The Lamentation of The Old Pensioner -W.B. Yeast

 

The Lamentation of The Old Pensioner

                                    -W.B. Yeast

“The Lamentation of the Old Pensioner” written by W.B. Yeats, presents the speaker’s reminiscences of his young life which become more painful when he contrasts his time of youth with his present old age. He laments on the passing of his joyful youth.

In the past, the speaker was young and he had a good job. So his friends and lovers followed him. He was happy to talk about love and politics. His past life only gives him agony because Time has turned him into an ugly, weak and useless old man. Neither his friends nor any beauties follow him. He is envious to see other young people who challenge any conspiracy and evils. This old man, who is forced away from politics and love, is still tormented by the passions of his youth for women and conversation. He thinks that his greater enemy is Time because it made him old and stole his physical beauty, power, and beautiful lovers. Time stole his youthful vitality, energy, and sexual power. He compares his old stage with the broken tree. Time robbed all his happiness from him because it transfigured him into an ugly, powerless, passionless, deformed and lonely old man. So, he shows his anger against Time and spits on the face of it.

Explain and summarize the title of the poem “The lamentation of the old pensioner”.

Answer. The lamentation of the old pensioner is a revised version of W.B. Yeats poem “The Old Pensioner,” the title seems to be more significant than the earlier one because it suggests what and whom the poem is all about.

Lamentation means an expression of sadness and disappointment, whereas Pensioner, means a person who has got retirement from his active life. In this poem, a retired old man is expressing his feeling of sadness and disappointment for losing the beauty and youth of his life. So the title of the poem is quite appropriate.

Question. Summarise the poem “The Lamentation of the Old Pensioner” in one sentence.

Answer. The poem The Lamentation of the Old Pensioner is all about the feelings of regret, grief, and disappointment expressed by a retired old man who finds his charm, energy and beauty of his youth robbed by the tyranny of time.

Question. Why does the speaker want to speed in the face of time

Answer. The speaker wants to spit into the face of time for transforming him into an ugly, diseased, lonely old man of no use. In youth, he was very active and smart and had many friends who he used to discuss with about politics and love. He has supposed time to be the most powerful tyrant that has transfigured him. The speaker feels very angry as there are not single women who look at him and remember the faces of beauties who used to love him in his youth and expresses his rage by telling that he wants to spit into the face of time for transfiguring him into an old and ugly man of no use.