Alfred, Lord Tennyson The Victorian Period

Alfred, Lord Tennyson August 6, 1809 – October 6, 1892 Poet Laureate Best-known Victorian poet

His Life His father was a well-off pastor who took care that his sons were well-educated Alfred Tennyson was 14 when Byron died and was very saddened by the event

In reality, Tennyson grew up in a dysfunctional family He already knew he was going to be a poet – he and two of his brothers published a book of poems when Alfred was only 17 It is often assumed that Tennyson had an easy life and was not really in touch with life in Victorian England In reality, Tennyson grew up in a dysfunctional family George Clayton Tennyson (1778–1831), Father of Alfred Tennyson

His father was often violent and drank too much His father, heir to a large landowner, was disinherited and forced to become a minister to make a living – a job he hated One brother was committed to an asylum for life (Edward); one brother (Charles) was addicted to opium; a third brother fought physically with his father (Arthur) His father was often violent and drank too much Charles Tennyson

Alfred went to Cambridge for a while; he was a shy man whose friends encouraged to write He had to quit college when his father died Things were difficult then for him; he returned home to care for his mother

His best friend died the next year – Arthur Henry Hallam – who was also engaged to Alfred’s sister, Emilia Hallam’s death was traumatic and seems to be what inspired Tennyson to write truly great poetry

The same year as Hallam’s death, Alfred published his second collection of poems This book was so badly received that Alfred refused to publish again for 10 years, although he was still writing poetry Young Alfred

Finances were very bad during these years and Alfred was forced to delay his marriage to his childhood sweetheart for 14 years Alfred’s third publication finally brought recognition and a more comfortable income

In 1850, Tennyson reached what many consider to be the height of his career when he published “In Memoriam A.H.H.,” a lengthy poem in honor of his friend Henry Hallam Also in 1850, Tennyson was appointed Poet Laureate (which gave him a steady income) and married Emily Sellwood – his very patient fiancé Remember that crisis often brings out the best in creative people – and there were several elements that combined to bring Tennyson to his height -

Remember… crisis often brings out the best in creative people – and there were several elements that combined to bring Tennyson to the height of his career

He published nearly a dozen books of poems before he died A famous one included “Idylls of the King,” the story of King Arthur

In 1884, Tennyson was given a “peerage,” which was accompanied with land, a home, and the title of “Lord” and is known as Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred accepted the title to help secure financial stability for his sons Tennyson died in 1892 and was buried in Westminster Abbey

His poetry was always marked by a sense of the precariousness and sadness of life He believed that everything was a part of a benevolent plan in which all losses would eventually be made good Tennyson also recognized that his voice was important in society and that the general public took his opinions very seriously A biography written by his son confirmed that Tennyson was not a Christian

Tennyson’s Legacy… His classic Victorian themes showed his desire for logic, moralizing, and self-indulgent melancholy He also discussed the common concern with the conflict between religious faith and scientific knowledge

Tennyson had a gift for describing scenery; he was said to be able to describe locations that did not exist as if they were real places He used a style of blank verse that was considered “dignified,” and he said it was difficult to describe “ordinary” things with his words, something he dealt with frequently Tennyson was concerned with the future; he found it both fascinating and frightening

He was amazed at the creativity of man but also alarmed at the violence and horrors in the modern world He was afraid that man would “retrogress” – go backward as a society rather than forward As many of the poets before him, Tennyson felt that he must explore the relation of humanity to God and nature, most clearly seen in his elegy, In Memoriam

Although Tennyson often wrote about the past, he was the first major writer to address the awareness of the vastness of “human existence” seen after scientists discovered that the world was “millions” of years old during the Victorian Age