All Souls' Night (Poem by William Butler Yeats)

All Souls' Night

By William Butler Yeats

Epilogue to ‘A Vision’

Midnight has come, and the great Christ Church Bell

And may a lesser bell sound through the room;

And it is All Souls’ Night,

And two long glasses brimmed with muscatel

Bubble upon the table. A ghost may come;

For it is a ghost’s right,

His element is so fine

Being sharpened by his death,

To drink from the wine-breath

While our gross palates drink from the whole wine.

I need some mind that, if the cannon sound

From every quarter of the world, can stay

Wound in mind’s pondering

As mummies in the mummy-cloth are wound;

Because I have a marvellous thing to say,

A certain marvellous thing

None but the living mock,

Though not for sober ear;

It may be all that hear

Should laugh and weep an hour upon the clock.

Horton’s the first I call. He loved strange thought

And knew that sweet extremity of pride

That’s called Platonic love,

And that to such a pitch of passion wrought

Nothing could bring him, when his lady died,

Anodyne for his love.

Words were but wasted breath;

One dear hope had he:

The inclemency

Of that or the next winter would be death.

Two thoughts were so mixed up I could not tell

Whether of her or God he thought the most,

But think that his mind’s eye,

When upward turned, on one sole image fell;

And that a slight companionable ghost,

Wild with divinity,

Had so lit up the whole

Immense miraculous house

The Bible promised us,

It seemed a gold-fish swimming in a bowl.

On Florence Emery I call the next,

Who finding the first wrinkles on a face

Admired and beautiful,

And knowing that the future would be vexed

With ’minished beauty, multiplied commonplace,

Preferred to teach a school

Away from neighbour or friend,

Among dark skins, and there

Permit foul years to wear

Hidden from eyesight to the unnoticed end.

Before that end much had she ravelled out

From a discourse in figurative speech

By some learned Indian

On the soul’s journey. How it is whirled about,

Wherever the orbit of the moon can reach,

Until it plunge into the sun;

And there, free and yet fast,

Being both Chance and Choice,

Forget its broken toys

And sink into its own delight at last.

And I call up MacGregor from the grave,

For in my first hard springtime we were friends.

Although of late estranged.

I thought him half a lunatic, half knave,

And told him so, but friendship never ends;

And what if mind seem changed,

And it seem changed with the mind,

When thoughts rise up unbid

On generous things that he did

And I grow half contented to be blind!

He had much industry at setting out,

Much boisterous courage, before loneliness

Had driven him crazed;

For meditations upon unknown thought

Make human intercourse grow less and less;

They are neither paid nor praised.

But he d object to the host,

The glass because my glass;

A ghost-lover he was

And may have grown more arrogant being a ghost.

But names are nothing. What matter who it be,

So that his elements have grown so fine

The fume of muscatel

Can give his sharpened palate ecstasy

No living man can drink from the whole wine.

I have mummy truths to tell

Whereat the living mock,

Though not for sober ear,

For maybe all that hear

Should laugh and weep an hour upon the clock.

Such thought — such thought have I that hold it tight

Till meditation master all its parts,

Nothing can stay my glance

Until that glance run in the world’s despite

To where the damned have howled away their hearts,

And where the blessed dance;

Such thought, that in it bound

I need no other thing,

Wound in mind’s wandering

As mummies in the mummy-cloth are wound.

Poem Analysis:

"All Souls' Night" is a thought-provoking poem by the renowned Irish poet William Butler Yeats. Published in 1920, this poem delves into themes of mortality, spirituality, and the transition between life and death. Through vivid imagery and intricate symbolism, Yeats invites readers on a journey that explores the essence of existence and the profound impact of memory and thought on our perceptions of reality.

A Glimpse into the Poem: The poem opens with a description of a midnight scene where the Christ Church Bell tolls, setting the stage for a mysterious and contemplative atmosphere. Yeats introduces us to the concept of All Souls' Night, a time when the boundary between the living and the dead is believed to be particularly porous. This notion of a ghostly presence and the anticipation of a supernatural encounter sets the tone for the poem's exploration of the otherworldly.

The first stanza introduces the central image of two glasses filled with muscatel wine, one for the living and one for the ghost. This juxtaposition symbolizes the duality of existence and the idea that the deceased may still have a connection to the living world through memory and thought. The ghost's ability to enjoy the "wine-breath" while the living indulge in the "whole wine" highlights the ethereal nature of this connection.

A Tale of Three Friends: Yeats then shifts his focus to three individuals who have passed away but continue to influence the living through memory. The first, Horton, is described as a lover of "strange thought" and "Platonic love." His passion for his lady is so intense that he hopes for death to release him from his suffering, illustrating the intertwining of love and mortality.

The second figure, Florence Emery, is portrayed as a woman who embraced the impermanence of beauty and chose a life of teaching to avoid the ravages of time. Her understanding of the soul's journey, as described in Indian philosophy, emphasizes the idea that the soul seeks liberation and ultimate joy.

The final character, MacGregor, is remembered as a friend who straddled the line between genius and madness. His peculiarities and obsession with ghosts hint at the idea that the dead may have unique perspectives on life and death.

Transcending Names: Yeats concludes by suggesting that names are ultimately inconsequential when it comes to the soul's journey. Whether one is Horton, Florence Emery, or MacGregor, the essence of their being transcends their earthly names. The poem implies that the evolution of the soul is a deeply personal and transformative process, making the distinction between the living and the dead less significant.

The poem's final lines return to the idea of the "mummy truths" that the poet possesses—truths that may be scoffed at by the living but are of profound significance. These truths are so potent that they can elicit both laughter and tears, showcasing the emotional impact of contemplating life, death, and the afterlife.

"All Souls' Night" by W.B. Yeats is a lyrical meditation on the interconnectedness of life and death, memory and thought. Through its evocative imagery and introspective tone, the poem invites readers to ponder the mysteries of existence and the enduring influence of those who have passed away. Yeats' exploration of these themes resonates with readers across generations, reminding us of the timeless questions that have fascinated humanity for centuries.