I THINK it better that in times like these
A poet's mouth be silent, for in truth
We have no gift to set a statesman right;
He has had enough of meddling who can please
A young girl in the indolence of her youth,
Or an old man upon a winter's night.
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From guest Tim McEwen (contact)
By 'meddling' he means to offer unsolicited comment. The sage holds his own counsel in the face of history. But if you can get a smile out of a cold old man or a sulky girl, then you have used your talents well. -
Intriguing poem
Yeats recognized the sheer inevitability of war and thought it better to be a silent spectator. There seems to be a philosophical resignation at the human tendency to wage wars. The analogy of a young girl in her youthfulness who gives up herself to her desires and an old man who frets on a cold and bitter winter night gives a false sense of calm - youthfulness is impermanent and death is just ahead for the old man. Yeats has a contempt for the statesman and politics in general. -
Yeats was asked to write a "war poem" at the outbreak of World War II. His respose is profound.
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Try looking at it like this; to interfere or become involved in somebody else’s concerns or with something that is somebody else’s property (disapproving)
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Anyone know what is meant by "medding"? -- is it a variant on "meddling" (= intrusive) or is it an archaeic variant on "midden" (= a mound of refuse) as suggested by OED-online.
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