hi today i'd like to share one of victor hugo's most loved poems with you a poem that is taught in almost all french schools let's read victor hugo's demand elope together and try and understand it i usually start with a background in context when i talk about poems but this time i'm going to start with the poem itself and if you want to hear about the context stay with me we'll get there victor hugo the poet starts by talking about his imminent trip a day's walk and i invite you to think of someone you love dearly as you join the poet through the first verse demand alert compine tomorrow at dawn in the hour when the countryside becomes white so with this verse he talks of his intention to travel and the time of departure at dawn early in the morning look at this interesting verse i will leave you see i know that you are waiting for me he is addressing his love and he is reassuring her that he will be with her soon i will go by the forest i will go by the mountain it is as though the poet has to get past the forest and the mountain to finally reach his love even though the poet talks of nature he mentions them without really describing the forest or the mountains just like any two people in love the poet says i cannot stay far away from you any longer but suddenly in the second stanza you'll see the tone of the poem change let's see if you catch on to what is happening the poet says i will walk eyes fixed on my thoughts nothing around him matters he is focused on reaching his destination without seeing anything outside nor hearing any noise here the poet is indifferent to the sounds and sights around him the poet has completely cut himself off from the outside world sir alone unknown the back curved and hands crossed he calls himself anko new unknown which shows complete solitude he is walking with his back bent and arms crossed like a meditative position where he is concentrating on nothing but his love sad and the day for me will be like the night the poet passes from light to darkness sadness a reflection of the poet's state of mind i will not look at the gold of the evening which falls lord you swab hold of the evening is a metaphor representing sunset this also shows that it was a day-long journey that the poet undertook to reach his destination the double negation knee knee in this verse and the next shows the loneliness of the poet [Music] nor the far away sails descending towards our floor now there is a change in scene hugo has passed the forest and the mountains and now faces water he has reached aflur where his love is and this is where the poet presents the twist in the tale and when i arrive i will put on your tone that's when you realize the poet is talking to his love who is no longer alive as he plans his trip to her room floor a green bouquet of holly and flowering heather the last line of the poem is symbolic o where eb holly and heather plants that are evergreen they stay green all through the year and in a way symbolize eternity hugo intentionally chooses these two plants to celebrate his love's eternal life through his poem and his spirit he makes her immortal now let me tell you about the context and background of this poem the touching incident that drove victor hugo to write it victor hugo had five children out of which only four survived of the four his favorite was leopoldi he loved her the most because he believed she was a reflection of him she was well educated she recited poetry loved music and he could discuss his work with her at the age of 16 she fell in love with shalwa khiri hugo was against her marrying shal because he did not want her to leave him at 19 he grudgingly agrees to her marriage and is heartbroken to see her leave such was his love for her six months after her marriage a pregnant leopoldine is on a boat with her husband caught in a wind the boat capsizes and leopoldine sinks because of her heavy skirt and the poor girl doesn't know how to swim shall tries his best to save her but in vain tragically they both died victor hugo learned of leopoldine's death through a newspaper and her death deeply affected him this poem written on her fourth death anniversary is a song of love hugo immortalizes his dead daughter leopoldine through the power of poetry in this poem hoover describes his visit to his daughter's tomb this poem demanded lobe is found in the collection contemplations let's get back to the poem and look at the structure of the poem you will see that it has three stanzas with four verses each each verse is written in alexandra meaning it has 12 syllables you can also see alternate rhymes for example compine montan long tongue the tone of the poem is twofold one of promise and hope and then that of darkness and loneliness while reading the poem you will see that it is an expression of love of mourning pain and sadness you must take note that the verbs constructed in future show the different stages of his journey in verse 2 he says chapter i will leave in verse 5 he says i will walk and later he says i will arrive i would recommend that you read hugo's poem again and accompany him on this emotional trip to his daughter's tomb hugo is truly a romantic poet you can see in this poem solitude nature emotions which are all characteristics of the romantic era some experts say that leopoldine's death was a turning point in hugo's writing style and political leanings after she passed away he started writing some of the darker and heavier pieces till then he seemed to be pro-monarchy and seemed to have an elitist perspective but after leopoldine's passing he started seeing things from the perspective of the fur the oppressed and the suffering all this can be seen in pieces such as les miserables and if you're ever in paris make sure you visit hugo's home which is now a museum and you will see the way hugo has tried to keep leopoldine's memory alive by preserving things like the wreath from her wedding it truly is a tribute to this father's love for his daughter while the experts can argue about what really changed hugo's perspective and writing style i'd like to know your opinion in the comment section i'm just glad we have this poem even though it was born out of hugo spain i really hope you enjoyed this poem as much as i did i'm not an expert at poetry but if you have a poem you would like me to explore and explain i'd love to do that so drop that in the suggestions below too keep reading keep learning and keep sharing