This poem by the "great rhythmic teacher and prophet...of
a Spiritual Universe" is melancholic as were his early poems. Also, it calls to mind
the reflection of Ralph Waldo Emerson that "Nature always wears the colors of the
spirit." Truly, Tennyson's poem achieves its effect by the evocation of this mood of
melancholy that deals with one of life's salient issues.
In
the poem "Break, Break, Break" the rhythm of the title reflects the striking of the
waves against the rock as well as the striking of pain upon the heart of the speaker
that is breaking in sorrow. And, when sorrow claims the soul of a man, his
perception--to quote St. Paul--is like "looking through a glass darkly." Indeed, the
striking of the waves against the gray stone reflects the feeling of the speaker's soul
that mourns his loss of a friend. Like the waves that hit the rocks, the repeated
thoughts of loss each strike harder than those before them as the speaker ponders the
finality of death and the transience of life that is like the wave that breaks against
rock.
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