Ulysses is a dramatic monologue by Lord Alfred Tennyson. The dramatis personae, Ulysses, reflects on his present condition, as well as on his deeds and desires.
First of all, he considers his status: he is an idle king in an almost spectral kingdom (still hearth, barren crags), his wife is getting old and his subjects seem to be like savage animals and they do not even know him.
What strikes most the reader's attention is the deviation from ordinary syntax in the last part of the scene (know not me). It puts into focus the alliteration of sound n, suggesting alienation and exclusion. Moreover, the reader can identify two main semantic fields: the first one regarding business and possession (profits, mete, unequal, hoard) and the second one about decay (idle, still, barren, aged). In a way, it seems as if the speaker were disgusted about the reality in which he lives. After his long voyages, he does no more seem to be able to rule properly and, in the second scene he confesses: "I cannot rest from travel", that is, he misses his voyages and adventures and he feels imprisoned in such a static and humble island. Ulysses thinks about all he went through in his adventures: he lived great as well as terrible experiences, he was often accompanied by his crew, he discovered the meaning of friendship and hate, he travelled all around the world and came into contact with multiple peoples, ideas and customs and last but not least, he "knew himself". Paradoxically, it seems as if Ulysses' identity were clearer en route than at home. Moreover, the technique of accumulation makes the reader feel Ulysses' excitement and involvement in thinking about his deeds again. In particular, the battles in Troy are quoted , so that the reader immediately creates a parallel with Homer's Ulysses. Tennyson's and Homer's Ulysses seem to share the passion for adventure and life "drunk to the lees", "gleaming" and "shining". They both reject pauses and passiveness and try their best to live hard every moment, which life gives them. In a way, it seems as if such an exploitation of time reduced the constant threat of death and provided meaning to life.
The following scene is a turning point of the monologue: Ulysses gives Telemachus, his son, the custody of the kingdom, affirming "he works his work, I mine". The scepter is the symbol of the king's power and Ulysses upholds his decision finding connections between Telemachus' qualities and the virtues of the king (prudence, tenderness, decent).
The next scene regards Ulysses' departure with his historic fellows: even if old, they are ready for new adventures, "free hearts, free foreheads". The setting is quite disquieting (dark broad seas, slow moon, deep moans) and the speaker is conscious of the risk (it may be that the gulfs will wash us down, it may be we shall touch the Happy Islands) but he does not change his mind and affirms his will "to strive, to seek, to find and not to yeld". Differently from Homer's one, Tennyson's Ulysses is old and after his long voyage, he does not stay at home with Penelope but leaves again. However, Tennyson's Ulysses is an hero: he is ready to try his luck, despite risks in the name of knowledge, curiosity and personal enrichment, even if, in a way, he gives his responsibilities up (he leaves the throne).