escape on Ruksh, and returned to Seistan, leaving Persia to her fate. The king’s wrath, however, soon gave place to fear; and recognizing the danger of his throne unsupported by Rustum’s valor, he despatched messengers to him with humble petitions and apologies. After much protesting, Rustum finally yielded and accompanied the Persian army, under the king Kai Kaoos, which at once set forth to encounter Sohrab.
The morning before the opening of hostilities, Sohrab, taking the Persian Hujir, whom he still held a prisoner, to the top of a rocky eminence, ordered him to point out the tents of the chief warriors of the Persian army, particularly Rustum’s. But Hujir, fearing lest Sohrab should attack Rustum unexpectedly and so overcome him, declared that the great chieftain’s tent was not among those on the plain below. Disappointed at his failure to find his father, Sohrab led his army in a fierce onslaught on the Persians, driving them in confusion before him. In this dire extremity Kai Kaoos sent for Rustum, who was somewhat apart from the main troop. Exclaiming that the king never sent for him except when he had got himself into trouble, the warrior armed, mounted Ruksh, and rushed to the combat. By mutual consent the two champions withdrew to a retired spot, where, unmolested, they might fight out their quarrel hand to hand. As they approached each other, Rustum, moved with compassion by the youth of his foe, tried to dissuade Sohrab from his purpose, and counselled him to retire. Sohrab, filled with sudden hope,–an instinctive feeling that the father whom he was seeking stood before him,–eagerly demanded whether this were Rustum. But Rustum, fearing treachery, said he was only an ordinary man, having neither palace nor princely kingdom–not Rustum.
They marked off the lists, and, mounted on their powerful horses, fought first with javelins, then with swords, clubs, and bows and arrows. After several hours of fighting both were exhausted, and by tacit consent they retired to opposite sides of the lists for rest. When the combat was renewed, Sohrab gained a slight advantage. A truce was then made for the night, and the warriors returned to their tents to prepare for the morrow.
With daybreak the struggle was renewed. To prevent the armies from intervening or engaging in battle, they were removed to a distance of several miles. Midway between, Sohrab and Rustum met in the midst of a lonely, treeless waste. More convinced than before that his adversary was Rustum, Sohrab sought to bring about a reconciliation, but Rustum refused. This time they fought on foot. From morning till afternoon they fought, neither gaining any decided advantage. At last Sohrab succeeded in felling Rustum to the earth, and was about to slay him, when the Persian called out that it was not the custom in chivalrous warfare to slay a champion until he was thrown the second time. Sohrab, generous as brave, released his prostrate foe; and again father and son parted. [154]
Rustum, scarcely believing himself alive after such an escape, purified himself with water, and prayed that his wounds might be healed and his accustomed strength restored to him. Never before had he been so beset in battle.
With morning came the renewal of the combat, both champions determining to end it that day. Late in the evening Rustum, by a supreme effort, seized Sohrab around the waist and hurled him to the ground. Then, fearing lest the youth prove too strong for him in the end, he drew his blade and plunged it into Sohrab’s bosom.
Sohrab forgave Rustum, but warned him to beware the vengeance of his father, the mighty Rustum, who must soon learn that he had slain his son Sohrab. “I went out to seek my father,” cried the dying youth, “for my mother had told me by what tokens I should know him, and I perish for longing after him…. Yet I say unto thee, if thou shouldst become a fish that swimmeth in the depths of the ocean, if thou shouldst change into a star that is concealed in the farthest heaven, my father would draw thee forth from thy hiding-place, and avenge my death upon thee, when he shall learn that the earth is become my bed. For my father is Rustum the Pehliva, and it shall be told unto him, how that Sohrab his son perished in the quest after his face.” These words were as death to the aged hero, who fell senseless at the side of his wounded son. When he had recovered he called in despair for proofs of what Sohrab had said. The now dying youth tore open his mail and showed his father the onyx which his mother had bound on his arm as directed. [155]
The sight of his own signet rendered Rustum quite frantic; he cursed himself, and would have put an end to his existence but for the efforts of his expiring son. After Sohrab’s death he burnt his tents and carried the corpse to his father’s home in Seistan, and buried it there. The Tartar army, agreeable to Sohrab’s last request, was permitted to return home unmolested. When the tidings of Sohrab’s death reached his mother, she was inconsolable, and died in less than a year.
In the main the story as told by Arnold follows the original narrative. A careful investigation of the alterations made, and the effect thus produced, will lend added interest to the study of the poem and give ample theme for composition work.
=1. And the first grey of morning fill’d the east.= Note the abrupt opening. What is gained by its use? At what point in the story as told in the introductory note does the poem take up the narrative? Be sure to get a clear mental picture of the initiative scene. _And_ is here used in a manner common in the Scriptures. Cf. “And the Lord spake unto Moses,” etc.
=2. Oxus.= The chief river of Central Asia, which separated Turan from Iran or the Persian Empire, called Oxus by the Greeks and Romans, and the Jihun or Amu by the Arabs and Persians. It takes its source in Lake Sir-i-Kol, in the Pamir table-land, at a height of 15,600 feet, flows northwest, and empties into the Aral Sea on the south. Its length is about 1300 miles.
“The introduction of the tranquil pictures of the Oxus, both at the beginning and close of the poem (ll. 875-892), flowing steadily on, unmoved by the tragedy which has been enacted on her shore, forms one of the most artistic features in the setting of the poem.”
=3. Tartar camp.= The Tartars were nomadic tribes of Central Asia and southern Russia. The so-called Black Tartars, identified with the Scythians of the Greek historians, inhabited the basin of the Aral and Caspian Seas, and are the tribe referred to in the poem. They are a fierce, warlike people; hence our expression, “caught a Tartar.” [156]
=11. Peran-Wisa.= A celebrated Turanian chief, here in command of Afrasiab’s army, which was composed of representatives of many Tartar tribes, as indicated in ll. 119-134.
=15. Pamere=, or Pamir. An extensive plateau region of Central Asia, called by the natives the “roof of the world.” Among the rivers having their source in this plateau are the Oxus, l. 2, and the Jaxartes, l. 129.
=38. Afrasiab.= The king of the Tartars, and one of the principal heroes of the _Shah Nameh_, the Persian “Book of Kings.” He is reputed to have been strong as a lion and to have had few equals as a warrior.
=40. Samarcand.= A city in the district of Serafshan, Turkestan, to the east of Bokhara; now a considerable commercial and manufacturing centre, and a centre of Mohammedan learning.
=42. Ader-baijan.= The northwest province of Persia, on the Turanian frontier.
=45. At my boy’s years.= See introductory note to poem.
=60. common fight.= In the sense of a general engagement. Be sure to catch the reason why Sohrab makes his request.
=61. sunk.= That is, lost sight of.
=67. common chance.= See note, l. 60. Which would be the more dangerous, a “single” or “common” combat? Why?
=70. To find a father thou hast never seen.= See introductory note to poem.
=82. Seistan.= A province of southwest Afghanistan bordering on the Persian province of Yezd. It is intersected by the Helmund River (l. 751), which flows into the Hamoon Lake, now scarcely more than a morass. On an island in this lake are ruins of fortifications called Fort Rustum. This territory was long held by Rustum’s family, feudatory to the Persian kings. =Zal.= Rustum’s father, ruler of Seistan. See note, l. 232. [157]
=83-85. Whether that … or in some quarrel=, etc. Either because his mighty strength … or because of some quarrel, etc.
=85. Persian King.= That is, Kai Kaoos (or Kai Khosroo). See introductory note to poem; also note, l. 223.
=86-91. There go!= etc. The touching solicitation of these lines is wholly Arnold’s.
=99. Why ruler’s staff, no sword?=
=101. Kara Kul.= A district some thirty miles southwest of Bokhara, noted for the excellence of its pasturage, and for its fleeces.
=107. Haman.= Next to Peran-Wisa in command of Tartar army. See Houman, in introductory note to poem.
=113-114. Casbin.= A fortified city in the province of Irak-Ajemi, Persia, situated on the main route from Persia to Europe, and at one time the capital of the Iranian empire. Just to the north of the city rise the =Elburz Mountains= (l. 114), which separate the Persian Plateau from the depression containing the Caspian and Aral Seas.
=115. frore.= Frozen, from the Anglo-Saxon _froren_.
“… the parching air Burns frore, and cold performs the effect of fire.”
–MILTON. _Paradise Lost_, ll. 594-595, Book II.
=119. Bokhara.= Here the state of Bokhara, an extensive region of Central Asia, touching the Aral Sea to the north, the Oxus to the south, and Khiva to the west. It has an estimated area of 235,000 square miles, and contains nineteen cities of considerable size, of which the capital, Bokhara, is most important.
=120. Khiva.= A khanate situated in the valley of the lower Oxus, bordering Bokhara on the southeast. =ferment the milk of mares.= An intoxicating drink, _Koumiss_, made of camel’s or mare’s milk, is in wide use among the steppe tribes.
[158] =121. Toorkmuns.= A branch of the Turkish race found chiefly in northern Persia and Afghanistan.
=122. Tukas.= From the province of Azer-baijan.
=123. Attruck.= A river of Khorassan, near the frontier of Khiva; it has a west course, and enters the Caspian Sea on the east side.
