ENGLISH III- LITERARY MUSINGS

A VALEDICTION: FORBIDDING MOURNING

-John Donne

John Donne is considered the Pre-eminent representative of the metaphysical poets. This poem “A Valediction:
Forbidding Mourning” is famous for Donne’s conceit. In this poem, the poet comforts his beloved when he was away in
France on government business while she remained at home. It is a typical metaphysical poem, remarkable for its
ingenious comparisons, a mockery of the sentiments and display of logical arguments.

The poet begins by comparing the love between his beloved and himself with the passing away of virtuous men. Such
men expire so peacefully that their friends cannot determine when they are truly dead. Likewise his beloved should lead
the two of them depart in peace, not revealing their love to the laity.

Earthquakes bring harm and fear about the meaning of the rupture, but such fears should not affect his beloved because of
the firm nature of their love, other lovers become fearful when distance separates them. For them, love is based on the
physical presence or attractiveness of each other. Yet for the poet and his beloved, such a split is innocent, like the
movements of the heavenly spheres, because their love transcends mere physicality.

Their souls are one in pure love, indeed, the separation merely adds to the distance covered by their love, like a sheet of
gold hammered so thin that it covers a huge area and gilds so much more than a love concentrated in one place ever could.

He finishes the poem with a longer comparison of himself and his beloved to the two legs of a compass. They are joined
at the top, and she is perfectly grounded at the center point. As he travels further from the center, she leans toward him
and as he travels in his circles, she reminds firm in the center, making his circle perfect.

THE MUSE OF HISTORY

(DEREK WALCOTT)

Derek Walcott, in his essay the Muse of History, discusses Colonialism and compares and contrasts the responses of the
classical and radical writers of the New world,to colonialism. Walcott observes that classical writers’ view of colonialism
is more acceptable since they do not openly protest against tradition like that of the radicals. The classical writers look at
tradition with respect, accept and assimilate the features of tradition and then deviate from it. Thus they have gone past
the confrontation of history. The classical writers pretend not to be influenced by change. But they do exhibit the
colonial anguish as well as the fury of the radicals. These classical writers reject the idea of history as time .They hold on
to the original notion of regarding history as myth. History, according to Walcott is fiction subject to memory. The
classical writers have understood this nature of history which is recollected from the memory of the viewer. Hence the
classical writers do not believe in the authenticity of history and do not attach much value to it. Walcott praises the
classical writers for being revolutionary in their outlook.

Walcott, on the other hand, criticizes the New World writers because they praise history, surrender to history and pay
homage to the muse of history. They produce a literature of recrimination, despair and a literature of revenge. They do
not explain or forgive history. They yearn for identity. They keep on grumbling about the past and in the desire to project
their identity, right the wrong done to them, they write incoherently and nostalgically. But great writers of the New World,
from Whitman to Neruda, are exceptions to this New Word attitude. In History very often an action of the past can be
seen repeated. According to Walcott, it would be better if the radical writers do not see only the past history of shame but
think about a new history. Walcott wishes that the New World writers treat history as ordinary and repetitive.
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In their desire to condone the past, the New World writers have resorted to abuse and their works have become a groan of
suffering. They tend to imitate their perpetrators and are not any better than them. They yearn for what they have lost,
walk among the ruins of the past, rather than thinking of history as repetitive and civilization as renewable. They are
caught in the past, whereas the classicists by assimilation retrieve the old faith. According to Walcott both the master and
the slave have had their share of experience, bitter and sweet and the wisdom they have gained is their inheritance.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

- Maya Angelou

Summary

The chapter is taken from Maya Angelou’s famous autobiography called I Know Why the Caged Bird Sing. It describes
Angelou’s struggle to break free of the restraints in a racist and hostile society. Angelou narrates her story, focusing on the
struggles of being a black girl in Arkansas.

Maya and her brother Bailey had been sent to their grandmother Mrs. Henderson’s (Momma) house after their parents’
divorce. Five years later, she returned to her mother’s house, where she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. When she
identified her rapist, her uncles got together and killed him. This deeply saddened Marguerite as she realized how words
can cause someone’s death. She was traumatized and went into deep silence for five years. She spoke to no one except her
brother. In the meantime, she read a lot of books with the help of her neighbour, Mrs. Flowers. She was an aristocratic
woman and lived in Black Stamps. Maya liked her a lot because Mrs. Flowers was beautiful, educated, and dignified. She
was a gentlewoman. She would speak softly with everyone. Her actions were graceful. For Marguerite, Mrs. Flowers was
“the measure of what a human being can be.”

