Excerpt

Excerpt from Poems, by Alan Seeger

So when the flame had come where time and place
Seemed not unfitting to my guide with grace
To question, thus he spoke at my desire:
"O ye that are two souls within one fire,
If in your eyes some merit I have won --
Merit, or more or less--for tribute done
When in the world I framed my lofty verse:
Move not; but fain were we that one rehearse
By what strange fortunes to his death he came."
The elder crescent of the antique flame
Began to wave, as in the upper air
A flame is tempest-tortured, here and there
Tossing its angry height, and in its sound
As human speech it suddenly had found,
Rolled forth a voice of thunder, saying: "When,
The twelvemonth past in Circe's halls, again
I left Gaeta's strand (ere thither came
Aeneas, and had given it that name)
Not love of son, nor filial reverence,
Nor that affection that might recompense
The weary vigil of Penelope,
Could so far quench the hot desire in me
To prove more wonders of the teeming earth, --
Of human frailty and of manly worth.
In one small bark, and with the faithful band
That all awards had shared of Fortune's hand,
I launched once more upon the open main.
Both shores I visited as far as Spain, --
Sardinia, and Morocco, and what more
The midland sea upon its bosom wore.
The hour of our lives was growing late
When we arrived before that narrow strait
Where Hercules had set his bounds to show
That there Man's foot shall pause, and further none shall go.
Borne with the gale past Seville on the right,
And on the left now swept by Ceuta's site,
'Brothers,' I cried, 'that into the far West
Through perils numberless are now addressed,
In this brief respite that our mortal sense
Yet hath, shrink not from new experience;
But sailing still against the setting sun,
Seek we new worlds where Man has never won
Before us. Ponder your proud destinies:
Born were ye not like brutes for swinish ease,
But virtue and high knowledge to pursue.'
My comrades with such zeal did I imbue
By these brief words, that scarcely could I then
Have turned them from their purpose; so again
We set out poop against the morning sky,
And made our oars as wings wherewith to fly
Into the Unknown. And ever from the right
Our course deflecting, in the balmy night
All southern stars we saw, and ours so low,
That scarce above the sea-marge it might show.
So five revolving periods the soft,
Pale light had robbed of Cynthia, and as oft
Replenished since our start, when far and dim
Over the misty ocean's utmost rim,
Rose a great mountain, that for very height
Passed any I had seen. Boundless delight
Filled us--alas, and quickly turned to dole:
For, springing from our scarce-discovered goal,
A whirlwind struck the ship; in circles three
It whirled us helpless in the eddying sea;
High on the fourth the fragile stern uprose,
The bow drove down, and, as Another chose,
Over our heads we heard the surging billows close."

Ariosto. Orlando Furioso, Canto X, 91-99

Ruggiero, to amaze the British host,
And wake more wonder in their wondering ranks,
The bridle of his winged courser loosed,
And clapped his spurs into the creature's flanks;
High in the air, even to the topmost banks
Of crudded cloud, uprose the flying horse,
And now above the Welsh, and now the Manx,
And now across the sea he shaped his course,
Till gleaming far below lay Erin's emerald shores.

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Explanation

Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Poems by Alan Seeger

This passage is a translation and adaptation of two distinct but thematically connected episodes from Italian Renaissance epics:

1. Dante’s Inferno (Canto XXVI, lines 85–142) – The speech of Ulysses (Odysseus) in the Eighth Circle of Hell (the Circle of False Counselors), where he recounts his final, fatal voyage beyond the Pillars of Hercules (Strait of Gibraltar) in pursuit of forbidden knowledge.
2. Ludovico Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso (Canto X, stanzas 91–99) – The flight of Ruggiero on his hippogriff, a magical winged horse, as he soars over the British Isles and Ireland.

Seeger, an American poet who fought in World War I (and died in battle in 1916), was deeply influenced by classical and Renaissance literature. His work often explores heroism, adventure, and the tragic pursuit of the unattainable. This excerpt blends Dante’s tragic Ulysses with Ariosto’s fantastical Ruggiero, creating a contrast between human ambition’s doom and chivalric marvels.

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Breakdown of the Text

1. The Ulysses Passage (Dante’s Inferno Adaptation)

(Lines 1–54 of the excerpt)

Context in Inferno: In Dante’s Divine Comedy, Ulysses is condemned to Hell for his reckless pursuit of knowledge beyond divine limits. His speech is a defiant, tragic monologue where he justifies his final voyage—one that led to his death—despite knowing it was forbidden.

