the experience. Apollo is who? Apollo is the Greek god of music, of poetry, of light and healing.
I'm going through this fast because, you know, this is basically just describing what he went through. The overall theme of immortality is not directly related to this. So in terms of the importance, this is less important than the rest of the poem, which is why I'm just kind of giving you the word meanings.
So he is saying that Apollo the Greek god of music, poetry, light and healing is known for his beautiful singing. So he is comparing the whispers of his song such as something very magical, something very engrossing, something very divine. While Ilion like a mist rose into towers.
Ilion is another name for Troy. This is another name for Troy, the legendary city from Greek mythology. And it could be a memory or a dream, perhaps of the speaker's past before he met his lover, Eos. Let's come to the last stanza. Yet hold me not for ever in thine ease.
So now the final stanza, he's come back. The final stanza is important. The fifth stanza, not so much.
The final stanza is important because he's now once again kind of showing his sense of despair. He's saying and he's making another direct plea to his lover. who is associated with the East, he says please not to keep him trapped in this immortal state.
He questions how his mortal nature can continue to coexist with her immortal essence. She is youth, forever youth. The dawn is forever youth.
I think that's the only explanation that can be given. Youthful. So this question highlights the core of his suffering.
He is mortal at heart. trapped in an immortal body. So their natures are no longer compatible.
So they are no longer a match for each other. Coldly thy rosy shadows bathe me, cold are all thy lights. So he says that Eos's light, which is usually associated with warmth, renewal, because it's the beginning of a new day, it feels cold to him.
Otherwise, you know, morning light, just imagine if it is winter and then you have the morning light coming. So the morning sunshine feels warm, right? But he says that it feels cold, you know, coldly thy cold are all your light.
His wrinkled feet, cold my wrinkled feet, wrinkled again conveys a sense of cold. It also symbolizes his physical decline with age, because with age, you will see that your hands and feet, etc. get a little wrinkled, emphasizing the growing distance between him and his eternally youthful. lover who is yours upon thy glimmering thresholds when the steam floats up from those dim fields about the homes so he's saying that this tithonus is describing his position at the thresholds which means almost at the entrance of yours space a place between life and death and he observes the steam which is rising from the fields a symbol of life and the passage of time he you know he is really longing for that somehow if i can just die Because he now feels that is a privilege. That is a privilege for the happy men. You know, only happy men have that privilege that they have the power to die.
So he feels earlier he felt that how what happiness it would be not to die at all. But now he feels that only happy men have the power to die. And they are living in the homes below.
And grassy barrows of the happier dead. This line emphasizes the speakers. yearning for death, that he really wants to die. And he envies the happier dead who are resting in their graves.
You know, grassy barrows is the reference to the graves that, you know, they are in the graves and they are happier dead. So this is a very strange oxymoron, you know, because death is usually associated with sorrow, with grief. But now he says that those who are dead are actually more happy. Release me and restore me to the ground. These are very powerful lines directly said to EOS.
or Aurora. So he says release me and restore me to the ground. So this is a very direct request.
It is a very desperate request. Titinus is begging Aurora to set him free and allow him to return to the earth which means to die and be in his grave to be one with the ground. Okay thou seest all things thou will see my grave.
He says you are an all-seeing nature because she's a goddess of the dawn. Dawn is able to see everything around her right. So he says that she will witness his death even if she does not grant his wish. He says, thou wilt renew thy beauty month by month, that you are able to renew your beauty every morning.
And that is the contrast between Tithonus who is aging while Arora is forever youthful, that she will continue to be reborn. Please listen to this carefully. She will continue to be reborn with every sunrise and she will always be beautiful because every sunrise we see and we think, wow, what a beautiful sunrise, right? It's forever youthful, right? I earth in earth, forget these empty codes.
So here Tithonus is imagining the peace of death, how peaceful death would be. And he wants to be one with the earth. Earth in earth means that he wants to be mixed with earth and forget the empty codes, the vast and meaningless space of the immortal. Because he finds his immortal existence to be complete. completely without meaning completely meaningless and the returning that is you returning on thy silver wheels and the final line it paints a picture of Eosnes or Aurora's unending cycle that she will continue to return each dawn on her chariot a constant reminder of his own because every time she comes in the morning it is a reminder of Tithonus's unending state so the final stanza which is there I repeat They are a very, very powerful plea, request for release.
And they are also a lament for a life that has been lost because of his own mistake. He accepts his mortality and he desires, intensely desires the peace of death to be one with the earth, even if it means forgetting his lover. So the final image of her returning chariot emphasizes the cruel contrast between her fate.
and the fate of tetanus that she will be reborn every morning she will be forever youthful he will never be able to die and he will be aging with every passing day okay i hope you have understood this clearly what are the poetic devices which have been used personification vapors weep their birth and woods decay i've explained this well here We also talked about the transferred epithet in the case of vapors with their burden. Imagery, the poem has a lot of sensory details, the rosy shadows of dawn, the dewy warm kisses, the balmier than half opening buds of April, the simile where I said like or as is used. Metaphor portals can be interpreted as a metaphor for the speaker's lovers, physical beauty or a more intimate connection. The cruel immortality consumed. This too is a metaphor as immortality is metaphorically portrayed as a consuming force that finally destroys tetanus.
Repetition, which I mean the woods decay, that is again of repetition. Hyperbole, while Troy like a mist rose into towers. This is a case of exaggeration of hyperbole.
Transfer epithet I have already explained to you out there. So with this, we come to the end. I have already explained this out there. So with this, we come to the end of this entire explanation of tithonus.
I hope you have understood this clearly. Thank you very much. Tata, bye-bye.
God bless you. The notes will be there on the Study with Sudhir Instagram and WhatsApp channels. And the SWS success test papers with chapter-wise questions and answers, all three parts, MCQs, reasoning questions, and the long format 5 and 10 marks, all will be there in a few weeks from now. Thank you very much.
Tata, bye.