Transcript W.B. Yeats

Before you read:
Swans are a common
subject in poetry, as well as
mythology and fairy tales.
With the person beside you
think of as many examples
of swans in stories or
popular culture. Discuss
what you think swans
might represent or stand
for.
The trees are in their autumn beauty,
The woodland paths are dry,
Under the October twilight the water
Mirrors a still sky;
Upon the brimming water among the stones
Are nine-and-fifty swans.
The nineteenth autumn has come upon me
Since I first made my count;
I saw, before I had well finished,
All suddenly mount
And scatter wheeling in great broken rings
Upon their clamorous wings.
I have looked upon those brilliant creatures,
And now my heart is sore.
All's changed since I, hearing at twilight,
The first time on this shore,
The bell-beat of their wings above my head,
Trod with a lighter tread.
Unwearied still, lover by lover,
They paddle in the cold
Companionable streams or
climb the air;
Their hearts have not grown
old;
Passion or conquest, wander
where they will,
Attend upon them still.
But now they drift on the
still water,
Mysterious, beautiful;
Among what rushes will they
build,
By what lake's edge or pool
Delight men's eyes when I
awake some day
To find they have flown away?
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This poem is set in
Coole Park, Co. Galway.
Yeats is wandering
through the grounds of
the park when he sees a
flock of swans floating
on a lake.
The sight of the swans
reminds Yeats of his
first visit to the park 19
years earlier.
He thinks about how
much his life has
changed since.
Stanza 1
 The poem begins by
setting an autumn
scene:
“The trees are in their
autumn beauty”.
 Yeats suggests this
place is beautiful,
calm & peaceful.
Stanza 2

It is 19 years since Yeats first
visited the park & saw the
swans upon the lake.

On the first visit he
attempted to count the
number of the swans,
however the swans flew into
the air before he could finish
counting them.

The strength (“clamourous”)
& power of the swans is
suggested by the poet’s
description of them flying
away.
Stanza 3
 The poet admires the
swans, calling them
“brilliant creatures”.
 But the sight of their
beauty makes him feel sad
because his life has
changed so much since he
first saw the swans 19
years ago, when he was a
much younger man.
 Back then he “trod with a
lighter tread” – his body
was youthful.
Stanza 4



The swans ‘hearts’ have
not grown old. Their lives
are still full of passion &
adventure(“passion &
conquest”).
The swans are not alone,
they travel in pairs: “lover
by lover”.
The swans are free to fly
anywhere they please:
“wander where they will”.
Stanza 5
 Yeats knows he will wake
up one day & they will be
gone.
 He wonders where the
swans will build their
nests once they leave
Coole:
“Among what rushes will
they build”.
 Wherever they go they
will bring “delight to
men’s eyes”.


Growing Older
Yeats is preoccupied with
getting older. He feels as a
middle aged man, that
passion & adventure are no
longer a big part of his life.
Beauty of Nature
The poet describes the
peacefulness of Coole Park.
He praises the beauty of the
swans.