Alastor; or, the Spirit of Solitude
A young poet travels through wildernesses and ancient ruins, where an Arab maiden tends him without declaring her love. After dreaming of a woman in Cashmire, he searches for her beyond sleep, grows weak, and sails through a storm into the caverns of the Caucasus. He follows a stream to a secluded mountain ledge and dies as the moon sets; the narrator closes by lamenting his death.
By Percy Bysshe Shelley · Genre: Narrative Poetry, Romantic Poetry, Allegorical Poetry · 8,488 words
First lines
Earth, Ocean, Air, beloved brotherhood! / If our great Mother has imbued my soul / With aught of natural piety to feel / Your love, and recompense the boon with mine; / If dewy morn, and odorous noon, and even, / With sunset and its gorgeous ministers, / And solemn midnight's tingling silentness; / If autumn's hollow sighs in the sere wood, / And winter robing with pure snow and crowns / Of starry ice the grey grass and bare boughs; / If spring's voluptuous pantings when she breathes / Her first sweet kisses, have been dear to me; / If no bright bird, insect, or gentle beast / I consciously have injured, but still loved / And cherished these my kindred; then forgive / This boast, beloved brethren, and withdraw / No portion of your wonted favour now!
Genres
- Narrative Poetry — The verse follows an unnamed poet from his youthful travels through a consuming dream and dangerous voyage to his solitary death.
- Romantic Poetry — The poet's longing for an imagined companion drives him through storms, forests, and mountain ravines, linking intense desire with vast natural landscapes.
- Allegorical Poetry — The preface presents the poet's futile search for an imagined companion and early death as consequences of seclusion from human sympathy.
Tags
solitude · dream visions · ideal love · wandering · sea voyage · death · mourning
What this Textopian page supports
Alastor; or, the Spirit of Solitude is listed on Textopian as a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Percy Bysshe Shelley
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Narrative Poetry, Romantic Poetry, Allegorical Poetry
- Length: 8,488 words
- Structure: 1 section, 20 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)
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- Work identity for Alastor; or, the Spirit of Solitude by Percy Bysshe Shelley
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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