T. S. Eliot, A Song for Simeon

William Baker (Northern Illinois University); Katie Wales (University of Nottingham)

Ed. by Chris Baldick, Goldsmiths College, University of London
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.08: English Writing and Culture of the early Twentieth Century , 1900-1945.
Vol. editors: Chris Baldick (Goldsmiths College, University of London), Peter Childs (Birmingham Newman University), Louise McDonald (Birmingham Newman University), Andrew Radford (University of Glasgow)

Dates

First circulation or publication Sep 1928

Places

England (Publication/ performance; Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Poem

Resources

Save to Bookshelf

Recommended Reading

A Song for Simeon

(published September 1928) is the second of Eliot’s “Ariel” poems. A 37-line poem in four uneven and partly-rhymed stanzas, it is based on the episode in the Gospel of St. Luke (2: 25-35), of the infant Jesus being presented by Joseph and Mary at the temple in Jerusalem at the prescribed ceremony of Mary’s purification and the consecration of the first-born son. Waiting in the temple is the old man Simeon, who has been told by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he has seen the Messiah. Taking the baby in his arms, he prays to God in what has come to be known in Christian liturgy as the “Canticle of Simeon” or “Song of Simeon”, or in Latin the

Nunc dimittis

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace: according to thy word. For mine

Please log in to consult the article in its entirety. If you are a member (student of staff) of a subscribing institution (see List), you should be able to access the LE on campus directly (without the need to log in), and off-campus either via the institutional log in we offer, or via your institution's remote access facilities, or by creating a personal user account with your institutional email address. If you are not a member of a subscribing institution, you will need to purchase a personal subscription. For more information on how to subscribe as an individual user, please see under Individual Subcriptions.

2321 words

Citation: Baker, William, Katie Wales. "A Song for Simeon". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 09 April 2021 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40472, accessed 24 April 2024.]

View recommended reading for this article

Save this article