Text:
“To Marguerite” by Matthew Arnold
Yes! In the sea of life enisled,
With echoing straits between us thrown.
Dotting the shoreless watery wild,
We mortal millions live alone.
The islands feel the enclasping flow,
And then their endless bounds they know.
But when the moon their hollow lights,
And they are swept by balms of spring,
And in their glens, on starry nights,
The nightingales divinely sing;
And lovely notes, from shore to shore,
Across the sounds and channels pour;
O then a longing like despair
Is to their farthest caverns sent!
For surely once, they feel, we were
Parts of a single continent.
Now round us spreads the watery plain--
O might our marges meet again!
Who order'd that their longing's fire
Should be, as soon as kindled, cool'd?
Who renders vain their deep desire?--
A God, a God their severence ruled;
And bade betwixt their shores to be
The unplumb'd, salt, estranging sea.
Initial Impression:
At first, I thought that the poem, “To Marguerite,” explained that humans are slowly drifting apart. We used to be close and always in contact with another and in tune with nature. However, as time progressed, mankind became obsessed with fulfilling our individual desires. These desires differed from person to person, allowing us to drift apart from one another. Eventually, we felt the loneliness of being wrapped in our own lives and we yearn for the company of others. However, the distance we have made between ourselves and others of our kind is difficult to cross, making our reunion bittersweet.
Paraphrase:
Life throws obstacles at us that separate us. We are alone, now. Our loneliness is represented by and island and we are surrounded by the endless sea. When the moon sets and the sun rises; we are happy where we are. In the valley on starry nights, the birds sing happy songs. The music from their songs is heard from great distances. There is a feeling of longing, and then we push away our feelings. Once, we were together. Now we are separate, apart. Let’s get together again. Who separated us and made our passion fade? Only a God could have caused our separation! Between us, the distance, both physical and emotional, is like the sea.
SWIFTT:
Matthew Arnold uses syntax, diction, imagery, figurative language, tone, and theme in his poem, “To Marguerite.”
Syntax/Word Choice:
In the twenty-first line, it is asked, “Who renders vain their deep desire?” The wording in that line allows readers to see the connection between separated lovers. There is also alliteration in the first stanza, “mortal millions.”
Imagery:
The island and sea imagery in this poem allows readers to comprehend the loneliness of the two as well as the distance between them. Islands break off from a mass of land, so maybe the land can come back sometime. This is being connected to the hope that humans hold to maintain relationships.
Figurative language:
Usage of figurative language such as “a distance like the sea,” promotes the loneliness of the couple.
Tone:
The tone of “To Marguerite” is woeful and longing, as shown in lines 13-14: “O then a longing like despair/ Is to their farthest caverns sent!”
Theme:
Finally, the theme of “To Marguerite” seems to be loneliness and separation within relationships, as shown by the sea and island imagery.
Conclusion:
After analyzing the poem, I have come to believe that my original understanding of the poem was incorrect. I now believe that “To Marguerite” is about a man and woman that were separated. The man writes a poem “To Marguerite,” his past lover from whom he was separated. Also, when they are separated, the lovers feel lonely and alone in the world, indicated by the island imagery. The lovers represent mankind in that we want to maintain our past relationships, even with the distance of time and space.
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