Excerpt

Excerpt from Helen of Troy, and Other Poems, by Sara Teasdale

Erinna

They sent you in to say farewell to me,
No, do not shake your head; I see your eyes
That shine with tears. Sappho, you saw the sun
Just now when you came hither, and again,
When you have left me, all the shimmering
Great meadows will laugh lightly, and the sun
Put round about you warm invisible arms
As might a lover, decking you with light.
I go toward darkness tho' I lie so still.
If I could see the sun, I should look up
And drink the light until my eyes were blind;
I should kneel down and kiss the blades of grass,
And I should call the birds with such a voice,
With such a longing, tremulous and keen,
That they would fly to me and on the breast
Bear evermore to tree-tops and to fields
The kiss I gave them. Sappho, tell me this,
Was I not sometimes fair? My eyes, my mouth,
My hair that loved the wind, were they not worth
The breath of love upon them? Yet he passed,
And he will pass to-night when all the air
Is blue with twilight; but I shall not see.
I shall have gone forever. Hold my hands,
Hold fast that Death may never come between;
Swear by the gods you will not let me go;
Make songs for Death as you would sing to Love--
But you will not assuage him. He alone
Of all the gods will take no gifts from men.
I am afraid, afraid.

                  Sappho, lean down.<br />

Last night the fever gave a dream to me,
It takes my life and gives a little dream.
I thought I saw him stand, the man I love,
Here in my quiet chamber, with his eyes
Fixed on me as I entered, while he drew
Silently toward me--he who night by night
Goes by my door without a thought of me--
Neared me and put his hand behind my head,
And leaning toward me, kissed me on the mouth.
That was a little dream for Death to give,
Too short to take the whole of life for, yet
I woke with lips made quiet by a kiss.
The dream is worth the dying. Do not smile
So sadly on me with your shining eyes,
You who can set your sorrow to a song
And ease your hurt by singing. But to me
My songs are less than sea-sand that the wind
Drives stinging over me and bears away.
I have no care what place the grains may fall,
Nor of my songs, if Time shall blow them back,
As land-wind breaks the lines of dying foam
Along the bright wet beaches, scattering
The flakes once more against the laboring sea,
Into oblivion. What care have I
To please Apollo since Love hearkens not?
Your words will live forever, men will say
"She was the perfect lover"--I shall die,
I loved too much to live. Go Sappho, go--
I hate your hands that beat so full of life,
Go, lest my hatred hurt you. I shall die,
But you will live to love and love again.
He might have loved some other spring than this;
I should have kept my life--I let it go.
He would not love me now tho' Cypris bound
Her girdle round me. I am Death's, not Love's.
Go from me, Sappho, back to find the sun.

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Explanation

Analysis of Sara Teasdale’s "Erinna"

Context & Background

Sara Teasdale’s "Erinna" is a dramatic monologue from her 1911 collection Helen of Troy, and Other Poems. The poem is spoken by Erinna, a historical Greek poetess from the 4th century BCE, known for her elegiac verse. Here, she lies dying, addressing Sappho, the legendary lyric poet of Lesbos, who has come to bid her farewell.

Teasdale’s poem explores themes of unrequited love, mortality, artistic futility, and the contrast between life and death. The poem is deeply influenced by classical Greek and Roman poetry, particularly the works of Sappho and Catullus, who often wrote about love’s torment and the inevitability of death.

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Detailed Explanation of the Text

1. The Opening: Farewell and the Contrast of Life and Death

"They sent you in to say farewell to me, / No, do not shake your head; I see your eyes / That shine with tears."

• Tone & Imagery: The poem begins with a melancholic yet tender tone. Erinna is dying, and Sappho has been sent to say goodbye. The tears in Sappho’s eyes contrast with Erinna’s acceptance of death.

• Sensory Imagery: Sappho is associated with light and life—she has just come from the sunlit meadows, while Erinna is in darkness, emphasizing the divide between the living and the dying.

  • "the shimmering / Great meadows will laugh lightly" → Personification of nature as joyful, indifferent to Erinna’s suffering.
  • "the sun / Put round about you warm invisible arms / As might a lover" → Metaphor comparing the sun’s warmth to a lover’s embrace, something Erinna will never feel again.

• Erinna’s Longing for Life:

  • "If I could see the sun, I should look up / And drink the light until my eyes were blind" → Hyperbole expressing her desperate desire to experience life one last time.
  • "I should kneel down and kiss the blades of grass" → Tactile imagery showing her sensory deprivation in death.
  • "call the birds with such a voice... / That they would fly to me" → Fantasy of connection, contrasting with her isolation.

2. The Pain of Unrequited Love

"Was I not sometimes fair? My eyes, my mouth, / My hair that loved the wind, were they not worth / The breath of love upon them? Yet he passed..."

• Self-Doubt & Vanity: Erinna questions her own worth—was she not beautiful enough to be loved? The wind in her hair suggests freedom and youth, now lost.

