Classic and Contemporary Poetry
ULTIMA THULE: HELEN OF TYRE, by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW Poet Analysis Poet's Biography First Line: What phantom is this that appears Last Line: A name upon men's lips. | ||||||||
What phantom is this that appears Through the purple mist of the years, Itself but a mist like these? A woman of cloud and of fire; It is she; it is Helen of Tyre, The town in the midst of the seas. O Tyre! in thy crowded streets The phantom appears and retreats, And the Israelites that sell Thy lilies and lions of brass, Look up as they see her pass, And murmur "Jezebel!" Then another phantom is seen At her side, in a gray gabardine, With beard that floats to his waist; It is Simon Magus, the Seer; He speaks, and she pauses to hear The words he utters in haste. He says: "From this evil fame, From this life of sorrow and shame, I will lift thee and make thee mine; Thou hast been Queen Candace, And Helen of Troy, and shalt be The Intelligence Divine!" Oh, sweet as the breath of morn, To the fallen and forlorn Are whispered words of praise; For the famished heart believes The falsehood that tempts and deceives, And the promise that betrays. So she follows from land to land The wizard's beckoning hand, As a leaf is blown by the gust, Till she vanishes into night. O reader, stoop down and write With thy finger in the dust. O town in the midst of the seas, With thy rafts of cedar trees, Thy merchandise and thy ships, Thou, too, art become as naught, A phantom, a shadow, a thought, A name upon men's lips. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...A GLEAM OF SUNSHINE by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW A PSALM OF LIFE by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW BELISARIUS by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW BURIAL OF THE MINNISINK by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CARILLON by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CATAWBA WINE by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CHANGED by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CHAUCER; SONNET by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CHRISTMAS BELLS by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW CURFEW by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW DAYBREAK by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW DIVINA COMMEDIA (INTRODUCTORY POEMS): 1 by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW |
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