=128. Ferghana.= A khanate of Turkestan, north of Bokhara, in the upper valley of the Sir Daria.
=129. Jaxartes.= The ancient name of the Sir Daria River. It takes its source in the Thian Shan Mountains, one of the Pamir Plateau ranges, and flows with a general direction north, emptying into the Aral Sea on the east side.
=131. Kipchak.= A khanate some seventy miles below Khiva on the Oxus.
=132. Kalmucks.= A nomadic branch of the Mongolian race, dwelling in western Siberia. =Kuzzaks.= Now commonly called Cossacks; a warlike people inhabiting the steppes of southern Russia and extensive portions of Asia. Their origin is uncertain.
=133. Kirghizzes.= A rude nomadic people of Mongolian-Tartar race found in northern Turkestan.
=138. Khorassan.= (That is, the region of the sun.) A province of northeastern Persia, largely desert. The origin of the name is prettily suggested by Moore in the opening poem of _Lalla Rookh_:–
“In the delightful province of the sun The first of Persian lands he shines upon,” etc.
=147. fix’d.= Stopped suddenly, halted.
=154-169.= Note the effect the challenge has on the two armies.
=156. corn.= Here used with its European sense of “grain.” It is only in America that the word signifies Indian corn or “maize.” [159]
=160. Cabool.= Capital of northern Afghanistan, and an important commercial city.
=161. Indian Caucasus.= A lofty mountain range north of Cabool, which forms the boundary between Turkestan and Afghanistan.
=173. King.= See note, l. 85.
=177. lion’s heart.= Explain the line. Why are the terms here used so forcible in the mouth of Gudurz?
=178-183. Aloof he sits, etc.= One is reminded by Rustum’s deportment here, of Achilles sulking in his tent and nursing his wrath against Agamemnon.–_Iliad_, Book I.
=199. sate.= Old form of “sat,” common in poetry.
=200. falcon.= A kind of hawk trained to catch game birds.
=217. Iran.= The official name of Persia.
=221. Go to!= Hebraic expression. Frequently found in Shakespeare.
=223. Kai Khosroo.= According to the _Shah Nameh_, the thirteenth Turanian king. He reigned in the sixth century B.C., and has been identified with Cyrus the Great.
=230. Not that one slight helpless girl, etc.= See ll. 609-611, also introduction to the poem.
=232. snow-haired Zal.= According to tradition, Zal was born with snow-white hair. His father Lahm, believing this an ill omen, doomed the unfortunate babe to be exposed on the loftiest summit of the Elburz Mountains. The Simurgh, a great bird or griffin, found him and cared for him till grown, then restored him to his repentant parent. He subsequently married the Princess Rudabeh of Seistan, by whom he became father of Rustum.
=243-248. He spoke … men.= Note carefully Gudurz’s argument. Why so effective with Rustum?
=257. But I will fight unknown and in plain arms.= The shields and arms of the champions were emblazoned with mottoes and devices. Why does Rustum determine to lay aside his accustomed arms and fight incognito? What effect does this determination have upon the ultimate outcome of the situation? Read the story of the arming of Achilles (Book XIX., Homer’s _Iliad_), and compare with Rustum’s preparation for battle. [160]
=266. device.= See note, l. 257.
=277. Dight.= Adorned, dressed.
“The clouds in thousand liveries dight.” –MILTON. _L’Allegro,_ l. 62.
=286. Bahrein= or Aval. A group of islands in the Persian Gulf, celebrated for its pearl fisheries.
=288. tale.= Beckoning, number.
“And every shepherd tells his _tale_, Under the hawthorn in the dale.”
–MILTON. _L’Allegro,_ ll. 67-68.
=306. flowers.= Decorates, beautifies with floral designs.
=311. perused.= Studied, observed closely.
=318.= In a letter dated November, 1852, Mr. Arnold speaks of the figures in his poem as follows: “I can only say that I took a great deal of trouble to orientalize them, because I thought they looked strange, and jarred, if western.” What is gained by their use?
=325. vast.= Large, mighty.
=326. tried.= Proved, experienced.
=328. Never was that field lost or that foe saved.= Note the power gained in this line by the use of the alliteration.
=330. Be govern’d.= Be influenced, persuaded.
=343. by thy father’s head!= Such oaths are common to the extravagant speech of the oriental peoples.
=344. Art thou not Rustum?= See introductory note to poem.
=367. vaunt.= Boast implied in the challenge.
=380. Thou wilt not fright me so!= That is, by such talk.
=401. tower’d.= Remained stationary, poised.
=406. full struck.= Struck squarely.
[161] =412. Hyphasis, Hydaspes.= Two of the rivers of the Punjab in northern India, now known as the Beas and Jhylum. In 326 B.C. Alexander defeated Porus on the banks of the latter stream.
=414. wrack.= Ruin, havoc. (Poetical.)
=418. glancing.= In the sense of darting aside.
=435. hollow.= Unnatural in tone.
=452. like that autumn-star.= Probably Sirius, the Dog Star, under whose ascendency, according to ancient beliefs, epidemic diseases prevailed.
=454. crest.= That is, helmet and plume.
=466. Remember all thy valour.= That is, summon up all your courage.
=469. girl’s wiles.= Explain the line.
=470. kindled.= Roused, angered.
=481. unnatural.= because of the kinship of the combatants.
=481-486. for a cloud=, etc. A distinctly Homeric imitation. Cf. the cloud that enveloped Paris–Book III., ll. 465-469, of the _Iliad_.
=489. And the sun sparkled=, etc. Why this reference to the clear Oxus stream at this moment of intense tragedy?
=495. helm.= Helmet; defensive armor for the head.
=497. shore.= Past tense of _shear_, to cut.
=499. bow’d his head:= because of the force of the blow.
=508. curdled.= Thickened as with fear.
=516. Rustum!= Why did this word so affect Sohrab? Note the author’s skill in working up to this climax in the narrative.
=527-539. Then with a bitter smile=, etc. Compare these words of the victor, Rustum, with the words of Sohrab, ll. 427-447, when the advantage was with him.
=536. glad.= Make happy.
“That which _gladded_ all the warrior train.” –DRYDEN.
[162] =538. Dearer to the red jackals=, etc. Cf. I. Sam. xvii. 44: “Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.” Careful investigation will show the poem to abound with Biblical as well as classical parallelisms.
=556-575. As when some hunter, etc.= One of the truly great similes in the English language.
=563. sole.= Alone, solitary. From the Latin _solus_.
=570. glass.= Reflect as in a mirror.
=596. bruited up.= Noised abroad.
=613. the style.= The name or title.
=625. that old king.= The king of Semenjan. See introductory note to poem.
=632. Of age and looks=, etc. That is, of such age as he (Sohrab) would be, if born of his (Rustum’s) union with Tahmineh.
=658-660. I tell thee, prick’d upon this arm=, etc. This is Arnold’s conception. In the original story Sohrab wore an onyx stone as an amulet. The onyx was supposed to incite the wearer to deeds of valor.
=664. corselet.= Protective armor for the body.
=673. cunning.= Skilful, deft.
=679. griffin.= In the natural history of the ancients, an imaginary animal, half lion and half eagle. Here the Simurgh. See note, l. 232.
=708-710. unconscious hand.= Note how the dying Sohrab seeks to console the grief-stricken Rustum.
“Such is my destiny, such is the will of fortune. It was decreed that I should perish by the hand of my father.”
–_Shah Nameh_.
=717. have found= (him). Note the ellipsis.
=723-724. I came … passing wind.= The _Shah Nameh_ has–
“I came like a flash of lightning, and now I depart like the wind.”
=736. caked the sand.= Hardened into cakes.
=751. Helmund.= See note, l. 82. [163]
=752. Zirrah.= Another lake in Seistan, southeast of Hamoon, now almost dry.
=763-765. Moorghab, Tejend and Kohik.= Rivers of Turkestan which lose themselves in the deserts to the south of Bokhara. The northern Sir is the Sir Daria, or Jaxartes. See note, l. 129.
=788. And heap a stately mound=, etc. Persian tradition says that a large monument, in shape like the hoof of a horse, was placed over the spot where Sohrab was buried.
=830. on that day.= Shortly after the death of Afrasiab, the Persian monarch Kai Khosroo, accompanied by a large number of his nobles, went to a spring far to the north, the location fixed upon as a place for their repose. Here the king died, and those who went with him afterward perished in a tempest. Sohrab predicted Rustum would be one of those lost, but tradition does not have it so.
=861. Persepolis.= An ancient capital of Persia, the ruins of which are known as “the throne of Jemshid,” after a mythical king.
=878. Chorasma.= A region of Turkestan, the seat of a powerful empire in the twelfth century, but now greatly reduced. Its present limits are about the same as those of Khiva. See note, l. 120.
=880. Right for the polar star.= That is, due north. =Orgunje.= A village on the Oxus some seventy miles below Khiva, and near the head of its delta.
=890. luminous home.= The Aral Sea.
=891. new bathed stars.= As the stars appear on the horizon, they seem to have come up out of the sea.
