Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Title: Sylvie et Aur?lie Author: Andrew Lang

Provenance

Andrew Lang was a renowned Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and anthropologist who lived from 1844 to 1912. His poem, "Sylvie et Aur?lie", was written in memory of G?rard de Nerval, a significant French writer and poet of the Romantic movement. Nerval's works often revolve around themes of love, dream and fantasy, and the supernatural, and it's likely that Lang's poem reflects these elements.

Theme Analysis

Transience of Love: The poem presents two different loves, each transient and fleeting. These loves are not merely romantic but might also symbolize different stages or aspects of life. The first love, born "between the sunset and the rain," symbolizes a natural, idyllic love associated with youth, simplicity, and innocence. The second love, born of the "city's mire and light," represents a more adult, complex love associated with the city's glamor and squalor.

Memory and Longing: There is a strong theme of nostalgia and longing for past loves, which can also be seen as longing for the past itself. The repeated line, "this love comes no more again," reinforces this theme of irretrievable loss.

Life and Death: The poem also explores the themes of life, death, and the afterlife. The speaker suggests that the loves, or what they symbolize, can only be encountered again in death or the afterlife.

Poetic Devices

Rhyme: The poem has a rhyme scheme of ABABCCB, which is consistently followed in each of its four stanzas. This gives a sense of unity and cohesion to the poem.

Imagery: Lang employs vivid imagery to evoke the contrast between the two loves. The natural imagery ("corn," "thorn," "dawn and dew") associated with the first love sharply contrasts with the urban imagery ("city's mire and light," "lamplight and the rain") associated with the second love.

Repetition: The refrain, "this love comes no more again," is repeated throughout the poem, emphasizing the theme of irrevocable loss and longing.

Metaphor: The two loves can be seen as metaphors for different stages or aspects of life - youth and maturity, innocence and experience, rural simplicity and urban complexity.

Alliteration: The poem uses alliteration, for instance, "singing voice went through the corn," which adds a musical quality to the poem.

In conclusion, "Sylvie et Aur?lie" is a contemplative piece reflecting on the ephemeral nature of love and life stages, the pain of their loss, and the hope or dread of their potential recurrence in death or the afterlife. Andrew Lang uses a variety of poetic devices to vividly convey these themes and to pay tribute to the French poet, G?rard de Nerval.

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