Author: Arthur Conan Doyle

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    1909

    Breathing the stale and stuffy air
    Of office or consulting room,
    Our thoughts will wander back to where
    We heard the low Atlantic boom,

    And, creaming underneath our screw,
    We watched the swirling waters break,
    Silver filagrees on blue
    Spreading fan-wise in our wake.

    Cribbed within the city's fold,
    Fettered to our daily round,
    We'll conjure up the haze of gold
    Which ringed the wide horizon round.

    And still we'll break the sordid day
    By fleeting visions far and fair,
    The silver shield of Vigo Bay,
    The long brown cliff of Finisterre.

    Where once the Roman galley sped,
    Or Moorish corsair spread his sail,
    By wooded shore, or sunlit head,
    By barren hill or sea-washed vale

    We took our way. But we can swear,
    That many countries we have scanned,
    But never one that could compare
    With our own island mother-land.

    The dream is o'er. No more we view
    The shores of Christian or of Turk,
    But turning to our tasks anew,
    We bend us to our wonted work.

    But there will come to you and me
    Some glimpse of spacious days gone by,
    The wide, wide stretches of the sea,
    The mighty curtain of the sky,

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Type of Poem: Lyric Poem

Date Written:

Date Published:

Language: English

Keywords: Public Domain

Source: Public Domain Collection

Publisher:

Rights/Permissions: Public Domain

Comments/Notes: This poem, set in 1909, explores the theme of escapism and longing for freedom, juxtaposed with the confines of daily life. The contrast between the "stale and stuffy air" of the "office or consulting room" and the vivid, expansive imagery of the natural world illustrates a deep yearning for the beauty and openness of the outdoors. The author utilizes the oceanic imagery, like "the low Atlantic boom" and "the swirling waters break," to evoke a sense of freedom and adventure that starkly contrasts the monotony of city life.

The poem's tone oscillates between a sense of melancholy and nostalgia, as the author reminisces about the past, and a sense of resignation as they return to their "wonted work." The structure of the poem, with its consistent rhythm and rhyme scheme, could be seen as a reflection of the routine life the author describes. The repetition of the word "wide" in the last line emphasizes the yearning for the boundless freedom of the sea, further underscoring the central theme of the poem. In terms of standout literary devices, the author employs vivid imagery and metaphor to contrast the mundanity of city life with the allure of the natural world. The poem concludes with a hopeful note, suggesting that the memories of "spacious days gone by" will continue to provide solace and inspiration, despite the confines of daily life.