I’m in the process of memorising this and reading The Odyssey after listening to poet Dana Gioia talk about poetry memorisation’s ability to shape the heart on the Tyler Cowen podcast.

I very much identify with the poem’s depiction of the wear of time and it’s resistance by impervious optimism and dare (as said here by jandrewrogers) and I want to make it more part of myself.

I can recite about a third so far, from the start and the end. I started with the end because that’s what I first heard in Skyfall.

You might enjoy this analysis of Skyfall, which talks a bit about the choice of the poem:

http://filmreadings.com/2015/12/23/skyfall/

"The authoritarian tendencies of the agency are also underlined by the film’s portrayal of MI6 as a monarchical structure, where M rules as the flesh-eating “king rat” from Silva’s parable. Through such small touches as her flag-draped coffins or the recurring tune of “God Save the Queen” which plays to her grim skull-visage, M is repeatedly surrounded by iconography suggestive of her role as a murderous Queen. The connection is also reinforced by her lengthy quote from Tennyson’s Ulysses midway through the film. For although the poem in question is often read as commenting on Bond or the aging 007 franchise, it is on a deeper level the interior monologue of an aging monarch, and serves both as a comment on M’s weakening grasp on power, as well as her outright rejection of the principle of democratic oversight:"

I tried the same, but you got much further than me. I managed the first 8 lines, and the final 5.

I’ve always found Tennyson’s Ulysses to be a beautiful balance of deep self-awareness of the wear and tear of time combined with an impervious optimism. I recognize the perspective, very personally. I am surprised to find it here but it is poignant and among my favorite poems.

It uniquely captures a very particular spirit.

This copy is hosted in (one of) the old homedir of Karl Ramm, who passed away not so long ago. I believe that he would be tickled and mildly but pleasantly surprised to find the link on HN.

To whomever posted it: thank you for reminding me of an old friend.

The final line is Scott of the Antarctic's epitaph.

Much shakspear in this.

Short but sweet.

"To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield" is my favorite line and my personal mantra for difficult times in my life.

This is my favorite poem.

Not just liked. I liked it. That's very significant. People liked it too.

I looked at the annotated one your shared, thanks but the annotations were distracting. Missed the emotion.

Good for analyzing, but i just wanted to enjoy it. Other people did too. So this link was the best ;p :) xx

How about with some annotations:

https://genius.com/3066659