In the third sequence Ulysses introduces his son Telemachus: Tennyson insert this character who embodies the traditional Victorian man. He is in contrast with his father, who instead follows heart; in fact Uliysses is motivated by the desire to reach the unexplored, to go beyond the boundaries of knowledge and pass any land border. Ulysses yearns to explore the unexplored. So, he could only Telemachus subdue a "rugged people" to the useful and the good. Note that 'useful', "good" and "common duties "are typical words that refer to Utilitarianism era. In Ulysses's words you can grasp a sort of contempt that justifies his choice to leave Ithaca.
The fourth stanza swifts the audience from the reader to the “mariners”, Ulysses' sailors. Ulysses glances at the port, that “lies” like him on the isle, and that is his way out to the sea. As gloomy as him, the water is dark and seems to miss his hero. The enjambement underline the mariners: they are connoted by the possessive “my”, that creates a deep bound between them and Ulysses, like one person.
With some pride seems to pervade Ulysses's words; he says “you and I are old”. But there is still hope: even if “death closes all” “honor” remains, and “something ere the end” “may yet be done”. Not his people, not his wife, not even his son can make him feel as proud and alive as his mariners can do.
The last part of the fourth verse and the entire fifth stanza are marked by a surprising optimism from Ulysses to knowledge and exploration. He does not scare him dead and transfers this attitude also to His companions.
He affirms that he will "to strive, to seek, to find and not to yeld" can synthetize the whole poem. He accepts his destiny: Ulysses is perfectly aware of the closeness of death and wants to leave anyway. Then, in this final part, the repetition of the personal pronoun "we" underlines the strong of the bond with their mariners.