=875-892.= Discuss the poet’s purpose in introducing the remarkable word-picture of these closing lines of the poem. See also note, ll. 231-250, _The Scholar-Gipsy._
SAINT BRANDAN [164]
In this poem Arnold has vividly presented a quaint legend of Judas Iscariot, popular in the Middle Ages. Saint Brandan (490-577) was a celebrated Irish monk, famous for his voyages. “According to the legendary accounts of his travels, he set sail with others to seek the terrestrial paradise which was supposed to exist in an island of the Atlantic. Various miracles are related of the voyage, but they are always connected with the great island where the monks are said to have landed. The legend was current in the time of Columbus and long after, and many connected St. Brandan’s island with the newly discovered America. He is commemorated on May 16.”–_The Century Cyclopedia of Names_.
=7. Hebrides.= A group of islands off the northwestern coast of Scotland.
=11. hurtling Polar lights.= A reference to the rapid, changing movements of the Aurora Borealis.
=18. Of hair that red.= According to tradition, Judas Iscariot’s hair was red.
=21. sate.= See note, l. 199, _Sohrab and Rustum_. (Old form of “sat,” common in poetry.)
=31. self-murder.= After betraying Christ, Judas hanged himself. See Matt, xxvii. 5 and Acts i. 18.
=38. The Leper recollect.= There is no scriptural authority for this incident.
=40. Joppa=, or Jaffa. A small maritime town of Palestine–the ancient port of Jerusalem. There is also a small village called Jaffa in Galilee, some two miles southwest of Nazareth, which may have been the place the poet had in mind.
Image the situation as presented in the first several stanzas. Why locate in the sea without a “human shore,” l. 12? Is there any especial reason for having the time Christmas night? Note the dramatic introduction of Judas. What effect did his appearance have on the saint? How was the latter reassured? Give reasons why Judas felt impelled to tell his story. Tell the story. Does he praise or belittle his act of charity? Why does he say “that _chance_ act of good”? How was it rewarded? Explain his last expression. Was he about to say more? If so, what? What effect did Judas’s story have on Saint Brandan? Why? What is the underlying thought in the poem? Discuss the form of verse used and its appropriateness to the theme. [165]
THE FORSAKEN MERMAN
“The title of this poem inevitably brings to mind Tennyson’s two poems, _The Merman_ and _The Mermaid_. A comparison will show that, in this instance at least, the Oxford poet has touched his subject not less melodiously and with finer and deeper feeling.–Margaret will not listen to her ‘Children’s voices, wild with pain’;–dearer to her is the selfish desire to save her own soul than is the light in the eyes of her little Mermaiden, dearer than the love of the king of the sea, who yearns for her with sorrow-laden heart. Here is there an infinite tenderness and an infinite tragedy.”
–L. DUPONT SYLE, _From Milton to Tennyson_.
Legends of this kind abound among the sea-loving Gaelic and Cymric people. Nowhere, perhaps, have they been given a more pleasing and touching expression than in Arnold’s poem. Note carefully the dramatic manner in which the pathos of the story is presented and developed.
=6. wild white horses.= Breakers, whitecaps.
=13. Margaret.= A favorite name with Arnold. See _Isolation_ and _A Dream_ in this volume.
=39. ranged.= See note, l. 73, _The Strayed Reveller_. (wander aimlessly about.)
=42. mail.= Protective covering.
=54.= Why “down swung the sound of a far-off bell”? [166]
=81. seal’d.= Fastened; fixed intently upon, as though spellbound.
=89-93. Hark … sun.= In her song Margaret shows she is still keenly alive to human interests, temporal and spiritual. The priest, bell, and holy well (l. 91) symbolize the church, here Roman Catholic. The bell is used in the Roman Church to call especial attention to the more important portions of the service; the well is the holy-water font.
=129. heaths starr’d with broom.= The flower of the broom plant, common in England, is yellow; hence, _starr’d_.
In his work on Matthew Arnold, George Saintsbury speaks of this poem as follows: “It is, I believe, not so ‘correct’ as it once was to admire this [poem]; but I confess indocility to correctness, at least the correctness which varies with fashion. _The Forsaken Merman_ is not a perfect poem–it has _tongueurs_, though it is not long; it has its inadequacies, those incompetences of expression which are so oddly characteristic of its author; and his elaborate simplicity, though more at home here than in some other places, occasionally gives a dissonance. But it is a great poem,–one by itself,–one which finds and keeps its own place in the fore-ordained gallery or museum, with which every true lover of poetry is provided, though he inherits it by degrees. None, I suppose, will deny its pathos; I should be sorry for any one who fails to perceive its beauty. The brief picture of the land, and the fuller one of the sea, and that (more elaborate still) of the occupations of the fugitive, all have their charm. But the triumph of the piece is in one of those metrical coups, which give the triumph of all the greatest poetry, in the sudden change from the slower movements of the earlier stanzas, or strophes, to the quicker sweep of the famous conclusions.”
[167] What is the opening situation in the poem? Have the merman and his children just reached the shore, or have they been there some time? Why so? Why does the merman still linger, when he is convinced that further delay will count for nothing? Why does he urge the children to call? What is shown by his repeated question–“was it yesterday”? Tell the story of Margaret’s departure for the upper world, and discuss the validity of her reason for going. Do you think she intended to return? What is the significance of her smile just before departing? Give a word picture of what the sea-folk saw as they lingered in the churchyard. Will Margaret ever grieve for the past? If so, when? Why? Who has your sympathy most, Margaret, the forsaken merman, or the children? Why? Do you condemn Margaret for the way she has done, or do you feel she was justified in her actions? Discuss the versification, giving special attention to its effect on the movement of the poem.
TRISTRAM AND ISEULT
The story of Tristram and Iseult is one of the most vivid and passionate of the Arthurian cycle of legends, and is a favorite with the poets. The following version is abridged from Dunlop’s _History of Fiction_.
“In the court of his uncle, King Marc, the king of Cornwall, who at this time resided at the castle of Tyntagel, Tristram became expert in all knightly exercises…. The king of Ireland, at Tristram’s solicitation, promised to bestow his daughter Iseult in marriage on King Marc…. The mother of Iseult gave to her daughter’s confidante a philtre, or love-potion, to be administered on the night of her nuptials. Of this beverage Tristram and Iseult unfortunately partook. Its influence, during the remainder of their lives, regulated the affections and destiny of the lovers.
[168] “After the arrival of Tristram and Iseult in Cornwall, and the nuptials of the latter with King Marc, a great part of the romance is occupied with their contrivances to procure secret interviews … Tristram, being forced to leave Cornwall on account of the displeasure of his uncle, repaired to Brittany, where lived Iseult with the White Hands. He married her, more out of gratitude than love. Afterwards he proceeded to the dominions of Arthur which became the theatre of unnumbered exploits.
“Tristram, subsequent to these events, returned to Brittany and to his long-neglected wife. There, being wounded and sick, he was soon reduced to the lowest ebb. In this situation he despatched a confidant to the queen of Cornwall to try if he could induce her to follow him to Brittany.
“Meanwhile Tristram awaited the arrival of the queen with such impatience that he employed one of his wife’s damsels to watch at the harbor. Through her, Iseult learned Tristram’s secret, and filled with jealousy, flew to her husband as the vessel which bore the queen of Cornwall was wafted toward the harbor, and reported that the sails were black (the signal that Iseult, Marc’s queen, had refused Tristram’s request to come to him). Tristram, penetrated with inexpressible grief, died. The account of Tristram’s death was the first intelligence which the queen of Cornwall heard on landing. She was conducted to his chamber, and expired holding him in her arms.”
=1. Is she not come?= That is, Iseult of Ireland. Arnold’s poem takes up the story at the point where Tristram, now on his death-bed, is watching eagerly for the coming of Iseult, Marc’s queen, for whom he had sent his confidant to Cornwall. Evidently he has just awakened and is still somewhat confused; see l. 7. Surely none will fail to appreciate so dramatic a situation.
=5. What … be?= That is, what lights are those to the northward, the direction from which Iseult would come?
[169] =8. Iseult.= Here Iseult of the White Hands, daughter of King Hoel of Brittany and wife of Tristram.
=20. Arthur’s court.= Arthur, the half-mythical king of the Britons, set up his court at Camelot, which Caxton locates in Wales and Malory near Winchester. Here was gathered the famous company of champions known as the “Knights of the Round Table,” whose feats have been extensively celebrated in song and story. Among these knights Tristram held high rank, both as a warrior and a harpist. See ll. 17-19.
=23. Lyoness.= A mythical region near Cornwall, the home country of Arthur and Tristram.
=30-31.= Hence the name, Iseult of the White Hands.
=56-68.= See introductory note to poem for explanation. =Tyntagel.= A village in Cornwall near the sea. Near it is the ruined Tyntagel Castle, the reputed birthplace of Arthur. In the romance of Sir Tristram it is the castle of King Marc, the cowardly and treacherous king of Cornwall, the southwest county of England. =teen=. See note, l. 147, _The Scholar-Gipsy_. (Grief, sorrow; from the old English _teona_, meaning injury.)
=88. wanders=, in fancy. Note how the wounded knight’s mind flits from scene to scene, always centring around Iseult of Ireland.
=91. O’er … sea.= The Irish Sea. He is dreaming of his return trip from Ireland with Iseult, “under the cloudless sky of May” (l. 96).
