Book (Symbol)
The speaker imagines his lover reading "this book," which is to say, the book containing Yeats's own poem. The book, in the poem's hypothetical scene, prompts the addressee to nostalgically remember her youth. Through this mechanism, the book becomes a symbol of the relationship between past and present. The object of the book is created by the speaker in the present but read by the addressee in the future (or, at least, the speaker imagines it being read by her in the future). Thus, it is a symbol of hope and fear for the future. At the same time, the speaker imagines the book serving as a memory aid, prompting the addressee to remember her past. As a result, it also symbolizes memory. In other words, it symbolizes not one linear relationship between time periods—not merely projection into the future or memory of the past—but rather the complex, fluid relationship between time periods.
Domesticity (Motif)
In his evocation of the addressee's future, Yeats creates an exaggerated scenario of domestic comfort, loaded with fireplaces and bookshelves. This domestic scene contrasts with the uncomfortable intensity of love, and serves as a way to illustrate the aging process. Old age is associated here with comfort, satisfaction, and gratification—but at the cost of passion and excitement. The shelter and predictability of a domestic space therefore works well to illustrate these bittersweet trade-offs. In contrast, the speaker describes love fleeing to inhabit a wilderness of stars and mountains. As a result, love is linked to a wild, ever-moving outdoor space, and the lost love of old age is linked to domesticated routine.
