Non Sum Qualis Eram Bonae sub Regno Cynarae

Who is the subject of the poem?

An 11 year old girl whom Dowson fell in love with and proposed to (she rightfully rejected him). She became the inspiration for many of his poetic works

What movement was Dowson a part of? What characterised this movement?

The Decadent movement - fin de siècle literary movement of the 1890s combining a tendency towards sexual promiscuity with an appreciation of classical literature and mythology/a devotion to the Catholic Church. They generally believed art should celebrate beauty and not be linked to politics and shared some similarities with Romantic and Gothic literature.

In what way is Non Sum Qualis typical of Decadent literature?

Combines sexual promiscuity (descriptions of the speaker’s many exploits) with classical literary references (namely the title, a reference to Horace and/or Greek mythology)

What does the title of the poem translate to and where does it come from?

“I am not what I was under the reign of the good Cynara”, Horace’s Odes (classical Roman poet)

What can be inferred from the meaning of the poem’s title?

“I am not what I was under the reign of the good Cynara” - suggests the speaker has been forever changed by Cynara, also “reign” connotes a level of control that we see in the poem still persists

What technique is the repeated interruption of “Cynara!” ?

Caesura

“Surely the kisses of her bought red mouth were sweet; But I was desolate and sick of an old passion” significance

Adjective choice of “bought” - suggests prostitute (efforts to forget, link to Decadence). Hyperbolic metaphor of “sick of an old passion” is repeated.

How does Dowson create a cyclical structure in the poem? What is the effect?

Repeats the line “I have been faithful…” at the end of the first and last stanza. Inescapability of Cynara’s memory. The choice to repeat this line specifically → contemporary audience may’ve found it rather shocking that the speaker was being so blatant about their infidelity but could also be seen as a moment of true honesty

Wilde’s description of Dowson after his death

Poor wounded wonderful fellow that he was, a tragic reproduction of all tragic poetry

What is the name of the structure used in the first three lines of each stanza?

Alexandrines - French tradition in poetry, lines of 12 syllables.

Shadows critical view

Weiner - Dowson’s poems depict a world of grey shadows in which bright colours belong to a fleeting, lost existence