The Night Has a Thousand Eyes, by Francis William Bourdillon →

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The night has a thousand eyes,
    And the day but one;
Yet the light of the bright world dies
    With the dying sun.

The mind has a thousand eyes,
    And the heart but one:
Yet the light of a whole life dies
    When love is done.

Analysis of Poem

The poem beautifully illustrates the heart's role in giving life, much like the sun gives light. Like the sun, the heart radiates its light, but for this light to shine, it must be fueled by love.

The Sun lights the day and brings both light and life, and the heart is like the Sun except that it needs love for its light to make a difference.

The night is in contrast to the Sun, not offering light from a source that brings a focused light but a lesser light from the stars.

The poem draws a parallel between the natural world (sun and stars) and the inner world (mind and heart). It suggests that:

• Quantity is not the same as depth—one sun brings more light than a thousand stars; one love brings more meaning than a thousand thoughts.

• When we lose love, it can feel like losing the sun—a profound loss that overshadows all other forms of insight or awareness.