To Helen Themes

Helen, Psyche, beauty—"To Helen" is chock full of references to love, mostly of the, ahem, mythical kind. All these references to mythological love, while they sound cool, are a bit depressing. T...

Nobody is forced to leave town in "To Helen," but the speaker nevertheless describes an experience that sure sounds like exile. He compares himself to a "weary way-worn wanderer" and points out tha...

Art is all over the place in "To Helen." The first stanza contains a complicated allusion to the Roman poet Catullus, another one to a famous woman from Greek mythology and literature (Helen), and,...