=129-132.= See introductory note to poem. The green isle, Ireland is noted for its green fields; hence the name, Emerald (green) Isle.
=134. on loud Tyntagel’s hill.= A high headland on the coast of Wales. Discuss the force of the adjective “loud” in this connection.
=137-160. And that … more.= See introductory note to poem.
=161. pleasaunce-walks.= A pleasure garden, screened by trees, shrubs, and close hedges–here a trysting-place. After the marriage of Iseult to King Marc, she and Tristram contrived to continue their relationship in secret. [170]
=164. fay.= Faith. (Obsolete except in poetry.)
=180.= Tristram, having been discovered by King Marc in his intrigues with Iseult, was forced to leave Cornwall; hence his visit to Brittany and subsequent marriage to Iseult of the White Hands. See introductory note to poem.
=192. lovely orphan child.= Iseult of Brittany.
=194. chatelaine.= From the French, meaning the mistress of a chateau–a castle or fortress.
=200. stranger-knight, ill-starr’d.= That is, Tristram, whose many mishaps argued his being born under an unlucky star. See also the account of his birth, note, ll. 81-88, Part II.
=203. Launcelot’s guest at Joyous Gard.= Prior to his visit to Brittany, Tristram had imprisoned his uncle, King Marc, and eloped with Iseult to the domains of King Arthur. While there he resided at Joyous Gard, the favorite castle of Launcelot, which that knight assigned to the lovers as their abode.
=204. Welcomed here.= That is, in Brittany, where he was nursed back to health by Iseult of the White Hands. See introductory note to poem.
=215-226. His long rambles … ground.= Account for Tristram’s discontent, as indicated in these lines.
=234-237. All red … bathed in foam.= The kings of Britain agreed with Arthur to make war upon Rome. Arthur, leaving Modred in charge of his kingdom, made war upon the Romans, and, after a number of encounters, Lucius Tiberius was killed and the Britons were victorious.–GEOFFREY OF MONMOUTH, Book IV, Chapter XV; Book X, Chapters I-XIII. According to Malory, Arthur captured many French and Italian cities (see ll. 250-251); during this continental invasion, and was finally crowned king at Rome. It seems that he afterward despatched a considerable number of his knights to carry the Christian faith among the heathen German tribes. See ll. 252-253. [171]
=238. moonstruck knight.= A reference to the mystical influence the ancients supposed the moon to exert over men’s minds and actions.
=239. What foul fiend rides thee?= What evil spirit possesses you and keeps you from the fight?
=240. her.= That is, Iseult of Ireland.
=243. wanders forth again=, in fancy.
=245. secret in his breast.= What secret?
=250-253.= See note, ll. 234-237. =blessed sign.= The cross.
=255. Roman Emperor.= That is, Lucius Tiberius. See note, ll. 234-237.
=258. leaguer.= Consult dictionary.
=261. what boots it?= That is, what difference will it make?
=303. recks not.= Has no thought of (archaic).
=308-314. My princess … good night.= Are Tristram’s words sincere, or has he a motive in thus dismissing Iseult?
=373-374.= From a dramatic standpoint, what is the purpose of these two lines?
PART II
With the opening of Part II the lovers are restored to each other. The dying Tristram, worn with fever and impatient with long waiting, unjustly charges Iseult with cruelty for not having come to him with greater haste. Her gentle, loving words, however, quickly dispel his doubts as to her loyalty to her former vows. A complete reconciliation takes place, and they die in each other’s embrace. The picture of the Huntsman on the arras is one of the most notable in English poetry.
=47. honied nothings=. Explain. Compare with
“his tongue Dropt manna.” [172] –_Paradise Lost_, ll. 112-113, Book II.
=81-88=. Tristram was born in the forest, where his mother Isabella, sister to King Marc, had gone in search of her recreant husband.
=97-100=. Tennyson, in _The Last Tournament_, follows Malory in the story of Tristram’s and Iseult’s death. “That traitor, King Mark, slew the noble knight, Sir Tristram, as he sat harping before his lady, La Beale Isoud, with a trenchant glaive, for whose death was much bewailing of every knight that ever was in Arthur’s days … and La Beale Isoud died swooning upon the cross of Sir Tristram, whereof was great pity.”–Malory’s _Morte d’ Arthur._
=113. sconce=. Consult dictionary.
=116-122=. Why this restlessness on the part of Iseult? Why her frequent glances toward the door?
=132. dogg’d=. Worried, pursued. Coleridge uses the epithet “star-dogged moon,” l. 212, Part III, _The Ancient Mariner._
=147-193=. For the poet’s purpose in introducing the remarkable word-picture of these lines, see notes on the Tyrian trader, ll. 231-250, 232, _The Scholar-Gipsy._
PART III
After the death of Tristram and Iseult of Ireland, our thoughts inevitably turn to Iseult of the White Hands. The infinite pathos of her life has aroused our deepest sympathy, and we naturally want to know further concerning her and Tristram’s children.
=13. cirque=. A circle (obsolete or poetical). See l. 7, Part III.
=18. holly-trees and juniper=. Evergreen trees common in Europe and America.
[173] =22. fell-fare= (or field-fare). A small thrush found in Northern Europe.
=26. stagshorn.= A common club-moss.
=37. old-world Breton history.= That is, the story of Merlin and Vivian, ll. 153-224, Part III.
=79-81=. Compare with the following lines from Wordsworth’s _Michael_:–
“This light was famous in its neighborhood. … For, as it chanced,
Their cottage on a plot of rising ground Stood single….
And from this constant light so regular And so far seen, the House itself, by all Who dwelt within the limits of the vale … was named _The Evening Star_.”
=81. iron coast.= This line inevitably calls to mind a stanza from Tennyson’s _Palace of Art_:–
“One show’d an iron coast and angry waves. You seemed to hear them climb and fall And roar, rock-thwarted, under bellowing caves, Beneath the windy wall.”
=92. prie-dieu.= Praying-desk. From the French _prier_, pray; _dieu_, God.
=97. seneschal.= A majordomo; a steward. Originally meant _old_ (that is, _chief) servant_; from the Gothic _sins_, old, and _salks_, a servant.–SKEAT.
=134. gulls.= Deceives, tricks.
“The vulgar, _gulled_ into rebellion, armed,” –DRYDEN.
=140.= posting here and there. That is, restlessly changing from place to place and from occupation to occupation.
=143-145. Like that bold Caesar=, etc. Julius Caesar (100?-44 B.C.). The incident here alluded to Is mentioned in Suetonius’ _Life of the Deified Julius_, Chapter VII. “Farther Spain fell to the lot of Caesar as questor. When, at the command of the Roman people, he was holding court and had come to Cadiz, he noticed in the temple of Hercules a statue of Alexander the Great. At sight of this statue he sighed, as if disgusted at his own lack of achievement, because he had done nothing of note by the time in life (Caesar was then thirty-two) that Alexander had conquered the world.” (Free translation.) [174]
=146-150. Prince Alexander, etc.= Alexander III., surnamed “The Great” (356-323 B.C.), was the most famous of Macedonian generals and conquerors, and the first in order of time of the four most celebrated commanders of whom history makes mention. In less than fifteen years he extended his domain over the known world and established himself as the universal emperor. He died at Babylon, his capital city, at the age of thirty-three, having lamented that there were no more worlds for him to conquer. (For the boundaries of his empire, see any map of his time.) Pope spoke of him as “The youth who all things but himself subdued.” =Soudan= (l. 149). An obsolete term for Sultan, the Turkish ruler.
=153-224=. The story of Merlin, King Arthur’s court magician, and the enchantress Vivian is one of the most familiar of the Arthurian cycle of legends. =Broce-liande= (l. 156). In Cornwall. See l. 61, Part I. =fay= (l. 159). Fairy, =empire= (l. 184). That is, power; here supernatural power. =wimple= (l. 220). A covering for the head. =Is Merlin prisoner=, etc. (l. 223). Merlin, the magician, is thus entrapped by means of a charm he had himself communicated to his mistress, the enchantress Vivian. Malory has Merlin imprisoned under a rock; Tennyson, in an oak:–
“And in the hollow oak he lay as dead And lost to life and use and name and fame.” –_Merlin and Vivian_. [175]
=224=. For she was passing weary, etc.
“And she was ever passing weary of him.” –MALORY.
PART I. What is the opening situation in the poem? Why have it a stormy night? What does Tristram’s question (l. 7) reveal of his condition physically and mentally? What is the office of the parts of the poem coming between the intervals of conversation? How is the wounded knight identified? How the lady? Follow the wanderings of the sleeping Tristram’s mind. Are the incidents he speaks of in the order of their occurrence? Explain ll. 102-103; ll. 161-169. Tell the story of Tristram and Iseult of the White Hands. What is shown by the fact that Tristram’s mind dwells on Iseult of Ireland even at the time of battle? How account for his wanderings? For his morose frame of mind? What change has come over nature when Tristram awakes? Why this change? What is his mood now? Account for his addressing Iseult of Brittany as he does. Why his order for her to retire? What is her attitude toward him? Note the manner in which the children are introduced into the story (ll. 324-325) PART II. Give the opening situation. Discuss the meeting of Tristram and Iseult. What is revealed by their conversation? What is the purpose in introducing the Huntsman on the arras? PART III. What is the purpose of ll. 1-4? Give the opening situation in Part III. How is Iseult trying to entertain her children? What kind of a life does she lead? Discuss ll. 112-150 as to meaning and connection with the theme of the poem. Tell the story of Merlin and Vivian. Why introduced? Compare Arnold’s version of the story of Tristram and Iseult with the version given in the introductory note to the poem.
