The Four Ages by W.B Yeats

The Four Ages of Manby William Butler Yeats

He with body waged a fight,

But body won; it walks upright.Then he struggled with the heart;
Innocent and peace depart.

Then he struggled with the mind;

His proud heart he left behind.

Now his wars on God begin;

At stroke of midnight God shall win


Yeats writes about stages in a man's life. He divides the stages into four categories. I realized that the poem tells the reader that a man needs to conquer his feelings first before he could deal with his mind. Yeats describes a man who can handle his feelings can moved to the third stage which is matured in thinking. Whenever a man reached maturity,he is at the highest point in his life,maybe he is already married and have kids.The last and final stage is when he is dead. Yeats uses metaphor "midnight" to suggest that it is the end of his life. It is the time that he will meet his God. God created him and sent him to the world. Finally, God also will take him back.