The elegiac poem 'Thyrsis' was composed by Matthew Arnold. It is a pastoral elegy in honor of his friend and fellow poet, Arthur Hugh Clough, who died in 1861. Arnold uses the pastoral tradition to evoke memories of their youth at Oxford and explore the themes of loss and the search for hope in the modern world. 
Key aspects of the poem:
Subject:
The poem serves as a mournful tribute to Arthur Hugh Clough, whom Arnold portrays as the shepherd-poet Thyrsis. 
Genre:
It is a pastoral elegy, a type of poem that uses a pastoral setting to lament the death of a person. 
Themes:
Arnold reflects on their shared past at Oxford, the changing world, and the quest for truth, drawing on the imagery of "The Scholar-Gipsy". 
Context:
Published in 1866, 'Thyrsis' is considered one of the greatest English elegies, alongside John Milton's 'Lycidas' and Percy Bysshe Shelley's 'Adonais'.