Lord Alfred Tennyson

Lord Alfred Tennyson’s last poem of every collection of his work is “Crossing the Bar.” He requested it to be this way even though it is not the last poem that he wrote. It fits that it is his last poem though because the poem is a metaphor for the crossing over into death.

The poem can be read and interpreted in two ways. It can be read literally as someone sailing out to see, or it can be like Tennyson preparing for and accepting his death. The poem takes place at sunset so it can symbolize the end of someone’s life. He accepts that he is headed towards sunset and only asks one thing.

“May there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea” (ln 3-4)

Here the moaning of the bar comes from waves crashing against the sand bar. When the water is rougher, the waves can be heard crashing against it. Someone sailing through it would not want to hear “moaning of the bar.” Also, here he means that he does not want anyone crying for him when he dies. He wishes for a painless death and no sadness coming from his loved ones. He mentions that the tide is “too full for sound and foam.” He expects a peaceful crossing of the bar because he does not hear anything.

“Such a tide as moving seems asleep” (ln 5)

The third stanza repeats the fact that he does not want any sadness when he dies. Right now he is in “twilight and evening bell” and after this he will be in the dark. He is not sad or frightened by what is to come because he uses peaceful words to describe his fate. Twilight and evening are peaceful times of the day and he is at peace even though it will be dark soon. He asks for no sadness more directly this time.

“And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;” (ln 11-12)

The last stanza made it clear to me that he was talking about his own death. He tells us that the flood may take him far away “from out our bourne of Time and Place” meaning he will be taken far away from the boundary that they now know. He is excited about his fate and what he will see “crossing the bar.” He hopes to see his “Pilot face to face.” Pilot is capitalized in the poem showing that it is something important. Here he means that he hopes to see God face to face, who has piloted his life thus far.

I found this poem moving and I like the way that it compares death to something peaceful as riding out to sea. It is evident that Tennyson is prepared for what will happen to him and has accepted death as his next step in life.