Key Themes:

• The Limits of Human Ambition – Ulysses ignores divine boundaries (the Pillars of Hercules, marked by Hercules as the edge of the known world) in his quest for "new worlds."
• The Tragic Hero – His speech is proud yet doomed; he inspires his men with rhetoric about "virtue and high knowledge," but their fate is destruction.
• The Unknown as Both Temptation and Doom – The sea represents infinite possibility, but also divine punishment (the whirlwind that sinks them).
• Filial and Marital Duty vs. Personal Glory – Ulysses admits that neither love for his son (Telemachus), father (Laertes), nor wife (Penelope) could stop him—his thirst for experience overrides all.

Literary Devices:

• Epic Simile – The flame of Ulysses’ soul in Hell is compared to a "tempest-tortured" fire, mirroring his restless spirit.
• Direct Speech & Rhetorical Persuasion – Ulysses’ stirring oration to his men ("Brothers... seek we new worlds") is heroic yet ironic, as it leads to their deaths.
• Cosmic Imagery – The "setting sun" and "southern stars" emphasize their journey into the unknown, beyond human limits.
• Divine Intervention – The whirlwind is described as acting by the will of "Another" (God), reinforcing the idea that human defiance has consequences.

Significance:

• Ulysses is a Renaissance symbol of humanism’s dangers—his intellect and courage are admirable, but his hubris leads to ruin.
• Seeger’s adaptation romanticizes the tragic hero, aligning with his own martial idealism (he died in WWI seeking glory).
• The passage contrasts with Ariosto’s Ruggiero, who transcends human limits through magic, not defiance.

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2. The Ruggiero Passage (Orlando Furioso Adaptation)

(Lines 55–63 of the excerpt)

Context in Orlando Furioso: Ruggiero is a Saracen knight in Ariosto’s epic, a magical, nearly invincible warrior who rides the hippogriff (a winged horse). Unlike Ulysses, his flight is not an act of defiance but of chivalric display—he seeks to astonish his enemies (the British) rather than challenge divine law.

Key Themes:

• Chivalric Marvel vs. Human Limitation – While Ulysses is destroyed by his ambition, Ruggiero soars effortlessly, symbolizing fantasy’s triumph over reality.
• The Sublime in Nature – The aerial perspective ("even to the topmost banks / Of crudded cloud") gives a godlike view of the world, contrasting with Ulysses’ drowning in the sea.
• National & Geographical Imagery – The mention of Wales, the Isle of Man, and Ireland grounds the fantasy in real places, blending myth with history.

Literary Devices:

• Hyperbole & Grandeur – The hippogriff’s flight is described in exalted terms, emphasizing its supernatural nature.
• Geographical Cataloging – The listing of places (Welsh, Manx, Erin’s emerald shores) creates a sense of vastness and wonder.
• Contrast with Ulysses – While Ulysses sinks, Ruggiero rises, reinforcing the duality of human aspiration (tragic vs. triumphant).

Significance:

• Ruggiero represents the idealized knight, unburdened by the moral consequences that doom Ulysses.
• His flight is pure spectacle, a celebration of imagination over the harsh realities that crush Ulysses.
• Seeger’s juxtaposition suggests two forms of heroism: one tragic and human, the other fantastical and untouchable.

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Comparative Analysis: Ulysses vs. Ruggiero

Aspect	Ulysses (Dante/Seeger)	Ruggiero (Ariosto/Seeger)
Nature of Quest	Defies divine limits (Pillars of Hercules)	Displays chivalric prowess (flight)
Outcome	Destruction (whirlwind sinks ship)	Triumph (effortless flight)
Relationship to Divinity	Challenges fate ("as Another chose")	Operates within magical rules (no defiance)
Tone	Tragic, defiant	Wondrous, celebratory
Human vs. Superhuman	Embodies human frailty	Embodies supernatural power

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Seeger’s Purpose & Broader Significance

1. Romanticizing the Heroic Ideal – Seeger, who died young in war, was drawn to figures who pursue glory despite the cost. Ulysses’ speech mirrors his own willingness to face death for a cause.
2. Contrast Between Reality and Fantasy – The doomed Ulysses vs. the soaring Ruggiero may reflect Seeger’s dual fascination with war’s brutality and chivalry’s beauty.
3. Influence of Renaissance Humanism – Both Dante and Ariosto explore human potential and its limits; Seeger updates these themes for a modern, war-torn audience.
4. The Sublime in Nature & Adventure – The ocean’s terror and the sky’s freedom represent two sides of human engagement with the unknown.

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Conclusion: Why This Passage Matters

Seeger’s excerpt is a meditation on ambition, fate, and the boundaries of human experience. By placing Ulysses’ tragic defiance alongside Ruggiero’s magical flight, he creates a dialogue between two kinds of heroism:

• One earthbound, doomed, but noble (Ulysses).
• One celestial, untouchable, and wondrous (Ruggiero).

For Seeger, who saw war as both a call to glory and a descent into chaos, these figures embody the tensions between idealism and reality. The passage remains powerful as a lyrical exploration of what drives humans to seek the unknown, whether through courage, folly, or magic.