Poem 06 Ulysses

6.ULYEESE

1.Who was Ulysses? What was his goal of life?

Ans)Ulysses was a great hero in Greek mythology. He was the symbol of adventure and courage in Homer’s Odyssey. He was the king of Ithaca, a Greek Island and served for Greeks in their war against Trojans during the siege of Troy. He was both a great leader and a fine orator. His goal of life was to face the dangers of life and to go on errands for discovering new world.

2.How does Ulysses address his old companions in the poem “Ulysses”?

Ans)Ulysses addresses his old companions and encourages them by reminding that they have always worked hard with him. They have also performed heroic deeds in the past. He says them that they have passed good and bad days with him. They have faced the sun and borne the scorching heat of the sun with smile. They have displayed their bravery without any fear and fret. Ulysses reminds his mariners about their joint venture of the yesteryears (the past, especially the time when attitudes and ideas were different) and urges them to display great energy and enthusiasm to meet the challenges of the future.

3.How does Ulysses present the picture of death before his old companions and urge them to go on their last adventure?

Ans)Ulysses tells his old companions that the sun of their life is going to set while the long day of their life is ending. The moon is also rising; this shows that night is first approaching towards them. They should not worry if they are old and death is very nearer to them, still there is something to go out and seek a new world.

4.How does Ulysses pay a tribute to his sailors and offer them to join with him in his last voyage?

Ans)Ulysses pays a tribute to his sailors on reminding them their accomplishments in the past. He tells them that they are free even from their noble souls. Old age has still kept them away from any long journey to explore this world. Ulysses addresses those mariners who had all those qualities and he offers them to join with him in the last voyage before his death.

“Heaven never helps those who never act” (Sophocles)

5.Who was Achilles? How does the poet present the concept of Greek paradise in the poem “Ulysses”?

Ans)Achilles was great Greek warrior in the war with Tory. He had been killed when the Trojan prince shot him with an arrow. The poet Alfred Tennyson refers to the Greek mythological belief. He refers in the poem “Ulysses” the concept of Happy Isles or the island of blessed, which is considered as the Greek paradise and the ultimate abode of the virtuous after their death. The poet says if Ulysses and his companions were to reach the Happy Isles, they would enjoy the glorious and honored company of the Greek warrior Achilles.

6.Tennyson has presented Ulyssess as the symbol of human struggle. Give your comments.

Ans)Ulyssess, a legendary figure in the Greek mythedology and great warrior, has been presented by Tennyson as an eternal and universal symbol of human struggle. The ocean symbolizes hardship and challenges of life. Ever since man has been struggling and striving against the forces of Nature, such as oceans, stormy rains, strong winds, heat of the burning sun, freezing cold and so on. Ulysses stand as a symbol of unending struggle of mankind, continued with the help of unshaken faith, courage, confidence and will to win. This is the moral and message of the poet to the readers that they must not surrender in the face of hardships, sufferings and challenges of life.