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Home they Brought her Warrior Dead by Alfred Lord Tennyson: Summary | Major English Class 11
Home they Brought her Warrior Dead by Alfred Lord Tennyson
ABOUT THE POEM
Home they Brought her Warrior Dead
This lyrical poem, "Home They Brought Her Warrior Dead," has been composed by the British poet Alfred Lord Tennyson. The poem depicts a woman who lost her husband in a battle and was left alone to raise her child. The third-person narrative allows the readers to see the widow's reaction from an outside perspective. The readers, therefore, identify with the rest of the crowd of gathered people and experience the same concern for the widow and confusion at her reaction. In the first few stanzas, the widow is seen only as a woman who has lost her husband. However, the last stanza reveals the fact that she is not only a widow but also a mother. This insight sheds light on her reaction, allowing the readers to understand what had been going through her mind as she realised that her husband was dead and she would have to raise the child alone.
STANZA-WISE ANALYSIS
Home they Brought her Warrior Dead
HOME they brought her warrior dead:
She nor swooned, nor uttered cry:
All her maidens, watching, said,
'She must weep or she will die.'
The speaker describes a woman's reaction when her dead husband was brought back to her. Her grief was so heavy that she couldn't even cry. She didn't faint or even make a noise. Her friends saw her and became concerned about her because they felt that she was not grieving properly. They thought that if she didn't cry, she might die. They believed that if the woman did not grieve and express her inner pain, the particular pain would eventually kill her.
Then they praised him, soft and low,
Called him worthy to be loved,
Truest friend and noblest foe;
Yet she neither spoke nor moved.
As in many cases of death, the people around the dead body admired him. They talked about his life, his good deeds, and so on. Here, the people around the dead man addressed him as "deserving to be loved" and talked about the kind of friend he was to them. They called him "true" and "noble." Still, the people around him showed their sympathy as well as sadness and spoke about remembrance, but the dead man's wife could neither speak nor move.
She stood quite still. No one knew what was going through her mind, but she seemed to be in a state of shock. There seemed to be no memory that brought tears to the widow's eyes. She was still motionless. Perhaps she was unable to accept death, even as those around her spoke of her and paid tribute to his memory. All those around her were not sure why the woman refused to show her emotion, but they surrounded her with words of praise for her husband, hoping to lift her out of her shock so that they could comfort her.
Stole a maiden from her place,
Lightly to the warrior stepped,
Took the face-cloth from the face;
Yet she neither moved nor wept.
In this stanza too, the woman refused to grieve. One of the young women quietly approached the dead man and removed the cloth covering his face. Perhaps she thought that his wife was unable to grieve because she still could not believe or accept that the dead man was her husband. All those who were around the widow clearly believed that the woman should grieve. The woman didn't show signs of grief when people talked about her. This particular friend of the woman showed her the face of her late husband, hoping that this would help the woman come out of the state of shock and she would be able to grieve properly.
Rose a nurse of ninety years,
Set his child upon her knee
Like summer tempest came her tears-
‘Sweet my child, I live for thee.
In this last stanza of "Home, They Brought Her Warrior Dead," the speaker finally tells the readers the reason for the widow's silence. Actually, she had not been indifferent or careless about the death of her husband. She hadn't even come into shock or disbelief like those around her. Rather, she was paralysed because of fear. She didn't think about the pain of losing her husband. Rather, she thought of the poor child. An old nurse of ninety years rose and put the woman's child on her knee. Seeing her child, the woman burst into uncontrollable tears that came like a summer storm. She cried at last and shouted, "My child, I live for you.".
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