Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Background
on the writing of this great poem:
William
Ernest Henley
is
known to most people by virtue of this single poem.
As
mentioned previously, Henley was hospitalized for tuberculosis. One
of his legs was amputated in order to save his life; it was said to
be very painful. Immediately after the amputation, he received news
that another operation would have to be done on his other leg.
However, he decided to enlist the help of a different doctor named
Joseph Lister. Under Lister's care he was able to keep his other leg
by undergoing intensive surgery on his remaining foot.
While
recovering from this surgery in the infirmary, he was moved to write
the words of Invictus. This period of his life, coupled with the
reality of an impoverished childhood, plays a major role in the
meaning behind the poem; it is also the prime reason for this poem's
existence.
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