[176] THE CHURCH OF BROU
I. THE CASTLE
The church of Brou is actually located in a treeless Burgundian plain, and not in the mountains, as stated by the poet.
=1. Savoy=. A mountainous district in eastern France; formerly one of the divisions of the Sardinian States.
=3. mountain-chalets=. Properly, herdsmen’s huts in the mountains of Switzerland.
=17. prickers=. Men sent into the thickets to start the game.
=35. dais=. Here, a canopy or covering.
=69. erst=. See note, l. 42, _The Scholar-Gipsy_. ( Formerly. (Obsolete except in poetry.))
=71. chancel=. The part of a church in which the altar is placed.
=72. nave=. See note, ll. 70-76, _Epilogue to Lessing’s Laocooen_.
=77. palmers=. Wandering religious votaries, especially those who bore branches of palm as a token that they had visited the Holy Land and its sacred places.
=109. fretwork=. Representing open woodwork.
II. THE CHURCH
=17. matin-chime=. Bells for morning worship.
=21. Chambery=. Capital of the department of Savoy Proper, on the Leysse.
=22. Dight=. See l. 277, _Sohrab and Rustum_. (Adorned, dressed.)
=37. chisell’d broideries=. The carved draperies of the tombs.
III. THE TOMB
=6. transept=. The transversal part of a church edifice, which crosses at right angles between the nave and the choir (the upper portion), thus giving to the building the form of a cross.
=39. foliaged marble forest=. Note the epithet. [177]
=45. leads=. That is, the leaden roof. See l. 1, Part II. (Upon the glistening leaden roof).
REQUIESCAT
This poem, one of Arnold’s best-known shorter lyrics, combines with perfect taste, simplicity and elegance, with the truest pathos. It has been said there is not a false note in it.
=13. cabin’d=. Used in the sense of being cramped for space.
=16. vasty=. Spacious, boundless.
What is the significance of strewing on the roses? Why “never a spray of yew”? (See note, l.140, _The Scholar-Gipsy.)_ What seems to be the author’s attitude toward death? (Read his poem, _A Wish_.) Discuss the poem as to its lyrical qualities.
CONSOLATION
=14. Holy Lassa= (that is, Land of the Divine Intelligence), the capital city of Thibet and residence of the Dalai, or Grand Lama, the pontifical sovereign of Thibet and East Asia. Here is located the great temple of Buddha, a vast square edifice, surmounted by a gilded dome, the temple, together with its precincts, covering an area of many acres. Contiguous to it, on its four sides, are four celebrated monasteries, occupied by four thousand recluses, and resorted to as schools of the Buddhic religion and philosophy. There is, perhaps, no other one place in the world where so much gold is accumulated for superstitious purposes.
=17. Muses.= See note, l. 120, _The Strayed Reveller_.
=18. In their cool gallery=. That is, in the Vatican art gallery at Rome.
=19. yellow Tiber.= So called by the ancients because of the yellowish, muddy appearance of its waters. [178]
=21. Strange unloved uproar.= At the time this poem was written,–1849,–the French army was besieging Rome.
=23. Helicon.= High mountain in Boeotia, legendary home of the Muses.
=32. Erst.= See note, l. 32, _The Scholar-Gipsy_.
=48. Destiny.= That is, Fate, the goddess of human destiny.
In what mood is the author at the opening of the poem? How does he seek consolation? How does the calm of the Muses affect him? Can you see how he might find help in dwelling on the pictures of the blind beggar and happy lovers? What is the final thought of the poem? Can you think of any other poem that has this as its central thought? What do you think of the author’s philosophy of life as set forth in this poem? Discuss the verse form used.
LINES
WRITTEN IN KENSINGTON GARDENS
The Kensington Gardens form one of the many beautiful public parks of London. They are located in the Kensington parish, a western suburb of the city, lying north of the Thames and four miles west-southwest of St. Paul’s. In his poem Arnold contrasts the serenity of nature with the restlessness of modern life. “Not Lucan, not Vergil, only Wordsworth, has more beautifully expressed the spirit of Pantheism.”–HERBERT W. PAUL.
=4.= The pine trees here mentioned are since dead.
=14. What endless active life!= Compare with Arnold’s sonnet of this volume, entitled _Quiet Work_, ll. 4-7 and 11-12.
=21. the huge world.= London.
=24. Was breathed on by rural Pan.= Note Arnold’s classic way of accounting for his great love for nature, Pan being the nature god. See note, l. 67, _The Strayed Reveller_. [179]
=37-42.= Compare the thought here presented with the following lines from Wordsworth:–
“These beauteous forms,
… have not been to me
As is a landscape to a blind man’s eye. But oft, in lonely rooms, and ‘mid the din Of towns and cities, I have owed to them, … sensations sweet
Felt in the blood, and felt along the heart; And passing even into my purer mind, With tranquil restoration.”
Read also Wordsworth’s _Lines to the Daffodil_.
What is the dominant mood of the poem? What evidently brought it to the author’s mind? How does he show his interest in nature? In human beings? What inspiration does the author seek from nature, ll. 37-42? Explain the meaning of the last two lines.
THE STRAYED REVELLER
“I have such a love for these forms and this old Greek world, that perhaps I infuse a little soul into my dealings with them, which saves me from being entirely _ennuyx_, professorial and pedantic.” (Matthew Arnold, in a letter to his sister, dated February, 1858.)
Circe, according to Greek mythology, was an enchantress, who dwelt in the island of AEaea, and who possessed the power to transform men into beasts. (See any mythological text on Ulysses’ wanderings.) In Arnold’s fantastic, visionary poem, the magic potion, by which this transformation is accomplished, affects not the body, but the mind of the youth.
=12. ivy-cinctured.= That is, girdled with ivy, symbolic of Bacchus, the god of wine and revelry, whose forehead was crowned with ivy. See also l. 33. [180]
=36. rout.= Consult dictionary.
=38. Iacchus.= In the Eleusinian mysteries, Bacchus bore the name of Iacchus. =fane.= A temple. From the Latin _fanum_, a place of worship dedicated to any deity.
=48. The lions sleeping.= As Ulysses’ companions approached Circe’s palace, following their landing on her island, they found themselves “surrounded by lions, tigers, and wolves, not fierce but tamed by Circe’s art, for she was a powerful magician.”
=67. Pan’s flute music!= Pan, the god of pastures and woodlands, was the inventor of the syrinx, or shepherd’s flute, with which he accompanied himself and his followers in the dance.
=71. Ulysses.= The celebrated hero of the Trojan war; also famous for his wanderings. One of his chief adventures, on his return voyage from Troy, was with the enchantress Circe, with whom he tarried a year, forgetful of his faithful wife, Penelope, at home.
=72. Art.= That is, are you. (Now used only in solemn or poetic style.)
=73. range.= Wander aimlessly about.
=74. See what the day brings.= That is, the youth. See ll. 24-52
=81. Nymphs.= Goddesses of the mountains, forests, meadows, or waters, belonging to the lower rank of deities.
=102-107.= Compare in thought with Tennyson’s poem, _Ulysses_.
=110. The favour’d guest of Circe.= Ulysses. See note, l. 71.
=120. Muses.= Daughters of Jupiter and Minemosyne, nine in number. According to the earliest writers the Muses were only the inspiring goddesses of song; but later they were looked to as the divinities presiding over the different kinds of poetry, and over the arts and sciences.
[181] =130-135.= Note the poet’s device for presenting a series of mental pictures. Compare with Tennyson’s plan in his _Palace of Art_. Does Arnold’s plan seem more or less mechanical than Tennyson’s?
=135-142. Tiresias.= The blind prophet of =Thebes= (l. 142), the chief city in Boeotia, near the river =Asopus= (l. 138). In his youth, Tiresias unwittingly came upon Athene while she was bathing, and was punished by the loss of sight. As a recompense for this misfortune, the goddess afterward gave him knowledge of future events. The inhabitants of Thebes looked to Tiresias for direction in times of war.
=143. Centaurs.= Monsters, half man, half horse.
=145. Pelion.= A mountain in eastern Thessaly, famous in Greek mythology. In the war between the giants and the gods, the former, in their efforts to scale the heavens, piled Ossa upon Olympus and Pelion upon Ossa.
=151-161.= What in these lines enables you to determine the people and country alluded to?
=162-167. Scythian … embers.= The ancient Greek term for the nomadic tribes inhabiting the whole north and northeast Europe and Asia. As a distinct people they built no cities, and formed no general government, but wandered from place to place by tribes, in their rude, covered carts (see l. 164), living upon the coarsest kind of food (ll. 166-167).
=177-180. Clusters of lonely mounds, etc.= That is, ruins of ancient cities.
=183. Chorasmian stream.= See note, l. 878, _Sohrab and Rustum_.
