Appendix :Robert Browning's "Childe Roland ..."

[Brett Johnston]

This poem is the story of a sailors recursive itenary voyaging between ports in the iron helm ships of the 19th Century. Riding in the passageways, sloshing through rooms and always fearing the day the dark tower they ride in will be tested against another dark tower such as the Brown stone hewn lighthouse.
The imagery is very good and fits the descriptions of onboard conditions and the sailor has the soul of a romantic through Browning's words. The sailor sorrowfully returns to the dens of the ports but doesn't drink as heartily anymore but stares long at the photo of his lost friends and youth from some maiden voyage hanging in a photograph at his local port. He probably is counting out the number of ways to die onboard the vessel every time he sails. Strangely he curses the management and staff of the ships for enticing workers into such appallling dangerous conditions.

'Run over by machinery in tracks that will make no impression' - a fear of industrialized machinery.

I'll happily re-read it in error if anyone has a better interpretation!

[Brett Johnston]

The other meaning I considered as possible is that the sailor is in consideration of events as a cruel fate during the aftermath of his ship coming to bay on the night of a dark tower (now forever "the dark tower" in his mind) and the ship was tested on the rocks of the bay; losing many of the crew and passengers. Therefore in his grief this sailor now only sees the palor of all that came before and all that goes on after! Even more alternately this is the tale of a ghost that visited Browning and unloaded his sorry tale. But foremost I think its possible the crash never came and the poor soul was wretched because of fearful conditions at sea.