Concetti Chiave
- The poem "When I was one-and-twenty" by A.E. Housman is composed of two eight-line stanzas with consistent punctuation and capitalization.
- The poem lacks a rhyme scheme but features the repetition of the phrase "one-and-twenty."
- The poet reflects on advice given by a wise man at age twenty-one: to spend money but guard the heart and maintain freedom of thought.
- As the poet turns twenty-two, he realizes the truth in the wise man's words regarding the emotional cost of giving one's heart.
- The personal reflection appreciates the wisdom and romantic nature of the advice, especially in the latter lines of the poem.
When I was one-and-twenty
When I was one-and-twenty
I heard a wise man say,
`Give crowns and pounds and guineas
But not your heart away;
Give pearls away and rubies
But keep your fancy free.'
But I was one-and-twenty
No use to talk to me.
When I was one-and-twenty
I heard him say again,
`The heart out of the bosom
Was never given in vain;
'Tis paid with sighs a plenty
And sold for endless rue.'
And I am two-and-twenty
And oh, 'tis true, 'tis true.
Analysis of the Poem
This poem was written by A.E.
Housman.It’s split into 2 long stanzas, both of eight lines which are of regular length and aren’t aligned. Each line begins with a capital letter and there is a regular punctuation. There isn’t a rhyme scheme and there is a repetition “one-and-twenty”.
In this poem, the poet says when he was twenty one years old, a wise man gave him some advise, he told him to spend his money but not to give his heart away, to present jewelry but never shut his fantasy.
“`Give crowns and pounds and guineas // But not your heart away;// Give pearls away and rubies // But keep your fancy free.'(lines 3, 4, 5, 6).But he was only a boy and he couldn’t understand the real meaning of these words.
The same wise man told him another thing, he explained the sense of love. `The heart out of the bosom // Was never given in vain; // 'This paid with sighs a plenty // And sold for endless rue.' (lines 12, 13, 14, 15). Now he’s twenty two and he can understand what the wise man had said.
Personal Reflection
I think this poem is very nice and I really like the speech of the wise man, especially in lines 12 and 13, I think they are really true and romantic.
Domande da interrogazione
- ¿Cuál es el consejo principal que el hombre sabio le da al joven en el poema?
- ¿Cómo cambia la perspectiva del narrador entre los 21 y los 22 años?
- ¿Qué estructura tiene el poema y cómo contribuye a su mensaje?
El hombre sabio aconseja al joven que gaste su dinero pero que no entregue su corazón, y que regale joyas pero mantenga su fantasía libre.
A los 21 años, el narrador no comprende el consejo del sabio, pero a los 22 años, se da cuenta de que el consejo sobre el amor y el dolor es cierto.
El poema está dividido en dos estrofas de ocho líneas cada una, con una repetición de "one-and-twenty", lo que enfatiza el cambio de perspectiva del narrador con el tiempo.
Accedi a tutti gli appunti
Tutor AI: studia meglio e in meno tempo
