Alfred Lord Tennyson’s dramatic monologue Tithonus is a poignant meditation on the curse of immortality without eternal youth. Drawing from the ancient Greek myth in which the goddess of dawn, Eos (or Aurora), grants Tithonus—once a handsome and vigorous mortal—the gift of endless life but forgets to bestow eternal youth, the poem captures the agonizing decay of a man forced to outlive his prime.
In this post, we’ll explore the poem’s original text, break down its narrative flow using arrows, and reflect on its themes and stylistic brilliance.
The Original Poem
Below is the full text of Tithonus as provided by Tennyson:
The woods decay, the woods decay and fall,
The vapours weep their burthen to the ground,
Man comes and tills the field and lies beneath,
And after many a summer dies the swan.
Me only cruel immortality
Consumes: I wither slowly in thine arms,
Here at the quiet limit of the world,
A white-hair'd shadow roaming like a dream
The ever-silent spaces of the East,
Far-folded mists, and gleaming halls of morn.
Alas! for this gray shadow, once a man—
So glorious in his beauty and thy choice,
Who madest him thy chosen, that he seem'd
To his great heart none other than a God!
I ask'd thee, 'Give me immortality.'
Then didst thou grant mine asking with a smile,
Like wealthy men, who care not how they give.
But thy strong Hours indignant work'd their wills,
And beat me down and marr'd and wasted me,
And tho' they could not end me, left me maim'd
To dwell in presence of immortal youth,
Immortal age beside immortal youth,
And all I was, in ashes. Can thy love,
Thy beauty, make amends, tho' even now,
Close over us, the silver star, thy guide,
Shines in those tremulous eyes that fill with tears
To hear me? Let me go: take back thy gift:
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 pause, as is most meet for all?
A soft air fans the cloud apart; there comes
A glimpse of that dark world where I was born.
Once more the old mysterious glimmer steals
From thy pure brows, and from thy shoulders pure,
And bosom beating with a heart renew'd.
Thy cheek begins to redden thro' the gloom,
Thy sweet eyes brighten slowly close to mine,
Ere yet they blind the stars, and the wild team
Which love thee, yearning for thy yoke, arise,
And shake the darkness from their loosen'd manes,
And beat the twilight into flakes of fire.
Lo! ever thus thou growest beautiful
In silence, then before thine answer given
Departest, and thy tears are on my cheek.
Why wilt thou ever scare me with thy tears,
And make me tremble lest a saying learnt,
In days far-off, on that dark earth, be true?
'The Gods themselves cannot recall their gifts.'
Ay me! ay me! with what another heart
In days far-off, and with what other eyes
I used to watch—if I be he that watch'd—
The lucid outline forming round thee; saw
The dim curls kindle into sunny rings;
Changed with thy mystic change, and felt my blood
Glow with the glow that slowly crimson'd all
Thy presence and thy portals, while I lay,
Mouth, forehead, eyelids, growing dewy-warm
With kisses balmier than half-opening buds
Of April, and could hear the lips that kiss'd
Whispering I knew not what of wild and sweet,
Like that strange song I heard Apollo sing,
While Ilion like a mist rose into towers.
Yet hold me not for ever in thine East:
How can my nature longer mix with thine?
Coldly thy rosy shadows bathe me, cold
Are all thy lights, and cold my wrinkled feet
Upon thy glimmering thresholds, when the steam
Floats up from those dim fields about the homes
Of happy men that have the power to die,
And grassy barrows of the happier dead.
Release me, and restore me to the ground;
Thou seest all things, thou wilt see my grave:
Thou wilt renew thy beauty morn by morn;
I earth in earth forget these empty courts,
And thee returning on thy silver wheels.
A Flow of Tithonus in Arrow Format
To unpack the poem’s progression, let’s trace Tithonus’s emotional and existential journey using a series of arrows:
Nature’s Cycle vs. Eternal Decay
→ The opening lines contrast the natural cycle of decay (trees, men, swans) with Tithonus’s cursed, unending decay.
Nature accepts death as a part of life—but Tithonus is condemned to wither forever.
The Curse of Immortality
→ Tithonus laments, “Me only cruel immortality consumes,” revealing his torment of endless aging.
He is reduced to a “white-hair'd shadow,” unable to escape the ravages of time.
A Glimpse of Past Glory
→ He recalls his former glory—once chosen and admired as if a god—and his proud request for immortality.
Yet this gift, granted too casually, has now become a heavy burden.
Time’s Ruthless Toll
→ Tithonus describes how the “strong Hours” have “beat me down” and left him maimed, juxtaposing his immortal age with the eternal youth of others (like his beloved, the goddess).
This contrast deepens his despair, as he is forced to live in a state of perpetual decay.
A Plea for Release
→ In anguished lines, he implores the goddess to “take back thy gift” and free him from his endless torment.
He questions why a man should deviate from the natural order of life and death.
Memories of Lost Youth and Love
→ Tithonus reminisces about the passionate, vibrant moments of his youth with Eos—the sweetness of dawn, the beauty of her presence, and the life they once shared.
These memories intensify his sorrow as he contrasts his faded, wrinkled existence with her eternal radiance.
Final Lament and Acceptance of Mortality
→ He concludes with a desperate plea for release, wishing to be restored to the earth, to end his unnatural state while the goddess renews her own beauty every morning.
In these closing lines, Tithonus acknowledges the natural order and yearns for the peace that mortality can bring.
Themes and Reflections
1. The Curse of Immortality:
Tennyson examines the paradox of eternal life without eternal youth. Tithonus’s endless existence is not a gift but a punishment—an endless aging that isolates him from the natural cycle of rebirth and renewal.
2. Nature vs. Supernatural:
The poem juxtaposes the transient beauty and decay of the natural world with Tithonus’s static, anguished state. While nature embraces decay as part of life, Tithonus is trapped in perpetual decline.
3. Regret and the Desire for Release:
Tithonus’s heartfelt plea for death underlines a universal truth: that there is dignity in the natural cycle of life and death. His longing to return to the earth symbolizes a deep desire for peace and finality.
4. The Price of Overreaching:
By asking for immortality, Tithonus overstepped the bounds of human nature. His regret teaches us that some gifts—even those that seem divine—can carry unforeseen and devastating consequences.
Final Thoughts
Tithonus remains a timeless meditation on the human condition and the inevitability of death. Tennyson’s eloquent language and vivid imagery compel us to reflect on our own mortality and the natural order of life.
Through Tithonus’s tragic lament, we are reminded that life’s impermanence gives it meaning—and that even the gods cannot always recall their gifts.
In embracing the flow of this poem—from the natural decay of the world to the tormented plea for a release from immortality—we come to understand Tithonus’s profound sorrow and the bitter irony of a life granted eternal duration yet robbed of its youthful essence.
Whether you are drawn to the beauty of Tennyson’s verse or the deep philosophical questions it raises, Tithonus offers a moving exploration of the costs of defying nature’s immutable laws.
