Tears, idle tears, I know not what they mean, Tears from the depths of some devine despair Rise in the heart, and gather to the eyes, In looking on the happy autumn fields, And thinking of the days that are no more.

Alfred Tennyson
About This Quote

The poet William Wordsworth wrote, “Tears, idle tears, I know not what they mean, Tears from the depths of some devine despairRise in the heart, and gather to the eyes.” When people feel despair it is natural to cry. The poet writes about how he has experienced this feeling. He writes that when the “tears are dried,” it doesn’t matter if he is looking at fields of flowers or thinking about dead loved ones. It is all the same.

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