- The speaker has left his country because it is full of youth and life, neglecting the old. As an old man, he feels like a "paltry thing" in this environment. - He has sailed to the holy city of Byzantium to study the monuments there. He believes this is the only way for his soul to learn how to sing and avoid being a "tattered coat upon a stick." - In Byzantium, he sees sages standing in God's holy fire as well as a golden bird that scorns earthly things and sings, giving him a vision of spiritual transcendence.