=197. milk-barr’d onyx-stones.= A reference to the white streaks, or bars, common to the onyx.
=206. Happy Islands.= Mythical islands lying far to the west, the abode of the heroes after death.
=220. Hera’s anger.= Hera (or Juno), wife to Jupiter, was noted for her violent temper and jealousy. She is here represented as visiting punishment upon the bard, perhaps out of jealousy of the gods who had endowed him with poetic power, and his life, thus afflicted, seems lengthened to seven ages. [182]
=228-229. Lapithae.= In Greek legends, a fierce Thessalian race, governed by Pirothous, a half-brother to the Centaurs. =Theseus.= The chief hero of Attica, who, according to tradition, united the several tribes of Attica into one state, with Athens as the capital. His life was filled with adventure. The reference here is to the time of the marriage of Pirothous and Hippodamia, on which occasion the Centaurs, who were among the guests, became intoxicated, and offered indignities to the bride. In the fight that followed, Theseus joined with the Lapithae, and many of the Centaurs were slain.
=231. Alcmena’s dreadful son.= Hercules. On his expedition to capture the Arcadian boar, his third labor, Hercules became involved in a broil with the Centaurs, and in self-defence slew several of them with his arrows.
=245. Oxus stream.= See note, l. 2, _Sohrab and Rustum_.
=254. Heroes.= The demigods of mythology.
=257. Troy.= The capital of Troas, Asia Minor; the seat of the Trojan war.
=254-260.= Shortly after the close of the Trojan war, a party of heroes from all parts of Greece, many of whom had participated in the expeditions against Thebes and Troy, set out under the leadership of Jason to capture the Golden Fleece. Leaving the shores of Thessaly, the adventurers sailed eastward and finally came to the entrance of the =Euxine Sea= (the =unknown sea=, l. 260), which was guarded by the Clashing Islands. Following the instructions of the sage Phineus, Jason let fly a dove between the islands, and at the moment of rebound the expedition passed safely through. The ship in which the adventurers sailed was called the Argo, after its builder, Argus; hence our term Argonauts.
[183] =261. Silenus.= A divinity of Asiatic origin; foster-father to Bacchus and leader of the =Fauns= (l. 265), satyr-like divinities, half man, half goat, sometimes represented in art as hearing torches (l. 274).
=275. Maenad.= A bacchante,–a priestess or votary of Bacchus.
=276. Faun with torches.= See note, l. 261.
What is the situation at the beginning of the poem? What effect does the “liquor” have upon the youth? Why is the presence of Ulysses so much in harmony with the situation? How does he greet Circe; how the youth? What does his presence suggest to the latter? Why? Note the vividness of the pictures he describes; also the swiftness with which he changes from one to another. What power is ascribed to the poet? Why his “pain”? What effect is gained by closing the poem with the same words with which it is opened? Why the irregular verse used?
DOVER BEACH
In this poem is expressed the peculiar turn of Arnold’s mind, at once religious and sceptical, philosophical and emotional. It is one of his most passionate interpretations of life.
=15. Sophocles= (495-406 B.C.). One of the three great tragic poets of Greece. His rivals were AEschylus (526-456 B.C.) and Euripides (486-406 B.C.).
=16. AEgean Sea.= See note, l. 236, _The Scholar-Gipsy_.
* * * * *
Image the scene in the opening stanzas. What is the author’s mood? Why does he call some one to look on the scene with him? What is the “eternal note of sadness”? Why connect it in thought with the sea? Why does this thought suggest Sophocles? What thought next presents itself to the author’s mind? From what source must one’s help and comfort then be drawn? Why so? Why the irregular versification? State the theme of the poem. [184]
PHILOMELA
“Philomela unites the sensibilities and intellectual experience of modern Englishmen with the luminousness and simplicity of Greek poetry.”–SAINTSBURY.
The myth of the nightingale has long been a favorite with the poets, who have variously interpreted the bird’s song. See Coleridge’s, Keats’s, and Wordsworth’s poems on the subject. The most common version of the myth, the one followed by Arnold, is as follows:–
“Pandion (son of Erichthonius, special ward to Minerva) had two daughters, Procne and Philomela, of whom he gave the former in marriage to Tereus, king of Thrace (or of Daulis in Phocis). This ruler, after his wife had borne him a son, Itys (or Itylus), wearied of her, plucked out her tongue by the roots to insure her silence, and, pretending that she was dead, took in marriage the other sister, Philomela. Procne, by means of a web, into which she wove her story, informed Philomela of the horrible truth. In revenge upon Tereus, the sisters killed Itylus, and served up the child as food to the father; but the gods, in indignation, transformed Procne into a swallow, Philomela into a nightingale, forever bemoaning the murdered Itylus, and Tereus into a hawk, forever pursuing the sisters.”–GAYLEY’S _Classic Myths_.
=4.= Use the subjoined questions in studying the poem.
=5. O wanderer from a Grecian shore.= See note, l. 27.
=8.= Note the aptness and beauty of the adjectives in this line, not one of which could be omitted without irreparable loss.
=18. Thracian wild.= Thrace was the name used by the early Greeks for the entire region north of Greece.
[185] =21. The too clear web=, etc. See introductory note to poem for explanation of this and the following lines.
=27. Daulis.= A city of Phocis, Greece, twelve miles northeast of Delphi; the scene of the myth of Philomela. =Cephessian vale.= The valley of the Cephissus, a small stream running through Doris, Phocis, and Boeotia, into the Euboean Gulf.
=29. How thick the bursts=, etc. Compare with the following lines from Coleridge:–
“‘Tis the merry nightingale That crowds and hurries and precipitates With fast, thick warble his delicious notes, As he were fearful that an April night Would be too short for him to utter forth His love-chant, and disburthen his full soul Of all its music!”
–_The Nightingale_.
Also
“O Nightingale! thou surely art A creature of a ‘fiery heart’:–
These notes of thine–they pierce and pierce; Tumultuous harmony and fierce!
Thou sing’st as if the god of wine Had helped thee to a Valentine.”
–WORDSWORTH.
=31-32. Eternal passion!
Eternal pain!= Compare:–
“Thou warblest sad thy pity-pleading strains.” –COLERIDGE, _To a Nightingale_.
and
“Sweet bird …
Most musical, most melancholy!” –MILTON, _Il Penseroso_.
Image the scene in the poem. How does the author secure the proper atmosphere for the theme of the poem? Account for the note of triumph in the nightingale’s song; note of pain. What is shown by the poet’s question, ll. 10-15? What new qualities are added to the nightingale’s song, l. 25? Account for them. Why _eternal_ passion, _eternal_ pain? Do you feel the form of verse used (Pindaric blank) to be adapted to the theme? [186]
HUMAN LIFE
=4. kept uninfringed my nature’s law.= That is, have lived a perfect life.
=5. inly-written chart.= The conscience.
=8. incognisable.= Not to be comprehended by finite mind.
=23. prore.= Poetical word for _prow_, the fore part of a ship.
=27. stem.= Consult dictionary.
What important incident in the destiny of the soul is alluded to in stanza 1? Interpret ll. 13-14, and apply to your own experience. Why cannot we live “chance’s fool”? Is there any hint of fatalism in the poem, or are we held accountable for our own destiny?
ISOLATION
TO MARGUERITE, ON RETURNING A VOLUME OF THE LETTERS OF ORTIS
This poem, the fifth in a loosely connected group of lyrics, under the general name _Switzerland_, is a continuation of the preceding poem, _Isolation–to Marguerite_, and is properly entitled, _To Marguerite–Continued_. When printed separately, the above title is used.
Jacopo Ortis was a pseudonym of the Italian poet, Ugo Foscolo. His _Ultime Lettere di Ortis_ was translated into the English in 1818.
[187] =1. Yes!= Used in answer to the closing thought of the preceding poem.
=7. moon.= Note the frequency with which reference to the moon, with its light effects, appears in Arnold’s lines. Can you give any reason for this?
=24.= Mr. Herbert W. Paul, commenting on this line, says: “_Isolation_ winds up with one of the great poetic phrases of the century–one of the ‘jewels five (literally five) words long’ of English verse–a phrase complete and final, with epithets in unerring cumulation.”
Give the poem’s theme. To what is each individual likened? Discuss l.2 as to meaning. In what sense do we live “alone,” l.4? Why “endless bounds,” l.6? How account for the feeling of despair, l.13? Answer the questions asked in the last stanza. In what frame of mind does the poem leave you?
KAISER DEAD
APRIL 6, 1887
Arnold’s love for animals, especially his household pets, was most sincere. Despite the playful irony of his poem, there is in the minor key an undertone of genuine sorrow. “We have just lost our dear, dear mongrel, Kaiser,” he wrote in a letter dated from his home in Cobham, Kent, April 7, 1887, “and we are very sad.” The poem was written the following July, and was published in the _Fortnightly Review_ for that month.
=2. Cobham.= See note above.
=3. Farringford,= in the Isle of Wight, was the home of Lord Tennyson.
=5. Pen-bryn’s bold bard.= Sir Lewis Morris, author of the _Epic of Hades_, lived at Pen-bryn, in Caermarthanshire. [188]
=11-12.= In Burns’s poem, _Poor Mailie’s Elegy_, occur the following lines:–
“Come, join the melancholious croon O’ Robin’s reed.”
