As an introduction to this poem I quote a sentence from Dr. Gates's
excellent essay: "As we look at the circumstances of his life,
let us carry with us the strains of this poem, which interprets
the use of crosses, interferences, and attempted thwartings of one's purpose;
for the ethical value of Lanier's life and writings can be fully understood
only by remembering how much he overcame and how heroically he persisted
in manly work in his chosen art through years of such broken health
as would have driven most men to the inert, self-indulgent life of an invalid.
The superb power of will which he displayed is a lesson as valuable
as the noble poems which it illustrates and enforces."