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Comment 16 of 26, added on June 26th, 2005 at 7:55 PM.
It is my belief that Yeats is taking a more negative view of the world due to the atrocities that are accuring in the world at the time. Yeats had just been through the experience of WWI which the world had no precident with and the beginning of the great depression in not only the U.S. economy but in the world-wide economy.
I believe that Yeats is speaking with the voice of a man who is now dissapointed in mankinds negligence in the warnings of the scripture set forth by the teachings of christianity as well as many other religions whose basic rules are, "Thou shalt not kill", "Love thy neighbor", and the Golden Rule of "Treat others as you would like to be treated"
It is my belief that at the time that Yeats wrote this poem he was in the mindset of negativity and regret.
P.S. please forgive the spelling errors as I am not the best of spellers.
James from United States
Comment 15 of 26, added on June 26th, 2005 at 3:00 AM.
what exactly does Yeats by 'ceremony of innocence'? and why are the desert birds 'indignant' in this context?
blah blah from Italy
Comment 14 of 26, added on May 22nd, 2005 at 2:50 PM.
The falcon (people of faith) cannot hear the falconer (God), and when this line of communication is broken, everything is shifted from order to chaos. Yeats explains that innocence will be lost. Those who are morally sound will lack their convictions and those who are not will become zealous in their work. Yeats explains that when this awkward shift occurs, that surely this has heralded the second coming. He then explains that a powerful being will be raised up to bring the world back into order.
Erica from United States
Comment 13 of 26, added on May 18th, 2005 at 8:44 PM.
This poem was recommended to me by my professor while I was reading Bernard Shaw's play "Heartbreak House." She recommended it because she said it described the coming of the Superman (in the Nietzschean sense). I didn't even think of a Christian reading of this poem. The body of a lion and the head of man fits with Nietzsche's description of what the intermediate stage between man and Superman will look like, so I think that's where Yeats got the idea. It's an eerie image for sure, a super-human being coming to supplant us as we have supplanted the animals...
Politz from United States
Comment 12 of 26, added on April 21st, 2005 at 4:43 PM.
I just want so say that I agree with L. Robinson. Your views are really interesting and, what's important, accurate. Best wishes to all!
Leszek from Poland
Comment 11 of 26, added on April 14th, 2005 at 7:06 PM.
Respectfully, I disagree. He struggled with his faith, certainly, but it seems to me that what he's "lost faith" in is mankind's ability to think critically and act rationally.
The fact that he places it in the context of the Second Coming is a stroke of genius. To me, it seems more of a warning that arrogance and intolerance will inevitably lead to the downfall of mankind, as it has in every cycle or "turning in the widening gyre" of human history heretofore, when the voice of reason (the "falconer") has been effectively drowned out by fanaticism - political, religious or otherwise.
The actions of zealots are much too often confused with the (usually moderate) message of any religion. Terrorist acts can't be confused with the tenets of Islam, for example. They are the acts of fanatic extremists performed in the name of Islam, when reason suggests that the real motives are political.
Likewise, Christianity can't be judged by the actions of the extremists in its ranks. Extremists do not have a corner on the "truth" or the tenets of any religion, nor do they represent all adherents of that religion. In their arrogance, they simply think they do.
Yeats is writing from a familiar Christian perspective, but the message is universal. Its concern is with those cycles of human history and their inevitable outcome. It's a call for a return to reason.
L. Robinson from United States
Comment 10 of 26, added on April 12th, 2005 at 9:47 AM.
After studying The Second Coming for a while, I just realised that Yeats has, "lost faith" in Christianity.
2000 years of Christianity has not made the world any better. People are still largely at war with each other, bringing forth our own destruction/ammegeddon.
ZoomBeast
Comment 9 of 26, added on April 2nd, 2005 at 9:28 PM.
In my utterly subjective view, Yeats was being just a little sarcastic about the reaction of many to unfolding world events as being the dawn of the end of time.
"Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming!"
Egad, right? Of course, everything bad that happens must mean it's the end of the world.
Every generation has believed they are living in the "end times" because -well- they have been. It will end somewhere (all things do) and probably due to our own folley. Yeats is referring to it as something he'd just as soon not hear again - or, at least, not right then - because it *is* troubling.
But, he also makes reference to a cycle of human history that may be universally accepted as true:
"Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
Throughout history, mankind has seemed focused and progressive until he strayed so far from the voice of the "falconer" that he believed he was equal to the falconer, and in so doing managed only to tear down the wonderful accomplishments made to that point, imposing his own "will" on his fellow man, regardless of the worth of that being imposed upon. (cf. the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, the Armenian genocide, the medieval Crusades, etc.) All that was left was to return to "center" and start over.
One might think of himself as the falcon, flying farther and farther out from the falconer until he cannot hear the voice of reason.
It is a warning, but perhaps not as literal as one might think.
L. Robinson from United States
Comment 8 of 26, added on March 29th, 2005 at 7:18 PM.
Just so the rest of the nerds (like myself) know, if you find yourself interested in this poem, you should read Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Between the two exsists a great demonstration of parallelism. As a matter of fact, Achebe derived the title of his novel from Yeats's poem; however, to whom it may concern, when reading the novel, it should either be followed or proceeded by another of its kind: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad.
AP Pro from United States
Comment 7 of 26, added on March 16th, 2005 at 3:28 PM.
Don't you think that Yeats could mean that the world doesn't need another Christ? That the supposed saviour was a beast and now it's about to reborn again as was prophesied? Of course this is just an interpretation, one of many, yet taking into account that Yeats had doubts pertaining to his faith it could be true. Especially when we bear in mind that the World War I, which Yeats experienced, was started by Christians, the followers of Jesus. Therefore, could the one whose followers did so much evil be good himself?
Leszek from Poland
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It is my belief that Yeats is taking a more negative view of the world due to the atrocities that are accuring in the world at the time. Yeats had just been through the experience of WWI which the world had no precident with and the beginning of the great depression in not only the U.S. economy but in the world-wide economy.
I believe that Yeats is speaking with the voice of a man who is now dissapointed in mankinds negligence in the warnings of the scripture set forth by the teachings of christianity as well as many other religions whose basic rules are, "Thou shalt not kill", "Love thy neighbor", and the Golden Rule of "Treat others as you would like to be treated"
It is my belief that at the time that Yeats wrote this poem he was in the mindset of negativity and regret.
P.S. please forgive the spelling errors as I am not the best of spellers.
James from United States