Title - May

• The Title 'May' evokes the prime of spring, a time traditionally associated with freshness, youth, and unspoiled beauty - It mirrors the emotional state of the speaker during the elusive experience - untouched by grief, cynicism, or time - The poem’s mournful tone suggests that this fleeting moment of purity has since vanished, leaving only a memory of its delicate radiance
• The Title 'May' symbolises the impermanence of emotional or spiritual fulfilment - The brevity of the month itself mirrors the swift passing of the undefined "it" that once brought joy to the speaker - As May ends and summer begins, the poem subtly reflects on how beauty fades and cannot be reclaimed
• The Title 'May' is positioned between the rebirth of early spring and the maturity of summer, representing a liminal space - a threshold of transformation - It is a moment of potential and becoming, filled with anticipation and promise that never fully materialises - This suspended state aligns with the speaker’s inability to define the experience or retain it, emphasising its fragility
• The Title 'May' conjures an idyllic vision often found in Romantic poetry, where nature reflects emotional or spiritual truths - 'May' becomes not just a time of year but a projection of idealised love, peace, or joy that reality cannot sustain - The collapse of this ideal by the end of the poem reinforces Rossetti’s subtle critique of romanticised notions of happiness
• The Title 'May' ties a personal, ineffable memory to a specific point in time, anchoring emotion within the cycle of the natural world - This seasonal marker becomes a metonym for the event itself - vivid in its setting but blurred in its content - The passing of May thus becomes a metaphor for how memory decays, retaining atmosphere but losing detail