Alfred Tennyson: The Major Works

What does it mean to grapple with loss, faith, and the passage of time? Alfred, Lord Tennyson's The Major Works presents the essential poetry and prose of Victorian England's greatest poet—the chief poetic voice of his age and one of the most highly regarded masters of the music and mood of verse. Tennyson (1809-1892) served as Poet Laureate for over forty years and created some of the most memorable and musically perfect poems in English literature. His work explores grief and memory, faith and doubt, heroism and mortality, the medieval past and Victorian present, with unmatched lyrical beauty and emotional depth. His poetry speaks to timeless human experiences with language of extraordinary musicality and contemplative power.

This authoritative Oxford edition brings together a unique combination of Tennyson's poetry and prose spanning his entire career, from striking juvenilia through his decades as Poet Laureate to powerful poetry written in his ninth decade. The collection includes such classics as "The Lady of Shalott," "Ulysses," "The Charge of the Light Brigade," "Morte d'Arthur," and "Tears, Idle Tears," as well as complete major works including the monumental elegy In Memoriam A.H.H., the dramatic monologue Maud, the quasi-feminist epic The Princess, the narrative Enoch Arden, and sections of Idylls of the King. The poems are augmented with selections from Tennyson's letters and his son Hallam's Memoir, where Tennyson discusses his own poetry and the work of others.

For contemplative readers, Tennyson's poetry offers profound meditation on grief, faith, memory, and the examined life. His work asks: How do we endure profound loss? What is the relationship between faith and doubt? How do we find meaning in mortality? What does it mean to live heroically in ordinary life? Tennyson's verse becomes a companion for navigating loss and uncertainty—teaching patient grief, courage in doubt, beauty in remembrance, and the conviction that poetry can give form to our deepest experiences of love, loss, and longing.

What You'll Discover
Tennyson's major works—poetry and prose spanning his entire career
Authoritative Oxford World's Classics edition with expert introduction and notes
Complete In Memoriam, Maud, The Princess, and sections of Idylls of the King
Celebrated poems including "Ulysses," "The Lady of Shalott," and "The Charge of the Light Brigade"
Selections from letters and memoir revealing Tennyson's thoughts on poetry
Contemplative insights into grief, faith, memory, and the examined life
Victorian England's Poet Laureate and master of lyrical verse

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) was born in Lincolnshire and educated at Cambridge, where he formed a deep friendship with Arthur Henry Hallam, whose early death inspired In Memoriam, one of the greatest elegies in English. Tennyson became Poet Laureate in 1850 and held the position for forty-two years, the longest tenure in history. His poetry captured the Victorian spirit—its faith and doubt, its progress and nostalgia, its grief and hope. He remains one of the most beloved and musically accomplished poets in English literature, whose work continues to speak to readers navigating loss, seeking faith, and finding beauty in language.

Perfect for: Readers of British poetry and Victorian literature, students of Alfred Tennyson and 19th-century poetry, contemplative readers exploring grief and faith, those interested in elegiac poetry and memory, anyone drawn to musical, lyrical verse, readers of poetry about loss, heroism, and the examined life, students of Victorian culture and the Poet Laureate tradition, admirers of poetry that gives beautiful form to profound human experiences.

Paperback edition. Tennyson's major works—offering contemplative wisdom on grief, faith, and memory through the musically perfect, emotionally profound voice of Victorian England's greatest poet.