Alfred Tennyson was born in the early 1800s to his parents, George and Elizabeth (Fytche) Tennyson. Tennyson was not a well-known poet until he published some of his poems about his best friend, Arthur Hallam. His poems are about his life and feelings after Hallam's death. In his poem, In Memoriam AHH, Tennyson writes about his depression over losing his best friend. After the death of his best friend, Alfred Tennyson wrote some of his best poems about his grief and the loss of a special person in his life. As a child, growing up for Alfred Tennyson was a struggle. He dealt with family tensions, an alcoholic and abusive father and mental illness. Alfred Lord Tennyson was born on 6 August 1809. He was the fourth child of twelve. He was forced to be religious by his parents. Tennyson lived a difficult life growing up, his father was an alcoholic and abusive. His brother suffered from a mental illness that Alfred developed later in life. Tennyson suffered from extreme myopia - without a monocle he could not even see to eat - which gave him considerable difficulty in writing and reading, and this disability partly explains his way of creating poetry. Tennyson composed much of his poetry in his head. , working occasionally on individual poems for many years. During his undergraduate days at Cambridge he often did not bother to write his own compositions, although the Apostles continued. Alfred Tennyson's poems were written about happy feelings in life and how life is a gift. Tennyson's poems before Hallam's death were truly delightful. They were known to have the effect of making the reader feel as if it were spring. The success of his 1842 poems made Tennyson a popular poet, and in 1845 he received...... middle of paper......er. St. James Press, 1991. Web."Poetry for Students." "Tears, useless tears.". Np, 1999. Web. March 31, 2011."Poetry for students." "Ulysses.". Np, 1999. Web. March 31, 2011 "The explainer." Literary Resource Center. Np, 2002. Web. March 31, 2011. Everett, Glenn. "Alfred Lord Tennyson: a short biography." The Victorian Web. Pickwick Papers, n.d. web February 15, 2011 Markley, Arnold. “An Overview of “All Things Shall Die.”” Poetry for students. Detroit: Gale. Network. March 1, 2011.Kelly, David. “Critical essay on 'A farewell' Poetry for students. Ed. Elizabeth Thomason vol. II. Detroit: Gale Group, 2001. Web August 3, 2001“Overview: “Now Sleeps the Crimson Pedal.”” Gale Online Encyclopedia. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Web. March 1, 2011 “Explanation: All Things Will Die.” Exploring poetry. Detroit: Gale 2003. Gale Student Resources in Context. Network. March 1st 2011