When You Are Old by W B Yeats (Analysis & Discussion Line-to-line)

When You Are Old by W B Yeats

About the Poet

William Butler Yeats was born in Dublin in 1865 and died in 1939. He was a great Irish poet. He is considered one of the great modern poets also. He began writing poetry at his early age and he was much influenced by Spenser, Shelley and a few Pre-Raphaelite poets also. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1923.

About the Poem

When You Are Old’ is W B Yeats’ memorable poem which deals with the theme of ‘love’ that is expressed by the poet in a very unique manner. It is said that the great Irish poet, W. B. Yeats, had immense love for Maud Gonne, who was equally active in native politics. Several times the poet expressed his love for her, but he always met with rejection.

It seems that, while writing this poem, the poet writes this poem keeping in view his beloved Maud Gonne, whom he continuously loved and his love indeed met with a failure.

In the present poem the poet tries to convince his beloved that he was the only person who loved her from the core of his heart and his love for her spiritual.

Lets’ discuss the poem line-to-line:

Text of Stanza 1

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;

Explanation: In  the above lines, the poet addresses his beloved that she should take down ‘this book’ and read it slowly when she  grows old,  her hair become grey and she sits by the fire feeling sleepy and nodding on some winter evening. The poet uses the demonstrative adjective ‘this’ for the book. It means the poet means to indicate to her to read the particular book in which the present poem would also be there. He further suggests to his beloved that after going through the pages of the book of poems, she should recollect, as if in a dream, that her eyes once had the soft look and her eyes were deep and shadowy. It means she had very beautiful eyes. The use of the word ‘nodding’ shows aging effect of the old age. It also creates a beautiful imagery.

Stanza 2

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;

Explanation:In the first stanza, the poet suggests to her to analyse as to how many of the young men loved her truly or falsely. After a deep consideration she would reach the conclusion that all of them had physical love in their hearts for her. But still, there was one who loved her ‘pilgrim soul’. The poet also claims that he was always sensitive to the changes that went on her face from time to time. It shows the poet’s deep devotion to her and is a testimony to ‘his true love’ for her. He knew when her face showed the marks of sadness and sorrow. Only the poet was able to read and understand even the minutest changes on her face.

The poet has called the ‘soul’ as a pilgrim. It means that the poet also believes in the life after death like Robert Browning, a great Victorian poet. According to the Oriental philosophy, human soul is immortal and leaves the body after death to take a new birth.  Thus human soul travels like a pilgrim to reach its final abode, Heaven, the pilgrimage. This is what the poet wants to convey to us by using the phrase ‘pilgrim soul’.

Stanza 3.

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.

Explanation: In this stanza also, the poet again imagines his beloved as an old woman who is sitting beside the fire. Now she is bending down the glowing ‘bars’ of the fireplace, and murmuring a few words of regret as to how the true love has fled from the world and become impossible to find.

इस स्टैंज़ा में कवी एक बार फिर कल्पना करते हैं और अपनी प्रेमिका को एहसास दिलाना चाहते हैं कि जब वे बूढी हो जाएँगी और एक अंगीठी के पास   थोड़ा सा झुक कर बैठी हुई होंगी तो अफ़सोस में कुछ शब्द बुदबुदा रही होंगी कि इस दुनियां से किस प्रकार सच्चा प्यार कहीं दूर ऊँचे ऊँचे पहाड़ों को छूता  हुआ कहीं दूर आस्मां में सितारों के बीच छुप गया हैl

अब उसे पुनः प्राप्त करना उतना असंभव हो गया है जितना कि आस्मां से किसी सितारे को तोड़ कर लाना l

The poet uses personification here to bring out the meaning about that true love is a rare phenomenon on this earth. He says that it has left the earthly surroundings and fled by pacing upon the mountains. It has hid his face amid the crowd of stars.

कवि यहाँ पर पर्सोनिफिकेशन का प्रयोग करते हैं ताकि वे यह समझा सकें कि सच्चा प्यार इस दुनियां में एक असंभव सी सच्चाई हो चुका है l वह अपनी प्रेमिका कि कल्पना के माध्यम से हमें यह बताना चाहते हैं कि सच्चा प्यार वास्तव में इस धरती पर रहा ही नहीं हैl कवि एक इमेजरी के माध्यम से बताते हैं कि वह तो ऊँचे पहाड़ों को छूता हुआ दूर आस्मां में टिमटिमाते सितारों के बीच छुप गया हैl

One cannot pick up a star and bring it down on the earth. So it has become to find true love on the earth. The use of the word ‘murmur’ shows regret. कोई भी व्यक्ति आस्मां से किस सितारे को तोड़ कर ज़मीं पर नहीं ला सकता l ठीक उसी प्रकार से सच्चे प्यार को इस धरती पर ढूँढ पाना असंभव सा हो गया है l मर्मर शब्द का प्रयोग अफ़सोस प्रकट करता है  जैसे कि कवि की प्रेमिका को सच्चा प्यार खो देने पर अफ़सोस हो रहा हो l

Here, it may also be concluded that by presenting the picture of love disappearing from the earth, the poet means to make his beloved realise that his love for her is true.

यहाँ पर यह निष्कर्ष यह  निकाला जा सकता है कि प्यार को धरती से भागते हुए जो  एक तस्वीर कवि ने पर्सोनिफिकेशन की प्रस्तुत की है उससे कवि अपनी प्रेमिका को शायद यह समझाना चाहते हैं की उनका प्यार उनके लिए सच्चा हैl

If she did not accept his love, then, in the course of life, she would repent and feel regret for rejecting her true lover and she would be sitting alone by the fireside thinking how her glory of youthful days fled and how she proved herself foolish by not accepting her true lover, that would be as impossible to retrieve as are stars to be plucked down from the sky.

यदि उन्होंने कवि का प्यार स्वीकार नहीं किया तो आगे आने वाले जीवन में उन्हें अपने प्रेमी का सच्चा प्यार अस्वीकार कर  के पछताना पड़ेगा और अफ़सोस करना पड़ेगा l

जब उन्हें अपनी गलती का एहसास होगा तब वे बूढी हो चुकी होंगी और अकेली अंगीठी के पास झुकी हुई सी बैठ कर सोच रहीं होंगी कि किस प्रकार से उनकी शारीरिक सुंदरता गायब हो चुकी है और उसके साथ ही उनके झूठे प्रेमी भी गायब हो चुके हैं और वे स्वयं कितनी मुर्ख थी कि उन्होंने अपने सच्चे प्रेमी के प्यार को ठुकरा दिया था l और अब उस प्यार को पाना उतना असंभव हो गया है कि जितना असंभव कि सितारे को आस्मां से तोड़ कर लानाl

Q1. General Question: About the poet’s personal experience/ views revealed on love in the poem

Ans. W. B. Yeats expresses his views on true love in this poem. He believes in true love. He says that most of the lovers in this world believe in physical love. Physical love fades away as the beloved starts becoming old. This poem expresses the poet’s personal experience. He had deep love for his beloved, Maud Gonne. Several times he approached her and expressed his love for her. But every time he received rejection. In the present poem, the poet expresses his true love for her. He imagines that at that time, she would be old and sitting all alone by the fire feeling sleepy. Then she would recall as to how several young men used to express their love for her. But in her old age, no one was there to love her truly except one (i.e. the poet) who loved her pilgrim soul truly. Then her heart would be filled with regret.