Theme of Pain and Sufferings of Old Age and Death in “Tithonus” by Lord Tennyson

 Theme of Pain and Suffering of Old Age and Death in  “Tithonus” :

Alfred Lord Tennyson’s Tithonus is based on the Greek myth. According to which Tithonus, the prince of Troy and the goddess of dawn – Eos fall in love with each other. Eos made Tithonus immortal so that they could be together forever ; unfortunately she forgot to specify that he should be immortally young. Thus Tithonus became impossibly ancient.

    Tennyson captures the dreadful pain of old age – and the mercy of death through the speaker Tithonus in his poem of same name – “Tithonus”. 

    “Tithonus” explores the theme of pain and suffering of old age and mercy of death as one of the important themes of the poem. Although death is painful, it left sorrow and grief afterward but Tennyson presents a different perspective on death in this poem. Tithonus has infinite years of life but his youth has failed him. He is old and miserable. At this stage, Tithonus feels his death as mercy to him, which he pleads to have through out the poem. 

     The aged Tithonus feels horribly out of place in the “gleaming halls of morn” – the celestial palace he shares with his beloved Eos.

   He says – 

  “I wither slowly in thine arms”.

    Old age is taking away the strength from his body while he is decaying to her arms. Old age made him like a “white – hair’d  shadow” who is roaming like a ghost in “ever – silent spaces of the East”.

     He has become a “grey – shadow” of his past self who used to be a handsome and glorious prince of Troy and chosen by the Goddess of dawn – Eos. 

  He further adds – 

  “…….. thy strong Hours, indignant work’d their wills/

    And beat me down and marr’d and wasted me.”

     Tithonus says that the boon of immortality has become a curse to him, as he is  “marr’d” (or disfigured) and  “wasted” by long, merciless passege of time. The time worked against Tithonus as it could not end him but ruined him and left him“maim’d” (or injured) forever.

    Tithonus is not only suffering from his old age physically but it makes him feel isolated from all, even his beloved Eos. He can no longer enjoy the pleasure of love in his broken old body. Where once he used to share in Eos’s mysterious “change” as she glowed and renewed every morning, now he feels alienated from that gorgeous eternal youth. The only embrace he shares with his beloved Eos these days is one  that leaves his face wet with Eos’s guilty tears. 

     In an elegiac tone, he contrasts his own old age with the immortal beauty and youth of the goddess Aurora. He says – 

  “To dwell in presence of immortal youth /

   Immortal age beside immortal youth”.

     These lines express the lack of compatibility between the two lovers because of his old age. He has immortal old age, while she has immortal youth. He laments that all his youth and beauty have vanished with the passing of time. He implores Aurora to compensate him for the loss of his own youth and glory and his consequent suffering. 

   As a result of this gift of immortality without the eternal youth Tithonus did not die and become crippled and deformed old man. But he still lives with his beloved Goddess of dawn who is forever young and beautiful. These lines show psychological aspect of man’s helplessness and sorrow of being old and living with young and passionate wife. 

    He can not continue to enjoy the companionship of Aurora anymore. He has lost the zest for life. He is dead to the world of pleasure. He no longer feels the youthful sensation which Aurora’s youth and beauty inspired in him earlier, his blood does no longer glow with passion at the sight of her beautiful cheeks and shoulders. He no longer desires to live. 

    Tithonus’ impossible, endless old age ,has robbed him of all life’s pleasure, leaving him marooned in a world that can no longer make him happy. He can only escape from this condition by dying, but his immortality makes it impossible.

    Though he begs Eos to “take back” her gift and let him die, she doesn’t seem to be able to do so. He tells her not to keep him in his immortal state any more, as their nature do not match. She is forever young and beautiful whereas he is adversely impacted by old age? His  “wrinkled feet” tremble when he finds himself at her cold threshold.

      The sight of vapours from the fields of the mortal men reveals their happiness. His longing for death and envy of  “those happy men that have the power to die” remember us that death is natural necessary and merciful part of human life, while old age is far more cruel. He says – 

    “grassy barrows of the happier dead”.

    Here, Tithonus feels that even the graves under the grass reveal that the dead are happy as they do not have to experience the pain of immortality without eternal youth.

    He expresses the desire to die and get rid of this sorrowful existence.