Tithonus

Essay Questions

1. How does Tennyson use the figure of Tithonus to argue that mortality is not a curse but a gift? In your response, explore how the poem's imagery of natural cycles, the symbolism of the "grassy barrows of the dead," and Tithonus's own self-perception combine to construct a sustained case for the necessity of death. (AQA AO1/AO2; IB guiding concept: Identity and Time)

1. To what extent does "Tithonus" present immortality as a form of imprisonment rather than privilege? Consider how Tennyson uses the symbols of Aurora's tears, the Hours, and the contrast between warmth and cold to develop this idea across the poem. (AQA AO1/AO2; AP Lit Q1 poetry analysis)

1. How does Tennyson's use of blank verse — unrhymed iambic pentameter — shape the reader's experience of Tithonus's suffering? Examine how the form's regularity and its subtle variations contribute to the poem's mournful yet dignified tone. (AQA AO2; AP Lit Q1 poetry analysis)

1. "Tithonus" is as much a poem about lost identity as it is about lost youth. How far do you agree? In your answer, consider how Tithonus's self-description as a "gray shadow," his memories of Aurora's love, and his relationship to the mortal world below all speak to a crisis of selfhood. (AQA AO1/AO2; IB guiding concept: Identity)

1. How does Tennyson use Aurora as a symbol to explore the tension between divine love and human limitation? In your response, analyse how Aurora's perpetual renewal, her tears, and her ultimate powerlessness to help Tithonus complicate any straightforward reading of her as a benevolent figure. (AQA AO1/AO2; IB guiding concept: Love)

1. Compare the treatment of time as a destructive force in "Tithonus" with another poem in which a speaker confronts the passing of time. How do the poets use imagery and poetic voice to convey the emotional and psychological weight of time's power over human experience? (AQA AO1/AO2/AO3 comparative; AP Lit Q2 comparative poetry)

1. To what extent does the biographical and historical context of "Tithonus" — including Tennyson's grief over Arthur Hallam and the Victorian debate about science and faith — deepen our understanding of the poem's central argument? Consider how the poem's meditation on surpassing human limits reflects wider Victorian anxieties about what it means to be human. (AQA AO1/AO3; IB guiding concept: Intertextuality and context)

1. How does the shift in atmosphere across "Tithonus" — from vibrant memory to cold detachment — reflect Tithonus's psychological and emotional journey? In your answer, examine how the transition from warmth to cold, and from recollection to resignation, structures the poem's movement towards a yearning for peace. (AQA AO1/AO2; AP Lit Q1 poetry analysis; IB guiding concept: Time and Mortality)