A. Tennyson’s in Memoriam: Stylistic Analysis
The poem that we are going to analyze in this paper is section XI from the poem In Memoriam, which was written in 1850 by Alfred Tennyson.
In Memoriam is a long poem with 131 sections with a varying length. Besides this, it also has a prologue and an epilogue, a happy marriage song on the occasion of the wedding of Tennyson’s sister Cecilia. It was written after the death of Arthur Henry Hallam, a friend of Tennyson’s and it deals with many intellectual issues of the Victorian Age, since the author tried to find a meaning for life and death and he also tries to cope with his sense of loss. Furthermore, In Memoriam links traditional religious faith and belief in immortality with the theories of evolution and modern geology which were emerging at the time the author was writing. The lines of this poem were developed during a period of three years in which the author was trying to accept and understand his friend’s death ("Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron").
In Memoriam appeared in 1850. This year marked a turning point in Alfred Tennyson’s life. It was in 1850 when Tennyson resumed his correspondence with Emily Sellwood. Their engagement was renewed and it was followed by marriage. Besides this, Edward Moxon offered Tennyson to publish his poems on the death of Arthur Henry Hallam. They appeared as In Memoriam. At first, they appeared anonymously, but later he had a great success with both reviewers and the public and became a friend to Queen Victoria. This year, he was appointed as poet laureate, too ("Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron").
Alfred Tennyson wrote during the Romantic era. Romanticism was a literary, artistic and philosophical movement that began in Europe in the 18th century and which lasted until the mid-19th century. It was both a reaction against and a continuation of the Enlightenment. As we will see in the poem, Romanticism emphasized the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the imaginative, the personal, the emotional,
In Memoriam is a long poem with 131 sections with a varying length. Besides this, it also has a prologue and an epilogue, a happy marriage song on the occasion of the wedding of Tennyson’s sister Cecilia. It was written after the death of Arthur Henry Hallam, a friend of Tennyson’s and it deals with many intellectual issues of the Victorian Age, since the author tried to find a meaning for life and death and he also tries to cope with his sense of loss. Furthermore, In Memoriam links traditional religious faith and belief in immortality with the theories of evolution and modern geology which were emerging at the time the author was writing. The lines of this poem were developed during a period of three years in which the author was trying to accept and understand his friend’s death ("Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron").
In Memoriam appeared in 1850. This year marked a turning point in Alfred Tennyson’s life. It was in 1850 when Tennyson resumed his correspondence with Emily Sellwood. Their engagement was renewed and it was followed by marriage. Besides this, Edward Moxon offered Tennyson to publish his poems on the death of Arthur Henry Hallam. They appeared as In Memoriam. At first, they appeared anonymously, but later he had a great success with both reviewers and the public and became a friend to Queen Victoria. This year, he was appointed as poet laureate, too ("Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron").
Alfred Tennyson wrote during the Romantic era. Romanticism was a literary, artistic and philosophical movement that began in Europe in the 18th century and which lasted until the mid-19th century. It was both a reaction against and a continuation of the Enlightenment. As we will see in the poem, Romanticism emphasized the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the imaginative, the personal, the emotional,
Cited: "In Memoriam stanza." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD 3 June 2006. "Romanticism." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD 3 June 2006. "Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD 3 June 2006.