How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
Oh, yet we trust that somehow good
Will be the final goal of ill. (1033-1034)
Here's where the theodicy comes in. This is all about trying to reconcile the idea that, if God is so good, why does he allow so much suffering to exist in the world that he has created?
Quote #5
And all at once it seem'd at last
The living soul was flashed on mine. (1955-1956)
Woah...heavy, man—this is a moment of deep spiritual connection between Tennyson and Arthur. In the speaker's imagination, the two connect beyond the bounds of time and space (and death) when Arthur's "living soul [...] flashed upon" Tennyson's.
Quote #6
One God, one law, one element,
And one far-off divine event,
To which the whole Creation moves. (2894-2897)
In the end, buoyed by the idea that Arthur now dwells with God, Tennyson accepts that all of creation is united and everything moves by God's purpose. He has found his faith again, and things don't seem as hostile and senseless as before.