• The Indifferent Lover:

  • "he will pass to-night when all the air / Is blue with twilight; but I shall not see." → Symbolism of twilight (transition between life and death) and the lover’s indifference.
  • "he who night by night / Goes by my door without a thought of me" → Repetition of his rejection, emphasizing her loneliness.

• Bitterness Toward Sappho’s Comfort:

  • "You who can set your sorrow to a song / And ease your hurt by singing." → Contrast between Sappho (who can transform pain into art) and Erinna (who finds no solace in poetry).
  • "But to me / My songs are less than sea-sand that the wind / Drives stinging over me" → Simile comparing her poems to worthless, painful sand, blown away by time.

3. The Dream: A Fleeting Illusion of Love

"Last night the fever gave a dream to me... / I thought I saw him stand, the man I love..."

• The Dream as False Consolation:

  • The fever dream is a cruel irony—Death gives her a momentary illusion of love before taking her life.
  • "Neared me and put his hand behind my head, / And leaning toward me, kissed me on the mouth." → Erotic imagery, the only "love" she receives is in a hallucination.
  • "The dream is worth the dying." → Tragic acceptance—she would trade her life for this one false moment of love.

• Resignation & Envy:

  • "Do not smile / So sadly on me with your shining eyes" → Sappho’s pity is unbearable because she understands love’s pain but survives it.
  • "I loved too much to live." → Paradox: Her excessive love has destroyed her, while Sappho’s art allows her to endure.

4. Final Rejection of Life and Art

"Go Sappho, go— / I hate your hands that beat so full of life..."

• Jealousy of Life:

  • Erinna resents Sappho’s vitality—her pulsing hands, her ability to love again.
  • "He might have loved some other spring than this; / I should have kept my life—I let it go." → Regret—she blames herself for wasting her life on unrequited love.

• Rejection of Apollo (Art) for Love’s Sake:

  • "What care have I / To please Apollo since Love hearkens not?" → Apollo (god of poetry) is meaningless if Love (Eros) ignores her.
  • "Your words will live forever, men will say / 'She was the perfect lover'—I shall die" → Contrast between Sappho’s immortal art and Erinna’s forgotten death.

• Final Surrender to Death:

  • "I am Death’s, not Love’s." → Metaphorical ownership—Death has claimed her because Love rejected her.
  • "Go from me, Sappho, back to find the sun." → Final dismissal, accepting her fate in darkness.

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Themes

1. Unrequited Love & Obsession – Erinna’s love is unreturned, and it consumes her until death.
2. Mortality vs. Immortality – Sappho’s art will live on, but Erinna’s love and suffering will be forgotten.
3. Art as Consolation (or Failure) – Sappho can ease pain through poetry, but Erinna finds no comfort in words.
4. The Cruelty of Nature & Time – The sun, wind, and birds are indifferent to human suffering.
5. The Illusion of Love – The dream-kiss is a false gift from Death, mocking her real loneliness.

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Literary Devices

Device	Example	Effect
Metaphor	"the sun / Put round about you warm invisible arms"	Compares the sun’s warmth to a lover’s embrace, emphasizing life’s beauty.
Personification	"the shimmering / Great meadows will laugh lightly"	Nature is joyful, contrasting with Erinna’s sorrow.
Simile	"My songs are less than sea-sand that the wind / Drives stinging over me"	Her poetry is as insignificant and painful as blowing sand.
Hyperbole	"drink the light until my eyes were blind"	Expresses desperate longing for life.
Paradox	"I loved too much to live"	Love, which should sustain life, destroys her.
Symbolism	Sunlight = life, darkness = death, twilight = transition	Reinforces the inevitability of death.
Repetition	"I shall die," "I am afraid"	Creates a sense of inevitability and dread.
Dramatic Irony	Erinna’s dream-kiss is given by Death, not Love	Highlights the cruelty of her fate.

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Significance & Interpretation

• Feminine Voice in Classical Tradition: Teasdale reclaims the voices of ancient women poets (Erinna, Sappho) who were often overshadowed by male writers.
• Romantic vs. Classical Views of Death: Unlike Romantic poets (who often idealize death), Teasdale presents it as cold and final, with no transcendence.
• The Artist’s Dilemma: Sappho survives through art, but Erinna dies for love—raising the question: Is art a sufficient substitute for love?
• Existential Despair: Erinna’s fear of oblivion reflects modern anxieties about meaninglessness in a universe indifferent to human suffering.

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Conclusion: Why This Poem Resonates

"Erinna" is a heartbreaking meditation on love, death, and the fragility of human existence. Through vivid imagery, emotional contrast, and classical allusions, Teasdale captures the agonizing beauty of a life consumed by love. Erinna’s final rejection of both love and art leaves the reader with a haunting question: What remains when love is unreturned and death is certain?

The poem’s power lies in its raw honesty—Erinna does not romanticize death or find solace in poetry. Instead, she rages against the dying of the light, making her voice unforgettable.