Excellent poetry should move the reader to the depths of his soul, paint splendid visual pictures in the mind, and convey a meaningful message to the reader. On all these counts, ôSailing to Byzantiumö achieves excellence. It is one of YeatsÆs most poignant poems, beautifully crafted, and rich with meaning and imagery.
The poem contrasts the lush vibrancy of youth with the decay and imminence of death in old age. There is a palpable longing for the carefree days of youth, with its warm embraces and the happy sounds and abundance of nature. Paradoxically, however, these images of life bring sadness to the old man who has nearly completed the journey of his life; his ôvoyageö to the holy city of Byzantium, representing the afterlife, is at an end, and Byzantium stands before him.
Rather than feeling relieved that he is about to pass into a better world or satisfied that he has accomplished great things, the poet instead addresses the sages ôstanding in GodÆs holy fireö and invites them to ôConsume my heart away; sick with desire And fastened to a dying animal.ö With deep sadness, the poet relinquishes his life to ôthe artifice of eternity,ö and along with it every beauty and joy of nature. Once in eternity (ôout of natureö), he says, ôI shall never take My bodily form from any natural thingà.ö He clearly envisions an eternity that will rob him of all the good things he has enjoyed in his youth and make him into a monument ôof unageing intellect,ö as devoid of life as a stone statue.
The poetÆs ability to evoke the luxuriant beauty of nature with its abundance, variety, and symbols of life, is superb. Yet the imagery evoked by his concept of Byzantium is even more compelling. It conjures images of rich tapestries, enormous stone monuments, and stately columns, but its opulence is a haunted beauty imbued with the sense of loneliness; it conveys a picture of great halls studded wit
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