Quote:
Originally Posted by lola we bass   im having trouble understanding this poem
its a poem for Sir Thomas Wyatt called "the galley" My galley, chargèd with forgetfulness,
Thorough sharp seas in winter nights doth pass
'Tween rock and rock; and eke mine en'my, alas,
That is my lord, steereth with cruelness;
And every owre a thought in readiness,
As though that death were light in such a case.
An endless wind doth tear the sail apace
Of forced sighs and trusty fearfulness.
A rain of tears, a cloud of dark disdain,
Hath done the weared cords great hinderance;
Wreathèd with error and eke with ignorance.
The stars be hid that led me to this pain;
Drownèd is Reason that should me comfort,
And I remain despairing of the port. |
This is Middle English, as evidenced by the accents, which are no longer pronounced in Modern English.
Some thoughts, which may help:
1) A 'galley' ship is rowed by oarsmen (owres), but in this case has also a sail.
2) The word 'eke' here is used in the now archaic sense of 'also'.
3) 'Thorough' in Middle English is now 'through'.
This would be my prose translation:
My ship, ordered to forget its woes, passes now from rock to rock through restless seas in winter nights; and yet my Lord, my enemy, still cruelly steers us; and every oarsman readily anticipates the worst, as though their death would be a blessing in comparison to this.
An endless wind on the sail forces the ship onwards, backed by forced sighs (from the rowers) and trust borne of fear. Many tears (from the men), and much disdain (from the Captain), have done great damage to the worn-out sails; they are surrounded (metaphorically) by navigational error and ignorance.
The stars (metaphorically, the fate) which brought the writer here to this misery are now clouded. The tempestuous waters have 'drowned' his faith in reason, and now he despairs of ever reaching a port.