Walsingham
Sir Walter Raleigh
Sir Walter Raleigh (1552 – 1618)
A famous explorer and favorite of Queen Elizabeth, Raleigh was imprisoned in
the Tower of London by James I where he lived a comfortable lifestyle with his
family. Because he could not leave the fortress, he devoted himself to scientific
experiments and writing. When Raleigh was executed, his last words to his
executioner were, “This is sharp medicine; but it is a sure cure for all diseases.
What dost thou fear? Strike, man, strike.”
In 1061, a Saxon noblewoman
claimed to have a vision of the
Virgin Mary; consequently, the
village became a famous
destination of holy pilgrimages. It
is now famous for its religious
shrines of the Virgin Mary.
Content
The poem’s narrator asks a traveler who is returning from
Walsingham, if he saw his “true love.” His query shows his
desperation even though he reveals that “love” may have
had different meanings for each of them.
Structure
 The poem is a narrative
styled like a ballad that
consists of two speakers who
take turns with each stanza.
 Divided into ten quatrains,
the poem’s rhyme scheme is
irregular and seemingly
unimportant. (This may be a
result of the various versions
and spellings of words
associated with this poem.
Walsingham
Sir Walter Raleigh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n26H3vdOCO0
‘As ye came from the holy land
Of Walsingham,
Met you not with my true love
By the way as you came?’
‘How should I know your true love,
That have met many a one,
As I went from the holy land,
That have come, that have gone?’
‘She is neither white nor brown,
But as the heavens fair;
There is none hath a form so divine
In the earth or then air.’
‘What’s the cause that she leaves you alone
And a new way doth take,
That sometime did love you as her own,
And her joy did you make?’
‘I have loved her all my youth,
But now am old, as you see:
Love likes not the falling fruit,
Nor the witherèd tree.’
‘Know that Love is a careless child,
And forgets promise past:
He is blind, he is deaf when he list,
And in faith never fast.’
‘His desire is a dureless content,
And a trustless joy;
He is won with a world of despair,
And is lost with a toy.’
‘Such a one did I meet, sir,
Such an angelic face,
Who like a queen, like a nymph, did appear
By her gait, by her grace.’
‘Of womankind such indeed is the love,
(Or the word love abusèd)
Under which many childish desires
And conceits are excusèd.’
‘She hath left me here alone,
All alone, as unknown,
Who sometimes did me lead with herself
And me loved as her own.’
‘But true love is a durable fire,
In the mind ever burning,
Never sick, never dead, never cold,
From itself never turning.’
Reference to holy land of Walsingham is interesting because the village is
not as “holy” as other lands, like Jerusalem, Mecca, etc. The speaker may be
elevating the village only because his “love” is there.
‘As you came from the holy land
Of Walsingham,
Met you not with my true love
By the way as you came?’
‘How shall I know your true love,
That have met many one,
I went to the holy land,
That have come, that have gone?’
Each stanza employs
enjambment throughout
to reflect the dialog
between the two men.
The first two stanzas are fairly direct. The first speaker
asks a traveler if he has seen his “true love.” The
traveler asks how he would recognize the woman in the
second stanza. The use of these two interrogatives
introduce the narrative and entice the listener/reader to
know more.
The simile that introduces the woman’s description elevates
her to more than mortal. This hyperbole reveals the speaker’s
infatuation with the woman.
‘She is neither white nor brown,
But as the heavens fair;
There is none hath a form so divine
In the earth or then air.’
“Her gait” is
reminiscent of
a Petrarchan
image of a
woman as a
goddess who
can walk on
air.
The contrasts in
lines 1 and 4 create
an image of an
ethereal woman
that is not a mere
mortal.
‘Such a one did I meet, sir,
Such an angelic face,
Who like a queen, like a nymph, did appear
By her gait, by her grace.’
The simile used by the
traveler further establishes
“angelic” description of
the woman.
Repetition of “alone” creates a forlorn
‘She hath left me here alone,
tone that reveals his desperation.
All alone, as unknown,
adds to the
Who sometimes did me lead with herself Caesura
note of desperation.
And me loved as her own.’
‘What’s the cause that she leaves you alone
And a new way doth take,
That sometime did love you as her own,
And her joy did you make?’
The traveler questions why she left the speaker if she loved him. His
question is made valid by through syntax as emphasis is placed on
“joy.” If the speaker brought her “joy,” why did she leave?
The speaker believe
s that she loved him
as he loved her, but
the syntax reveals a
note of hesitancy by
placing emphasis on
“me.”
These two images of
“fruit” and “tree”
serve as phallic
symbols possibly
indicating that he
has lost the ability to
function sexually
and therefore not
long gives the
woman pleasure.
“Love” transitions with stanza seven when
“love” demonstrates negative attributes.
‘I have loved her all my youth,
But now am old, as you see:
Love likes not the falling fruit,
Nor the witherèd tree.’
The speaker reveals that
he is no longer young.
‘Know that Love is a careless child,
And forgets promise past:
He is blind, he is deaf when he list,
And in faith never fast.’
“Love is personified to show how undependable it
can be. Additionally, the caesura in line three
helps emphasize the negative qualities of love.
This reference to a “careless child” may also be an
allusion to Cupid, who is often seen blindfolded.
transient
‘His desire is a dureless content,
And a trustless joy;
He is won with a world of despair,
And is lost with a toy.’
“Trustless joy” is somewhat paradoxical to
show speaker’s revelations about love.
The two concepts juxtaposed in the last two
lines of stanza 9 pair “despair” with “toy” to
emphasize the childish reasons that love ends.
‘Of womankind such indeed is the love,
(Or the word love abusèd)
Under which many childish desires
And conceits are excusèd.’
Traveler claims that women abuse the
word “love” to cover for their “childish
desires” or lust.
“Durable fire” implies an everlasting love, something
‘But true love is a durable fire, that provides comfort and warmth.
In the mind ever burning,
Never sick, never dead, never cold, Use of commas creates a list, and these pauses
(caesura) and the repetition of the word “never”
From itself never turning.’
place emphasis on what love should be—eternal.
The speaker is desperate
for his lover, but
recognizes that she may
have left him. This creates
a sympathetic tone.
Theme
The word “love” can refer to fleeting
lust or to true love.
As with some of the other poems in
the series, women appear as the
villains because they break the heart
of the men. (Could this be because
women were give little choice in
marriage?) This is an interesting spin
on poetry and poses some interesting
ideas about the nature of love.
Another Idea
Since the speaker addresses a
traveler from Walsingham, a shrine
to the Virgin Mary, some ideas in
the poem allude to faith as the topic.
The missing woman could be Mary,
who is “heavens fair” and “so
divine/In the earth, or the air.”
Perhaps the speaker has lost faith
because he is “now old.” This would
explain his desperation.
Works Cited
http://www.cieliterature.com/2014/04/01/walsingham/http://www.enotes.com/homeworkhelp/can-have-an-analysis-sir-w-raleighs-walsingham-423187
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/sir_walter_raleigh.htm