 The poem 's common name comes from the Greek myth of Tithonus , which is mentioned in lines 9 to 12 of the poem . The story of Tithonus was popular in archaic Greek poetry , though the reference to him in this poem seems out of place , according to Rawles . Martin Litchfield West considers that these lines seem like a weak ending to the poem , though Tithonus functions as a parallel to Sappho in her old age . 
