Algernon Charles Swinburne, Tristram of Lyonesse, The Sailing of the Swallow, line 789
“
And hands that wist not though they dug a grave, Undid the hasps of gold, and drank, and gave, And he drank after, a deep glad kingly draught: And all their life changed in them, for they quaffed Death; if it be death so to drink, and fare As men who change and are what these twain were.
— Algernon Charles Swinburne on Death
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "And hands that wist not though they dug a grave, Undid the hasps of gold, and drank, and gave, And he drank after, a deep glad kingly draught: And all their life changed in them, for they quaffed Death; if it be death so to drink, and fare As men who change and are what these twain were." in the context of "Algernon Charles Swinburne, Tristram of Lyonesse, The Sailing of the Swallow, line 789" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Death" (S: [[File:The Knight with the Falcon (Rembrandt van Rijn) - Gothenburg Museum of Art - GKM 0698.tif|thumb| Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once. Of all the wonders that I yet have heard, It seems to me most strange that men should fear; Seeing that death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come. ~ William Shakespeare]])
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About Algernon Charles Swinburne
Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet.
About Algernon Charles Swinburne
Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet.
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