Sea Fever: Selected Poems

by John Masefield, Philip W. Errington (Editor)

Tales of tall ships in exotic seas and of Arthurian England compete for attention with rural English ballads and mythological narratives in this collection of poetry from one of England's great storytellers. Some of John Masefield’s best known poems are included, such as "Sea-Fever," and "Cargoes," along with previously uncollected rarities. Many of the poems reveal Masefield's fascination with the lives of seafarers and lowly farm workers and contribute to a charming and quixotic image of English history.

Genres: Poetry, Classics

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2005

About the author

Masefield was born in Ledbury, a rural area in England to George Masefield, a solicitor and Caroline. His mother died giving birth to his sister when Masefield was only 6 and he went to live with his aunt. His father died soon after. After an unhappy education at the King's School in Warwick (now known as Warwick School), where he was a boarder between 1888 and 1891, he left to board the HMS Conway, both to train for a life at sea, and to break his addiction to reading, of which his Aunt thought little. He spent several years aboard this ship and found that he could spend much of his time reading and writing. It was aboard the Conway that Masefield’s love for story-telling grew.

In 1894, Masefield boarded the Gilcruix, destined for Chile. He recorded his experiences while sailing through the extreme weather. Upon reaching Chile, Masefield suffered from sunstroke and was hospitalized. He eventually returned home to England as a passenger aboard a steam ship.

In 1895, Masefield returned to sea on a windjammer destined for New York City. However, the urge to become a writer and the hopelessness of life as a sailor overtook him, and in New York, he deserted ship. He lived as a vagrant for several months, before returning to New York City, where he was able to find work as an assistant to a bar keeper.

For the next two years, Masefield was employed in a carpet factory, where long hours were expected and conditions were far from ideal. He purchased up to 20 books a week, and devoured both modern and classical literature. His interests at this time were diverse and his reading included works by Trilby, Dumas, Thomas Browne, Hazlitt, Dickens, Kipling, and R. L. Stevenson. Chaucer also became very important to him during this time, as well as poetry by Keats and Shelley.

When Masefield was 23, he met his future wife, Constance Crommelin, who was 35. Educated in classics and English Literature, and a mathematics teacher, Constance was a perfect match for Masefield despite the difference in age. The couple had two children (Judith, born in 1904, and Lewis, in 1910).

In 1930, due to the death of Robert Bridges, a new Poet Laureate was needed. King George V appointed Masefield, who remained in office until his death in 1967. Masefield took his appointment seriously and produced a large quantity of verse. Poems composed in his official capacity were sent to The Times. Masefield’s humility was shown by his inclusion of a stamped envelope with each submission so that his composition could be returned if it were found unacceptable for publication.

On 12 May 1967, John Masefield died, after having suffered through a spread of gangrene up his leg. According to his wishes, he was cremated and his ashes placed in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey. Later, the following verse was discovered, written by Masefield, addressed to his ‘Heirs, Administrators, and Assigns’:

Let no religious rite be done or read
In any place for me when I am dead,
But burn my body into ash, and scatter
The ash in secret into running water,
Or on the windy down, and let none see;
And then thank God that there’s an end of me.

Reviews

[Patrick Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because I needed another volume of his poetry; if you are not familiar --here:

"I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.
I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.
I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over."

[Clay Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good collection of poems.

[Megan Hevener · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Masefield does a great job showing how repetition can encompass the concept of voice in this poem. Students will be able to understand the tone and emotions behind the text through the repetition used within the poem.
As students read and reread the poem: they will be underlining or highlighting words that are descriptive, imagery, strong verbs, personal feelings, and anything relating to that. We will look over those highlighted words together as a class.
Using Spandel's strategy of: take the voice OUT, students have already identified those words. Now, they will rewrite the poem without all of that voice. They will see how the emotion and tone is lost,and the poem doesn't hold any meaning anymore.
Writing: they will practice this idea of adding in detail by writing their own poems. Each student will write a poem about anything they want to. Whatever memory, or fun moment, or even about a flower they want to. Then the students will pick out all the voice in their poem. If they cannot find any, that means they need to add their voice to the poem. This will give them a chance to revise and add that so desired voice to their poems.

[Royce Ratterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read/referenced for personal historical research. I found this work of immense interest and its contents helpful and inspiring. I read selections for a tranquil and refreshing break from my usual historical and biographical reads - like a walk along the beach or a day in the mountains.
Overall, this work is also a good resource for the researcher and enthusiast.

Sea Fever
By John Masefield

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.

[Greg Bem · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book of Masefield's work I've read. I selected it because it's quite large and contains a big scope of the poet's work over time. I had discovered Masefield from a sign at a lighthouse. He has a famous lighthouse poem that also happens to *not* be in this collection, which really disappointed me. I think that the book, though, needs a massive reworking, with a new introduction. There's a lot of racism and typical colonial prejudice that needs to be acknowledged alongside the modernist commentary in the book's introduction. There's also a lot of biographical information that simply isn't included about a poet who seemingly was quite prolific. I could easily see this book being a Norton release, with all that entails.

[Xavier · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And

all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by

[Elliot · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I'm not a fan of all of Masefield's poetry, I do enjoy some of his poetry enormously. I particularly like his poetry about sailing and the sea, although some of the poems are rather dark. Among my favorite poems in this book are "Sea-Fever," "Adventure On," "Trade Winds," and "The West Wind."

[Bettie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nation's Favourite Poems: Sea Fever and Cargoes features in a 1996 nationwide poll compilation.