Poetry Feast

I know that I shall meet my fate
Somewhere among the clouds above;
Those that I fight I do not hate,
Those that I guard I do not love;
My country is Kiltartan Cross,
My countrymen Kiltartan’s poor,
No likely end could bring them loss
Or leave them happier than before.
Nor law, nor duty bade me fight,
Nor public men, nor cheering crowds,
A lonely impulse of delight
Drove to this tumult in the clouds;
I balanced all, brought all to mind,
The years to come seemed waste of breath,
A waste of breath the years behind
In balance with this life, this death

Analysis

Here, Yeats is considering the implications and the futility of war. Lines 3 and 4 suggest that neither side of the battle is worthy of winning and line 8 says that even if the war was won, no one would be happier and the people would still be poor (line 5). The poem changes direction from around line 8 from the wider implications of war to the airman’s experience of it. He points out that he joined the battle on impulse, not out of any sort of law or duty (line 9) or peer pressure (line 10). The final 4 lines seem to adopt a pragmatic yet pessimistic approach to life, saying the past and the future do not matter in balance with the now, however the final line ‘in balance with this life, this death’ suggest that the now will only lead to death – again enforcing the futility of war.

(3 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

 Loading ...