=20. Potsdam.= The capital of the government district of Potsdam, in the province of Brandenburg, Prussia; hence the dog’s name, _Kaiser_.
=41. the Grand Old Man.= Gladstone.
=50. agog.= In a state of eager excitement.
=65. Geist.= Also remembered in a poem entitled _Geist’s Grave_, included in this volume.
=76. chiel.= A Scotch word meaning lad, fellow.
“Buirdly _chiels_ an clever hizzies.” –BURNS, _The Twa Dogs_.
=Skye.= The largest of the Inner Hebrides. See note, l. 7, _Saint Brandan_.
THE LAST WORD
In this poem Arnold describes the plight of one engaged in a hopeless struggle against an uncompromising, Philistine world too strong for him.
State the central thought in the poem. To whom is it addressed? What is the _narrow bed_, l. 1? Why give up the struggle? With whom has it been waged? Explain fully l. 4. What is implied in l. 6? What is meant by _ringing shot_, l. 11? Who are the victors, l. 14? What would they probably say on finding the body near the wall? Can you think of any historical characters of whom the poem might aptly have been written?
[189] PALLADIUM
At the time of the Trojan war there was in the citadel of Troy a celebrated statue of Pallas Athene, called the Palladium. It was reputed to have fallen from heaven as the gift of Zeus, and the belief was that the city could not be taken so long as this statue remained within it. Ulysses and Diomedes, two of the Greek champions, succeeded in entering the city in disguise, stole the Palladium and carried it off to the besiegers’ camp at Argos. It was some time, however, before the city fell.
=1. Simois.= A small river of the Troad which takes its rise in the rocky, wooded eminence which, according to Greek tradition, formed the acropolis of Troy. The Palladium was set up on its banks near its source, in a temple especially erected for it (l. 6), and from this lofty position was supposed to watch over the safety of the city and her defenders on the plains below.
=3. Hector.= Hector, son of Priam, king of Troy (Ilium), and his wife, Hecuba, was the leader and champion of the Trojan armies. He distinguished himself in numerous single combats with the ablest of the Greek heroes; and to him was principally due the stubborn defence of the Trojan capital. He was finally slain by Achilles, aided by Athene, and his body dragged thrice around the walls of Troy behind the chariot of his conqueror.
=14. Xanthus.= The Scamander, the largest and most celebrated river of the Troad, near which Troy was situated, was presided over by a deity known to the gods as Xanthus. His contest with Achilles, whom he so nearly overwhelmed, forms a notable incident of the _Iliad_.
=15. Ajax, or Aiax.= One of the leading Greek heroes in the siege of Troy, famous for his size, physical strength, and beauty. In bravery and feats of valor he was second only to Achilles. Not being awarded the armor of Achilles after that hero’s death, he slew himself. [190]
=16.= Helen, the wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta, was celebrated for her beauty, by reason of which frequent references are made to her by both classic and modern writers. Goethe introduces her in the second part of _Faust_, and Faustus, in Marlowe’s play of that name, addresses her thus:–
“Oh! thou art fairer than the evening air Clad in the beauty of a thousand stars.”
Her abduction by Paris, son of Priam (see note, l. 3), was the cause of the Trojan war, the most notable incident of Greek mythology, which forms the theme of Homer’s greatest poem, the _Iliad_.
What is the central thought of the poem? Of what is the Palladium typical? Explain the thought in stanza 3. What is the force of the references of stanza 4? Discuss the use of the words “rust” and “shine,” l. 17. Just what is meant by “soul” as the word is used in the poem?
SELF-DEPENDENCE
_Self-Dependence_ is a poem in every respect characteristic of its author. In it Arnold exhorts mankind to seek refuge from human troubles in the example of nature.
Picture the situation in the poem. What is the poet’s mood as shown in the opening stanzas? From what source does he seek aid? Why? What answer does he receive? What is the source of nature’s repose? Where and how must the human soul find its contentment?
[191] GEIST’S GRAVE
This poem appeared in the January number of the _Fortnightly Review_ for 1881.
=12. homily.= Sermon.
=15. the Virgilian cry.= _Sunt lacrimae rerum!_ These words are interpreted in the following line.
=42. On lips that rarely form them now.= Arnold wrote but little poetry after 1867.
=55-56. thine absent master.= Richard Penrose Arnold, the poet’s only surviving son.
EPILOGUE TO LESSING’S LAOCOOeN
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781) was a celebrated German dramatist and critic. For a time he studied theology at Leipsic, then turned his attention to the stage, and later to criticism. His greatest critical work (1766) is a treatise on Art, the famous Greek statuary group, the Laocooen, which gives the work its name, forming the basis for a comparative discussion of Sculpture, Poetry, Painting, and Music.
=1. Hyde Park.= The largest park in London, and the principal recreation ground of that city.
=15. Phoebus-guarded ground.= Greece. Phoebus, a name often given Apollo, the sun god.
=16. Pausanias.= A noted Greek geographer and writer on art who lived in the second century. “His work, _The Gazetteer of Hellas_, is our best repertory of information for the topography, local history, religious observances, architecture, and sculpture of the different states of Greece.”–K.O. MUeLLER, _History of the Literature of Ancient Greece_.
[192] =21-22. Dante= (1265-1321), =Petrarch= (1304-1374), =Tasso= (1544-; 1595), =Ariosto= (1475-1533). Celebrated Italian poets.
=25. Raphael= (1483-1520). The famous Italian painter.
=29. Goethe= (1749-1832). The greatest name in German literature. His works include poetry, dramas, and criticisms. =Wordsworth= (1770-1850). See the poem, _Memorial Verses_, of this volume.
=35. Mozart= (1766-1791), =Beethoven= (1770-1827), =Mendelssohn= (1809-1847). Noted musicians and composers.
=42. south.= Warm.
=43-48.= Cyclops Polyphemus, famous in the story of Ulysses, was a persistent and jealous suitor of Galatea, the fairest of sea divinities. So ardent was he in his wooings, that he would leave his flocks to wander at will, while he sang his uncouth lays from the hilltops to Galatea in the bay below. Her only answers were words of scorn and mockery. See Andrew Lang’s translation of Theocritus, Idyl VI, for further account.
=70-76. Abbey towers.= That is, Westminster Abbey, a mile’s distance to the south and east of Hyde Park. The abbey is built in the form of a cross, the body or lower part of which is termed the nave (l. 73). The upper portion is occupied by the choir, the anthems of which, with their organ accompaniments, are alluded to in ll. 74-77.
=89-106. Miserere Domine!= _Lord, have mercy!_ These words are from the service of the Church of England. The meaning in these lines is that Beethoven, in his masterpieces, has transferred the thoughts and feelings, above inadequately expressed in words, into another and more emotional tongue; that is, music.
=107. Ride.= A famous driveway in Hyde Park, commonly called Rotten Row.
=119. vacant.= Thoughtless; not occupied with study or reflection.
“For oft, when on my couch I lie In _vacant_ or in pensive mood.”
–WORDSWORTH’S _Lines to the Daffodils_, ll. 19-20.
=124. hies.= Hastens (poetical).
[193] =130. painter and musician too!= Arnold held poetry to be equal to painting and music combined.
=140. movement.= Activities. Explained in the following lines.
=163-210.= Note carefully the argument used to prove that poetry interprets life more accurately and effectively than any of the other arts. =Homer=, the most renowned of all Greek poets. The time in which he lived is not definitely known. =Shakespeare= (1504-1616).
Give the setting of the story. What was the topic of conversation? What stand did the poet’s friend take regarding poetry? Why turn to Greece in considering the arts? What limitations of the painter’s art are pointed out by the poet? What is his attitude toward music? What finally is “the poet’s sphere,” l. 127? Wherein then is poetry superior to the other arts? Does the author prove his point by his poem? Discuss the poem as to movement, diction, etc.
QUIET WORK
No poet, not even Wordsworth, was more passionately fond of nature than Arnold. Note his attitude in the poem.
=1. One lesson.= What lesson?
=4.= Discuss the use of the adjective “loud”; also “noisier,” l. 7.
Note the essential elements of sonnet structure in metre, rhyme formula, and number of lines. See the introduction to Sharp’s _Sonnets of this Century_.
SHAKESPEARE
Despite this tribute, Arnold considered Homer Shakespeare’s equal, if not his superior. What do Shakespeare’s smile and silence imply on his part? Explain in full the figure used. Do you consider it apt? Why “Better so,” l. 10? What is there in the poem that helps you to see wherein lay Shakespeare’s power to interpret life? Select the lines which most impress you, and tell why. [194]
YOUTH’S AGITATIONS
This sonnet was written in 1852, when the poet was in his thirtieth year.
=5. joy.= Be glad. =heats.= Passions.
=6. even clime.= That is, in the less emotional years of maturity.
=12. hurrying fever.= See note, l. 6.
AUSTERITY OF POETRY
=1. That son of Italy.= Giacopone di Todi.
=2. Dante= (1265-1321). Best known as the author of _The Divine Comedy_.
=3. In his light youth.= Explain.
=11. sackcloth.= Symbolic of mourning or mortification of the flesh.
