2nd PUC ENGLISH NOTES - WHEN YOU ARE OLD SUMMARY

 

WHEN YOU ARE OLD

W.B. YEATS

 

William Butler Yeasts has composed a beautiful poem “When You Are Old” In this poem he has expressed his true and memorable love. The poet has addressed this poem to his lover, who has rejected his love and left him. The poet has imagined about future when his lover become old and regret for refusing his true love. As per theme here is love, rejection and time.

 

In the first stanza the poet assumes that when his lover becomes old and sitting beside the fire place, nodding her head, no strength, feeling sleepy and reading the book of poems. She remembers the past, her youthful beauty, the soft look that her eyes had once, and recalls depth of lost beauty and elegance.

 

In the second stanza the poet expresses that how many suitors try to court her, being charmed by her beauty and love her physical beauty and grace of her youthful beauty. Only the poet is one who tries to tell her that he loves her soul. He is not attracted by her physical beauty but he is attracted by her inner self. Here he says that his love remains constant even after she grows old. He assures that even though her beauty fades as the period of time but his love for her remains same forever.

 

In the third and final stanza the poet visualizes that when she will be bending down beside the bars of the fire place, she tells herself a little sadly that her true love has left and gone far away to those mountains and hides his face among midst of stars. However, she feels sad that her love also vanished.