To An Athlete Dying Young, By: A.E. Housman

Original
The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields were glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.

Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.

First Impression
- This poem by A.E. Housman talks about a runner, who wins a race for his hometown, yet is met with a terrible fate. Within the poem, Housman talks about how the runner would prepare for his races and how he brought life back into his hometown. In the end, Housman promises that the people will celebrate his victory, even after his death, and that the runner’s legacy will live on forever.

Paraphrased
That time you won that race for your town
We hoisted you through the market;
Men and children stood cheering,
And at home we celebrated loudly.

Today, the runners ran the course,
We brought you home shoulder-high,
And brought you down at your home,
The hero of a still, silent town.

Smart man, to wake up earlier than usual
From the fields were limited glory
And where the shrooms grow
It decays quicker than a rose

The eyes of the camera
Cannot see you crossing the line,
And silence sound worse than cheers
After the earth stopped their ears:

Now you will not endure this torture.
Of those who ran till they couldn’t,
Runners whom their reputation outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before your name fade.
Placed in a coffin,
And lower the coffin
For the still-defended champion.

And we will place a crown on his head
And it will compliment his deeds,
And find it unwhitered on its head
The wreath quicker than a girl’s

Syntax and Word Choice
- The poem is written into seven stanzas, with four lines per stanza. Furthermore, the poem follows the pattern of aabbccdd. The language is, for the most part, straightforward. The only difference in stanzas is in the last stanza, Housman includes intermediate words like, unwithered and garland briefer.
Imagery
- In the fourth stanza, Housman says, “Eyes the shady night has shut…”while alludes to the camera capturing the moment the runner crosses the finish line. In addition to the runner’s success, Housman includes the runner’s burial to allude to his death.
Figurative Language
- There are not any signs of similes or metaphors; however, the poem is ironic because the runner’s hometown is celebrating his death instead of feeling grief or distress.
Tone
- The main tone of this poem is more of a sympathetic yet ironic tone. As the poem progresses, Housman and the townspeople feel some grief for the runner, yet they started to celebrate as the runner was being buried.
Theme
- The overall theme in To an Athlete Dying Young is, to live your life to the fullest. Housman alludes to the fact that life is like a race course, in which our destination is the finish line. Housman subliminally states that at the end of your life, all you have are your achievements and your memories.

Conclusion
- After using SWIFTT on To an Athlete Dying Young, I can understand the point that A. E. Housman is trying to get across: Live your life to the fullest. Furthermore, Housman wants his readers to take chances and create memorable achievements.