Tell the story of the poem and make the application. Explain Arnold’s idea of poetry as set forth in ll. 12-14.
WORLDLY PLACE
=3. Marcus Aurelius= (121-180 A.D.), commonly called “the philosopher.” A celebrated Roman emperor, prominent among the ethical teachers of his time. Arnold himself has been aptly styled by Sharp an “impassioned Marcus Aurelius, wrought by poetic vision and emotion to poetic music.” [195]
=6. foolish.= In the sense of unreasonable. =ken.= The Scotch word meaning sight.
=7. rates.= Berates, reproves.
Give the poem’s theme. What is implied by the word “even,” l. 1? Does the author agree with the implication? Why so? Discuss l. 5 as to its meaning. Interpret the expressions “ill-school’d spirit,” l. 11, and “Some nobler, ampler stage of life,” l. 12. Where finally are the aids to a nobler life to be found? Do you agree with this philosophy of life?
EAST LONDON
=2. Bethnal Green.= An eastern suburb of London.
=4. Spitalfields.= A part of northeast London, comprising the parishes of Bethnal Green and Christchurch.
Image the scene. What is the purpose of the first four lines? Discuss l. 6. What is the import of the preacher’s response? What are the poet’s conclusions drawn in ll. 9-14?
WEST LONDON
=1. Belgrave Square.= An important square in the western part of London.
Tell the situation and the story of the poem. Why did the woman solicit aid from the laboring men? Why not from the wealthy? Explain ll. 9-11. What is the poet’s final conclusion?
[196] MEMORIAL VERSES
APRIL, 1850
Wordsworth died at Rydal Mount, in the Lake, District, April 23, 1850. These verses, dedicated to his memory, are among Arnold’s best-known lines. For adequacy of meaning and charm of expression, they are almost unsurpassed; they also contain some of the poet’s soundest poetical criticism. The poem was first published in _Fraser’s Magazine_ for June, 1850, and bore the date of April 27.
=1. Goethe in Weimar sleeps.= The tomb of Goethe, the celebrated German author (see note, l. 29, _Epilogue to Lessing’s Laocooen_), is in Weimar, the capital of the Grand-duchy of Saxe-Weimar. Weimar is noted as the literary centre of Germany, and for this reason is styled the German Athens.
=2. Byron.= George Gordon Byron (1788-1824), a celebrated English poet of the French Revolutionary period, died at Missolonghi, Greece, where he had gone to help the Greeks in their struggle to throw off the Turkish yoke. He was preeminently a poet of passion, and, as such, exerted a marked influence on the literature of his day. His petulant, bitter rebellion against all law has become proverbial; hence the term “Byronic.” The =Titans= (l. 14) were a race of giants who warred against the gods. The aptness of the comparison made here is at once evident. In Arnold’s sonnet, _A Picture at Newstead_, also occur these lines:–
“‘Twas not the thought of Byron, of his cry Stormily sweet, his Titan-agony.”
=17. iron age.= In classic mythology, “The last of the four great ages of the world described by Hesiod. Ovid, etc. It was supposed to be characterized by abounding oppression, vice, and misery.”– _International Dictionary_. The preceding ages, in order, were the age of gold, the age of silver, and the age of brass. [197]
=34-39=. Eurydice, wife of Orpheus, was stung to death by a serpent, and passed to the realm of the dead–Hades. Thither Orpheus descended, and, by the charm of his lyre and song, persuaded Pluto to restore her to life. This he consented to do on condition that she walk behind her husband, who was not to look at her until they had arrived in the upper world. Orpheus, however, looked back, thus violating the conditions, and Eurydice was caught back into the infernal regions.
“The ferry guard
Now would not row him o’er the lake again.” –LANDOR.
=72. Rotha=. A small stream of the English Lake Region, on which Rydal Mount, Wordsworth’s burial-place, is situated.
THE SCHOLAR-GIPSY
“There was very lately a lad in the University of Oxford who was by his poverty forced to leave his studies there and at last to join himself to a company of vagabond gipsies. Among these extravagant people, by the insinuating subtilty of his carriage, he quickly got so much of their love and esteem that they discovered to him their mystery. After he had been a pretty while exercised in the trade, there chanced to ride by a couple of scholars who had formerly been of his acquaintance. They quickly spied out their old friend among the gipsies, and he gave them an account of the necessity which drove him to that kind of life, and told them that the people he went with were not such impostors as they were taken for, but that they had a traditional kind of learning among them, and could do wonders by the power of imagination, their fancy binding that of others; that himself had learned much of their art, and when he had compassed the whole secret, he intended, he said, to leave their company, and give the world an account of what he had learned.”–GLANVIL’S _Vanity of Dogmatizing_, 1661. [198]
=2. wattled cotes=. Sheepfolds. Probably suggested by Milton’s _Comus_, l. 344:–
“The folded flocks, penned in their _wattled cotes_.”
=9. Cross and recross=. Infinitives depending upon seen, l. 8.
=13. cruse=. Commonly associated in thought with the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath, 1 _Kings_, xvii: 8-16.
=19. corn=. See note, l. 156, _Sohrab and Rustum_.
=30. Oxford towers=. “Oxford, the county town of Oxfordshire and the seat of one of the most ancient and celebrated universities in Europe, is situated amid picturesque environs at the confluence of the Cherwell and the Thames (often called in its upper course the Isis). It is surrounded by an amphitheatre of gentle hills, the tops of which command a fine view of the city with its domes and towers.”–BAEDEKER’S _Great Britain_, in his _Handbooks for Travellers_. In writing of Oxford, Hawthorne says: “The world, surely, has not another place like Oxford; it is a despair to see such a place and ever to leave it, for it would take a lifetime, and more than one, to comprehend and enjoy it satisfactorily.” See also note, l. 19, _Thyrsis_.
=31. Glanvil’s book=. See introductory note to poem.
=42. erst=. Formerly. (Obsolete except in poetry.)
=44-50=. See introductory note to poem.
=57. Hurst=. Cumner (or Cumnor) Hurst, one of the Cumnor range of hills, some two or three miles south and west of Oxford, is crowned with a clump of cedars; hence the name “Hurst.”
=58. Berkshire moors=. Berkshire is the county, or shire, on the south of Oxford County.
=69. green-muffled=. Explain the epithet. [199]
=74. Bablockhithe=. A small town some four miles west and a little south of Oxford, on the Thames, which at that point is a mere stream crossed by a ferry. This and numerous other points of interest in the vicinity of Oxford are frequented by Oxford students; hence Arnold’s familiarity with them and his reference to them in this poem and _Thyrsis_. See any atlas.
=79. Wychwood bowers=. That is, Wychwood Forest, ten or twelve miles north and west of Oxford. See note, l. 74.
=83. To dance around the Fyfield elm in May=. Fyfield, a parish in Berkshire, about six miles southwest of Oxford. The reference here is to the “May-day” celebrations formerly widely observed in Europe, but now nearly disappeared. The chief features of the celebration in Great Britain are the gathering of hawthorn blossoms and other flowers, the crowning of the May-queen and dancing around the May-pole–here the Fyfield elm. See note, l. 74. Read Tennyson’s poem, _The Queen o’ the May_.
=91. Godstow Bridge=. Some two miles up the Thames from Oxford.
=95. lasher pass=. An English term corresponding to our _mill race_. The _lasher_ is the dam, or weir.
=98. outlandish=. Analyze the word and determine meaning.
=111. Bagley Wood=. South and west of Oxford, beyond South Hinksey. See note, l. 125; also note, l. 74.
=114. tagg’d=. That is, marked; the leaves being colored by frost.
=115. Thessaly=. The northeastern district of ancient Greece, celebrated in mythology. Here a forest ground near Bagley Wood. See note, l. 111; also note, l. 74.
=125. Hinksey=. North and South Hinksey are unimportant villages a short distance out from Oxford in the Cumnor Hills. See note, l. 74. [200]
=129. Christ Church hall=. The largest and most fashionable college in Oxford; founded by Cardinal Wolsey in 1525. The chapel of Christ Church is also the cathedral of the diocese of Oxford.
=130. grange=. Consult dictionary.
=133. Glanvil=. Joseph Glanvil, 1636-1680. A noted English divine and philosopher; author of a defence of belief in witchcraft.
=140. red-fruited yew tree=. The yew tree is very common in English burial-grounds. It grows slowly, lives long, has a dark, thick foliage, and yields a red berry. See Wordsworth’s celebrated poem, _The Yew-Tree_.
=141-170=. “This note of lassitude is struck often–perhaps too often–in Arnold’s poems.”–DU PONT SYLE. See also _The Stanzas in Memory of the Author of Obermann_. For the author’s less despondent mood, see his _Rugby Chapel_, included in this volume.
=147. teen=. Grief, sorrow; from the old English _teona_, meaning injury.
=149. the just-pausing Genius=. Does the author here allude to death?
=151. Thou hast not lived= (so). That is, as described in preceding stanza.
=152. Thou hadst one aim=, etc. What was the Scholar-Gipsy’s _one_ motive in life?
=157-160. But thou possessest an immortal lot=, etc. Explain.
=165. Which much to have tried=, etc. Which many attempts and many failures bring.
=180. do not we … await it too=? That is, the spark from heaven. See l. 171.