A Dark Month From Swinburne's Collected Poetical Works Vol. V

"A Dark Month" by Algernon Charles Swinburne is a heartfelt poem that explores the heavy emotions of sorrow and missing someone deeply, set against the backdrop of a cheerless May. The poem centers on themes of innocence from youth, memories, and the upsetting emotions tied to the absence of especially a child that one loves. The speaker reflects on how life feels incomplete and sad without the child's presence, painting pictures of bleakness compared to the lively promise of spring. The verses are filled with a longing for reunion, expressing a strong need for happiness and the return of light into a life overshadowed by loss and remembrance.