Poetry · Chapter
Chapter XXXV explained
The speaker concludes his lament, acknowledging his failures and the weight of his heart.
What happens
The speaker concludes his lament, acknowledging his failures and the weight of his heart. He reflects on the outward world's indifference to his inner sorrow, and resigns himself to the idea that all outcomes are predetermined by fate and the stars, rendering personal will meaningless.
Themes in this chapter
Fate and Free Will
The speaker questions the value of personal effort, concluding that fate and the stars govern all, rendering will powerless.
Self and Identity
The speaker contrasts his inner sorrow with the outward world's joy, defining himself by his failures and his separation from the 'not-I'.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“I, that have failed in everything, bewail Nothing this hour but that I have bewailed”
I, who have failed at everything, now only lament the fact that I have been lamenting.
The speaker reflects on the futility of his own sorrow.
“Whatever hap or stop, what matters it, Sith to the mattering our will bringeth nought?”
Whatever happens or doesn't happen, what does it matter, since our will contributes nothing to what matters?
The speaker dismisses the significance of human will in the face of fate.