1) Read the poem through and say:

- The speaker is Ulysses, a semi-retired soldier and also a king.

- The protagonisti is old;

- He is in Ithaca with his wife Penelope, but he wants traveling around the world.

2) Now read the text again, this time paying attention to the development of the argument. Summarize what Ulysses says and feels following the guidelines on the left. For each point consider also Tennyson's vocabulary indicating which words and phrases, in particular, reveal in the hero's traits and attitudes. The first point has been written for you.

3a) How is Ulysses portrayed in the poem?

He’s an old man, became a good man thanks to his past experience;

 He is in contrast with his son, Telemachus, decribed like a wise man really able to rule Ithaca, int he text he rappresent the Victorian age qualities:

Ulysses life a life that’s full, he didn’t waste his times and he always travel around the world, discovering new place a meeting new people -> Modern Age mentality;

Contrari from Ulysses character of Omero’s poem, the main character of A.T. is a rational man, who didn’t follow only his passions.

4) The poem was composed when Tennyson was still suffering for the death of his dearest friend, A. Hallam, in 1883. Does the poem reflect a sense of loss?

Tennyson’s suffering is present in the Ulysses’s monologue, when the protagonist riflects on sense of life, in particular when he is near its end.

5) As you will have realised the hero’s feelings are communicated through a careful choice of words. What observations can you make about the meter and the music of the poem and the relationship with its meaning?

The poemi s rich of figure os speech, in particular of allitteration, in order to make the poem melodious.

 The nature melodious is present in the monologue, in order to create a sense of drama and the intelligent reader can focus on Ulysses and “hear” he talking clearly.