The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats — Analysis & Translation

Original Poem

The Second Coming Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere The ceremony of innocence is drowned; The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. Surely some revelation is at hand; Surely the Second Coming is at hand. The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert A shape with lion body and the head of a man, A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun, Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds. The darkness drops again; but now I know That twenty centuries of stony sleep Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle, And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

Translation (English)

Spinning around in a bigger circle The hunting bird can't hear its trainer; Things are breaking down; the center can't stay together; Disorder is spreading across the world, The blood-red wave is released, and everywhere Innocence is overwhelmed; The best people have no confidence, while the worst Are filled with extreme passion. Surely some big reveal is coming; Surely the Second Coming is near. The Second Coming! Those words are barely spoken When a huge image from the world's spirit Disturbs my vision: somewhere in the desert sands A creature with a lion's body and a human head, A stare as empty and harsh as the sun, Is moving its slow legs, while all around it Circle shadows of the angry desert birds. The darkness falls again; but now I understand That twenty centuries of deep sleep Were disturbed into a nightmare by a rocking cradle, And what rough creature, its time finally come, Is moving slowly towards Bethlehem to be born?

About the Poet

William Butler Yeats (Modernist era)

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923. Yeats was known for his modernist and lyrical poetry, influenced by Irish legends and the occult.

Historical Context

Literary Form: Modernist poetry
When Written: 1919
Background: The poem was written in the aftermath of World War I, reflecting the chaos and disillusionment of the time. Yeats uses Christian imagery of the Apocalypse to describe the turbulent atmosphere of post-war Europe.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Second_Coming_(poem), https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43290/the-second-coming, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._B._Yeats

Detailed Explanation

W.B. Yeats' 'The Second Coming' is a reflection on the chaos and disintegration of the post-World War I world. The poem begins with the image of a falcon spiraling out of control, symbolizing the loss of order and the breakdown of traditional structures. Yeats uses the metaphor of a 'widening gyre' to depict the expanding chaos. The poem suggests that the world is on the brink of a new revelation, akin to the biblical Second Coming, but instead of a savior, a monstrous beast is approaching. This beast, with a lion's body and a man's head, represents a new era of darkness and destruction. The poem captures the anxiety and uncertainty of the time, as well as Yeats' belief in cyclical history, where the end of one era leads to the birth of another. The imagery of the 'blood-dimmed tide' and 'ceremony of innocence drowned' conveys a sense of violence and loss of purity. Yeats' use of Christian imagery and apocalyptic themes underscores the gravity of the historical moment and the poet's sense of foreboding about the future.

Themes

Literary Devices

Word Dictionary

Word	Meaning	Translation	Transliteration
gyre	spiral or circular motion	a spinning or circular path	jai-er
falconer	person who trains falcons	a trainer of birds of prey	fal-kuh-ner
anarchy	chaos, disorder	a state of disorder and lawlessness	an-ar-kee
loosed	released, set free	let go or unleashed	loost
Spiritus Mundi	world spirit, collective spirit	the collective consciousness or spirit of the world	spir-i-tus mun-dee
vexed	disturbed, troubled	annoyed or agitated	vekst
slouches	moves lazily, shuffles	walks or moves in a lazy way	slouch-ez
Bethlehem	a town, birthplace of Jesus	a town in Judea, traditionally known as the birthplace of Jesus	beth-li-hem
conviction	certainty, strong belief	firm belief or confidence	kon-vik-shun
pitiless	merciless, without pity	showing no mercy or compassion	pit-i-less
indignant	angry, offended	feeling or showing anger at something unjust	in-dig-nant
revelation	disclosure, unveiling	a surprising and previously unknown fact	rev-e-la-shun
stony	stone-like, hard	resembling stone in hardness	stone-ee
nightmare	bad dream, terrifying experience	a frightening or unpleasant dream	night-mare
cradle	baby's bed, origin	a small bed for an infant	kray-dl