Response Journal #4

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats is most known for his book Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry. This includes a lot of the poems that are most famous. While reading his poems I noticed a pattern. He liked to write poems concerning the Irish life. He also likes to make Irish life seem more pleasant than what most people thought it was. For example in the poem we went over in class The Lake Isle of Innisfree.

When You Are Old

by William Butler Yeats

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

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim Soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

When I read this poem it made me think of my grandparents. It made me think of them because in my interpretation its about old age. Not just old age but what you go through as an old man/woman. When you become old you start to realize and appreciate the things you once had. For example:

dream of the soft look Your eyes once had

When I read this line I think of how when you get old you start to lose the youth you once had. Your mind, body, and soul start to age. As you get older you might also have had or do have a spouse. As you age you come closer to death, and all people do, some more than others though. Generally a couple will not die at the same time, and with that one must come before the other. This is also remembering that as you grow old you are bound to lose that loved one. You will think back to the times in which you shared life with them. You will also realize that they have gone, and if you believe in god, they have most likely gone to another place. The last three lines show this. If love flees, it is leaving. If it is pacing over mountain tops and is seen in the 'crowd of stars', stanza 3 line 4, then most likely they are in a better place. A place where there is light which symbolizes the heavens.

Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

I liked this poem because it is a beautiful way to remember. It describes a memory of someone you loved. Even though it is sad to think about I still can appreciate this poem because it is showing that there is beauty in death.