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- "Old Man" is an 1854 poem by Irish scholar and poet James Henry. The poem's speaker (the "Old Man" of the title) compares life at age sixty to life at age six. He draws a surprising parallel between these two times in his life: during both, he yearned for some beautiful "picture" or ideal vision, but could never reach it, despite his best efforts.
www.litcharts.com/poetry/james-henry/old-man
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Old Man. By Edward Thomas. Share. Old Man, or Lad's-love,—in the name there's nothing. To one that knows not Lad's-love, or Old Man, The hoar-green feathery herb, almost a tree, Growing with rosemary and lavender. Even to one that knows it well, the names. Half decorate, half perplex, the thing it is:
- Rain
Rain, midnight rain, nothing but the wild rain On this bleak...
- The Bridge Builder
The old man crossed in the twilight dim, The sullen stream...
- Rain
Mar 24, 2017 · Here are ten of the very finest poems about ageing, from the age of Shakespeare to the current century. 1. William Shakespeare, Sonnet 73. That time of year thou mayst in me behold. When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang. Upon those boughs which shake against the cold, Bare ruined choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
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- Structure and Form
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- Detailed Analysis
- Similar Poetry
‘Old Man’ by Edward Thomas is a thoughtful poem that describes a speaker’s contrastingviews and memories of a specific plant. The first part of the poem is dedicated to a description of the plant and a discussion of its name. It is called both “old man” and “lad’s-love.” These juxtaposed names are symbolicof the speaker’s confused opinion. He likes...
Throughout this poem, Thomas engages with two primary themes: nature and memories/the past. 1. Nature: within this fairly short poem, Thomas explores his connection with the “old man” or “lad’s love” plant. He speaks about the plant’s unusual names and how, as a young person, he believes he treated the plant in the same way that the young girl in t...
‘Old Man’ by Edward Thomas is a four-stanza poem that is divided into uneven stanzas. The first stanzacontains eight lines, the second: sixteen, the third: eight, and the fourth: eight. The poem does not follow a structured rhyme scheme. But, there are examples of rhymes throughout. For instance, “names” is repeated twice at the end of lines seven ...
Throughout this poem, the poet makes use of several literary devices. These include but are not limited to: 1. Anaphora: the repetitionof the same word or phrase at the beginning of multiple lines. For example, “The” in stanza two. 2. Imagery: the use of particularly interesting descriptions that should inspire the readers to visualize them. For ex...
Stanza One
In the first stanza of the poem, the poet begins by referring to the two names used for a specific plant he focuses on throughout— Old Man and Lad’s-love. These two contrasting names immediately allude to the plant’s usual nature. The narratorhas difficulty defining and describing the poem throughout the four stanzas, and the name is only part of the issue. He notes immediately that there is “nothing” in the name. So, one should disregard the name when trying to analyze and understand the pla...
Stanza Two
The speaker expands on his feelings about the plant in the second stanza. He doesn’t like the herb itself, he adds, but he certainly feels an amount of love for it. He doesn’t appreciate it for its utility but for its presence and how it might fit into one’s day-to-day routine. Thomas uses a similein these lines, comparing his appreciation for the plant to the same appreciation a child who “Plucks a feather” from a bush beside her door appreciates the plant. It’s clear that the speaker sees t...
Stanza Three
The speaker turns from his consideration of a young girl, who is likely his daughter, to himself. He doesn’t remember where he “first…met” the bitter scent of the plant.” But, he remembers he also tore the feathers to pieces as the young girl will or does. He still picks parts of the plant off and smells them trying to remember the first place or time he encountered the Old Man or Lad’s-love. In the middle of this stanza, the speaker brings in another contradiction regarding his feelings abou...
Readers who enjoyed this piece should also consider reading some other Edward Thomas poems. For example: 1. ‘Adlestrop’ – describes an occasion when the poet was taking the train from Oxfordshire to Gloucestershire, and it had to make an unscheduled stop. 2. ‘Aspens’ – speaks on the nature of grief and how poets play a role in the preservation of m...
- Female
- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
A ram, caught in a thicket by its horns; Offer the Ram of Pride instead of him. But the old man would not so, but slew his son, And half the seed of Europe, one by one. This poem is in the public domain. The Parable of the Old Man and the Young - So Abram rose, and clave the wood, and went.
‘The Parable of the Old Man and the Young’ by Wilfred Owen is a parable that retells the story of Isaac and Abraham with a new twist ending. In the first lines of this poem, the speaker begins by describing the Biblical story of Abraham and Isaac.
- Female
- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
However in this poem the Old Man is now the Military Leaders who go on to kill many sons. By using the biblical-like language Owen stresses the harsh mockery of the authorities who, in their own arrogance and pride, go on with the slaughter, killing whole generations of young men.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim, The sullen stream had no fear for him; But he turned when safe on the other side. And built a bridge to span the tide. “Old man,” said a fellow pilgrim near, “You are wasting your strength with building here; Your journey will end with the ending day,
