Poem Tartary (Walter De La Mare) Summary Imp Qs Ref Explanation
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Poem:
If I were Lord of Tartary.
Myself and me alone,
My bed should be of ivory;
Of beaten gold my throne;
And in my court should peacocks flaunt
And in my forests tigers haunt,
And in my pools great fishes slant
Their fins athwart the sun.
If I were Lord of Tartary
Trumpeters everyday
To every meal would summon me,
And in my courtyard bray;
And in the evening lamps would shine,
Yellow as honey, red as wine,
While harp, and flute, and mandoline,
Made music sweet and gay.
If I were Lord of Tartary.
I'd wear a robe of beads,
White and gold, and green they'd be-
And clustered thick as seeds;
And ere should wane the morning-star,
I'd don my robe and scimitar,
And zebras seven should draw my car
Through Tartary's dark glades.
Lord of the fruits of Tartary,
Her rivers silver-pale!
Lord of the hills of Tartary,
Glen, thicket, wood, and dale!
Her flashing stars, her scented breeze,
Her trembling lakes, like foamless seas,
Her bird-delighting, citron trees
In every purple vale!
Walter De La Mare:
Idea of Poem:
Tartary
This poem is an imaginary picture of Tartary, an ideal unrealistic kingdom. The poem tells us that there is no boundary to human thinking. The imagination is boundless. The poet sees himself as the king of an imaginary, glorious land which he calls "Tartary". In the poem, he also mentions the bounties, luxuries, and richness of that place. The poem is a description of poets life into his imaginary monarchy.
Summary
This is a fantastic poet by Walter De La Mare. He considered himself the 'Lord of Tartary' an imaginative glorious land the poet dreams of. The land 'Tartary' does not exist in reality. This is only the poet's imagination that he sees such a grand land and thinks himself the king of that land. He describes various types of facilities and luxuries he would enjoy as the kind of Tartary. He says that Tartary is beautiful and fertile land. It has many delights which we haven't heard of. He says that as the king of Tartary, he would have the bed made of ivory. He would have a golden throne with gold leaves on it.
He describes his fancy dreamland as the most beautiful place in the world. He says that there would be peacocks dancing in his court. Its forests will have tigers hunting the animals. It pools will be full of great fish. he says that he would wear a grand robe adorned with golden beads. He would hold a curved sword and would go round his realm riding a chariot with seven zebras pulling it.
He says that there would be harp playing flutes and mandoline in his court. He says that the land Tartary is very beautiful. He would get pleasure from all the fascinating things present there.
The poem shows the poet's lust and desire for power and might. He wishes to become the sole and monarch king of Tartary. Tartary is a far-off full of delights and happiness. Where worries are not allowed to enter. He describes his imaginary kingdom further. He says that there would be lions roaring in the jungles of Tartary. The beautiful and charming fish will be swimming in its pools. The poet wants to be the master of all pomp and show of Tartary. He says that her slaves would give him a sweet whistle for the meal.
The night at Tartary would have even more charm than the day. There would be glowing colorful lights which would illuminate his palace. The dancers would please him with their dance.
He would be the owner of all the things like fruits, rivers, valleys, forests, clouds, air, mountains and flowers of Tartary. The birds, the lakes and the trees would be in his possession. The poem is a show of internal drives of the poet. The poet wants to be an extreme ruler of the land. He does not care for the reality and goes on with his own imagination. In fact, the poem is a beautiful piece of art by Walter De La Mare.
Important Questions
Question 1: Discuss the Poem Tartary by Walter De La Mare as a Romantic poem
Answer: Tartary has all the features of a romantic poem. It is about an imaginary land somewhere in the East. The imagined land is replete with romance, adventure, natural beauty, thrill, and mystery. The land is beautiful, rich, fertile, and full of unheard and unseen delights.
This makes the whole atmosphere romantic. The rich variety of exotic colors is pleasant. The use of imagery is effective and colorful. The poet believes that the scenic beauty of nature and enchanting sounds are a precious treasure of delight and wonder of man.
The use of imagery is effective and colorful. The poet has given good proof of his fondness for nature like Wordsworth. This poem is similar to Coleridge's poem Kubla Khan. Colors and sounds evoke everyone.
Unlike monarchs of the modern world, he hates luxuries and valuable vehicles run through mechanical devices and shows his preference for carriage drawn by seven Zebras.
In this fertile land, there will be every blessing of God. This land of Tartary would be a heavenly place on earth, with its beautiful hills and valleys, its trembling lakes with cool, crystal, and clear water, and even flowering rivers.
Its trembling stars, fragrant breeze of the early morning, a cluster of trees, and beautiful birds sing sweet songs making it a land of charming delights. The poet has beautifully created a romantic atmosphere with the help of effective use of imagery.
Like a true romantic, Walter De La Mare escapes into an ideal world, where every thing is waiting for his order. He imagines himself to be the master of that glorious land called Tartary. In this way, he tries to satisfy his unfulfilled desires of real life.
Question 2: How does the poet takes us in the realm of imagination in the poem Tartary?
Answer: Walter De La Mare takes the reader into the realm of imagination through colorful images and diction. He has used romantic kind of imagery in this poem to create a soothing impact on the minds of the readers.
Almost all the images like ivory bed , beaten gold throne, flaunting peacocks, slanting fishes, sweet music, zebra-driven carriage, etc, are very fanciful images. But the most fanciful image is the magical evening in his palace.
The sound of the trumpets, the yellow and red lights of the lamp, the melodious music harp, flute and mandolin, etc, create a romantic atmosphere. The yellow lights like yellow honey give sweetness to the surroundings while red lights like red wine that intoxicated us.
The picture of a gorgeously dressed up king moving about in pleasing yellow and red lights, with music filling the atmosphere is most romantic and fanciful. There are many other fanciful words in the poem. The first image is sitting on a throne of pure gold.
The second image is when the poet wishes to sleep on a bed made of ivory. The third image is related to the eating meal in the light of lamps and the fourth fanciful image is the wearing of a dress made of costly beads. We can say that the poem is replete with fanciful images.
Reference:
Context:
Explanation:
Stanza 1
If I were Lord of Tartary.
Myself and me alone,
My bed should be of ivory;
Of beaten gold my throne;
And in my court should peacocks flaunt
And in my forests tigers haunt,
And in my pools great fishes slant
Their fins athwart the sun.
Stanza 2
If I were Lord of Tartary
Trumpeters everyday
To every meal would summon me,
And in my courtyard bray;
And in the evening lamps would shine,
Yellow as honey, red as wine,
While harp, and flute, and mandoline,
Made music sweet and gay.
Stanza 3
If I were Lord of Tartary.
I'd wear a robe of beads,
White and gold, and green they'd be-
And clustered thick as seeds;
And ere should wane the morning-star,
I'd don my robe and scimitar,
And zebras seven should draw my car
Through Tartary's dark glades.
Stanza 4
Lord of the fruits of Tartary,
Her rivers silver-pale!
Lord of the hills of Tartary,
Glen, thicket, wood, and dale!
Her flashing stars, her scented breeze,
Her trembling lakes, like foamless seas,
Her bird-delighting, citron trees
In every purple vale!
