A summary of a classic poem
The story of Sir Thomas Wyatt’s possible romantic involvement with Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII, is a drama all in itself. But what is remarkable about Wyatt’s poetry – especially ‘They Flee from Me’ – is the way he dramatises life at court, and personal relationships, in a short poem, using language in a direct, muscular way that was largely new in English verse. But Wyatt was writing nearly five centuries ago, so a few words by way of analysis are necessary to tease out the meaning of his work.
They flee from me that sometime did me seek
With naked foot, stalking in my chamber.
I have seen them gentle, tame, and meek,
That now are wild and do not remember
That sometime they put themself in danger
To take bread at my hand; and now they range,
Busily seeking with a continual change.