The Sea And The Hills

By Rudyard Kipling

Lyric Poem
Who hath desired the Sea?, the sight of salt wind-hounded, The heave and the halt and the hurl and the crash of the comber win hounded? The sleek-barrelled swell before storm, grey, foamless, enormous, and growing, Stark calm on the lap of the Line or the crazy-eyed hurricane blowing, His Sea in no showing the same his Sea and the same 'neath each showing: His Sea as she slackens or thrills? So and no otherwise, so and no otherwise, hillmen desire their Hills! Who hath desired the Sea?, the immense and contemptuous surges? The shudder, the stumble, the swerve, as the star-stabbing bow-sprit emerges? The orderly clouds of the Trades, the ridged, roaring sapphire thereunder, Unheralded cliff-haunting flaws and the headsail's low-volleying thunder, His Sea in no wonder the same his Sea and the same through each wonder: His Sea as she rages or stills? So and no otherwise, so and no otherwise, hillmen desire their Hills. Who hath desired the Sea? Her menaces swift as her mercies? The in-rolling walls of the fog and the silver-winged breeze that disperses? The unstable mined berg going South and the calvings and groans that de clare it, White water half-guessed overside and the moon breaking timely to bare it, His Sea as his fathers have dared, his Sea as his children shall dare it: His Sea as she serves him or kills? So and no otherwise, so and no otherwisc, hillmen desire their Hills. Who hath desired the Sea? Her excellent loneliness rather Than forecourts of kings, and her outermost pits than the streets where men gather Inland, among dust, under trees, inland where the slayer may slay him, Inland, out of reach of her arms, and the bosom whereon he must lay him His Sea from the first that betrayed, at the last that shall never betray him: His Sea that his being fulfils? So and no otherwise, so and no otherwise, hillmen desire their Hills.

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Poem Details

Language: English
Keywords: Public Domain
Source: Public Domain Collection
Rights/Permissions: Public Domain
Analysis & Notes:
Rudyard Kipling’s "The Sea and the Hills" is a Reverent Lyric Meditation that uses a parallel structure to explore the profound and instinctive attachments between men and their landscapes, specifically seafarers to the sea and highlanders to the hills. The poem’s central theme is that human longing for wild, untamable nature is not based on its comfort or safety but precisely on its danger, unpredictability, and grandeur. Just as hillmen cling to their rugged mountains despite their perils, so too do sailors love the mercurial, deadly, and sublime power of the sea.

The tone is exalted, rhythmic, and almost liturgical. Kipling uses a recurring refrain—"So and no otherwise, so and no otherwise"—to evoke a sense of eternal truth, almost like a chant. The structure of the poem, with its rising catalogues of the sea’s dangers, moods, and phenomena (trades, hurricanes, fog, bergs, rogue waves), mirrors the relentless variability of the ocean itself. Each stanza describes a different aspect of the sea’s character: her moods of calm and violence, her physical beauty and terrors, her loneliness and her deceptive betrayal—and each concludes by affirming that hillmen feel the same awe and loyalty toward their hills.

Kipling’s imagery is muscular and vivid: the "salt wind-hounded" heave, "star-stabbing bowsprits," "unstable mined bergs," and "silver-winged breezes" paint the sea as an animate, living force—beautiful, brutal, and beyond human mastery. Philosophically, the poem suggests that there is something intrinsic and irreplaceable in man’s connection to wild places, even when they threaten him. They fulfill a fundamental part of his spirit that civilization, safety, and domestication cannot.

Historically, The Sea and the Hills fits into Kipling’s broader admiration for stoicism, endurance, and fidelity to place, often expressed through loyalty to the harsh environments that shape people’s characters. Written at the height of Britain’s maritime and imperial power, it also subtly underscores a longing for something older and deeper than empire: a primal bond to the natural forces that make and unmake civilizations.

Ultimately, "The Sea and the Hills" is a powerful affirmation of man’s timeless yearning for elemental places—the wild sea and the ancient hills—as essential to his spirit, identity, and fulfillment.

Exploring Lyric Poetry

Lyric poetry is a powerful and intimate form of expression, characterized by its focus on the personal emotions and thoughts of the poet. Often musical in nature, lyric poems resonate with readers through their vivid language and rhythmic flow, capturing moments of intense feeling.

Here are some key characteristics that define lyric poetry:

  • Expressive Language: Lyric poems use rich and evocative language to convey deep emotions, often painting a vivid picture of the poet's inner world.
  • Personal Perspective: Typically written in the first person, these poems offer a window into the poet's personal experiences, thoughts, and reflections.
  • Musicality: Lyric poems often feature a rhythmic structure, with meter and rhyme that give them a song-like quality, enhancing the emotional impact.

From ancient odes to contemporary free verse, lyric poetry remains a beloved and enduring form, celebrated for its ability to articulate the nuances of human emotion in a way that resonates deeply with readers.