Read the poem.

excerpt from "the garden of proserpine"
by algernon charles swinburne

prosperine is the latin spelling of “persophone,” a goddess married to hades, the god of the underworld. according to legend, her garden of poppies would cause travelers to forget their purpose and fall into a waking sleep.

here, where the world is quiet;

here, where all trouble seems

dead winds' and spent waves' riot

in doubtful dreams of dreams;

i watch the green field growing

for reaping folk and sowing,

for harvest-time and mowing,

a sleepy world of streams.

i am tired of tears and laughter,

and men that laugh and weep;

of what may come hereafter

for men that sow to reap:

i am weary of days and hours,

blown buds of barren flowers,

desires and dreams and powers

and everything but sleep.

here life has death for neighbour,

and far from eye or ear

wan waves and wet winds labour,

weak ships and spirits steer;

they drive adrift, and whither

they wot not who make thither;

but no such winds blow hither,

and no such things grow here.

part a

how does the imagery in the poem’s first stanza affect its meaning?

the first stanza paints a picture of the quiet and peaceful world that existed before mankind created technology and ruined it all.

the images of “dead winds” and “spent waves,” combined with those of “the green field growing” and people “reaping” at “harvest-time,” convey that the poem is about death and life.

the imagery describes how the natural world will continue to grow and flourish, no matter what happens to mankind.

many negative words—“dead,” “spent,” “riot,” “doubtful”—establish that the poem is talking about the sadness each person experiences in life. the poem is saying that all life is full of sadness and any potential happiness is only a dream.

part b

how is the meaning described in part a further expressed in the poem’s second stanza?

the “blown buds of barren flowers” that the speaker references in this stanza symbolize how death touches all living things.

the speaker says he is tired of people and their bad decisions, which always ruin the happy things in life.

the speaker longs to be out in the natural world where restful sleep is possible and a new day is always dawning.

the speaker is critical of man’s “desires and dreams and powers” and suggests that man is powerless compared to nature.