The grandmother also liked Mrs. Flowers. She had a store where Mrs. Flowers would often come to buy groceries.
Though Momma could not speak correct English, she would speak with Mrs. Flowers in English. She also called her
‘sister.’ Marguerite was irritated by this. She hated Momma’s ignorance. But she soon realized that Momma and Mrs.
Flowers were “as alike as sisters, separated only by formal education.” Both women cared for each other.

Mrs. Flowers appealed to Marguerite. Mrs. Flowers was educated, graceful, and beautiful. Marguerite had not met anyone
like Mrs. Flowers in her life and thought her to be like women in English novels, who lived in beautiful homes and had tea
in fine silver trays. Mrs. Flowers was as refined as the whitefolks made Marguerite proud of “being a Negro.”

Once, Marguerite gets an opportunity to visit Mrs. Flowers’ house. Mrs. Flowers had come to buy provisions at Momma’s
store and wanted someone to pick her bags up. Mrs. Flowers said she would like Marguerite to pick her bags up.
Marguerite chose to wear her school dress for her first visit to Mrs. Flowers’ house.

Mrs. Flowers praised the neat stitching of her school dress. Momma told that she had stitched it. In her excitement, she
pulls the dress off the shoulders of Marguerite to show the inside hems to Mrs. Flowers. This embarrasses and irritates
Marguerite as a child. We learn that grandmother is a religious minded person. When Mrs. Flowers tells her that she
should be proud of her stitching skills, Momma says that “Pride is a sin.” At the same time, she wants her grand children,
Marguerite and Bailey to become good human beings. Momma is worried about Marguerite because she had been under
trauma because of the rape. She wanted her to focus on studies. Therefore, she requests Mrs. Flowers to take care of
Marguerite and pay special attention to her.

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Marguerite is extremely attracted by Mrs. Flowers’ grace, sophistication, and beauty. Therefore, visiting her home was no
less an achievement for Marguerite. She thinks that Mrs. Flowers’ lifestyle is as strange and perfect as the world of books.
The cup of mead in the epic Beowulf symbolized bravery, boldness, and community honour. For Marguerite, going to
Mrs. Flowers’ house was a matter of honour.

In Mrs. Flowers’ company, Marguerite gained a love of language and recovered her skill at recitation. She tells
Marguerite that “Words mean more than what is set down on paper.” This line reflects on Marguerite’s childhood. With
the help of Mrs. Flowers, Marguerite learns to speak her mind out along with reading the words on page. Marguerite
learns to recite words and assign meaning to them. Finally, she starts to write creatively. Words and creativity enable
Marguerite to come out of her trauma also. She reads a lot and gains her love of language.

On her way back to home, Mrs. Flowers gives tea cookies to Marguerite for her brother Bailey. When Marguerite returns
home after her visit to Mrs. Flowers, she is excited and happy. In the middle of recounting her pleasant experience at Mrs.
Flowers’ house, she tells Bailey “By the way, Mrs. Flowers has sent tea cookies for you.” Momma overhears this and gets
very angry by the fact that Marguerite had used the phrase “By the way” so loosely. She gets upset, cries and seeks
penance. She asks for Christ’s forgiveness at such a reckless usage of the phrase “By the way.” According to Momma,
there is only one way, that is, God’s way. Jesus is the way and when such words are used unnecessarily, they become
abusive. Momma says, “Jesus was the way, the Truth, and Light.” And anyone who says “by the way” is taking God’s
name in vain.

Short Questions

1. Why did Mrs. Flowers appeal to the narrator?

Mrs. Flowers appealed to the narrator because she was educated, graceful, and beautiful. Marguerite had not met anyone
like Mrs. Flowers in her life and thought her to be like women in English novels, who lived in beautiful homes and had tea
in fine silver trays.

2. Why whitefolks tend to think of their whiteness as an evenizer?

‘Whitefolks think of their whiteness as an evenizer’ means that the Afro Americans and white people share an unequal
relationship. White people think that their skin colour compensates for any lack they might have I comparison to the Afro-
Americans. This refers to racial pride and the fact that whites cannot accept an educated black woman Mrs. Bertha
Flowers to be their equal.

3. What is mother wit?

Mother wit means homely sayings which contain the collective wisdom of generations. It is shared by a community over a
long period of time. Even uneducated people can have mother wit.

4. “Words mean more than what is set down on paper.” What does this reflect about Marguerite’s childhood?

The line reflects on Marguerite’s childhood in the sense that she too learns to speak her mind out along with reading
the words on page. Marguerite learns to recite words and assign meaning to them as she eventually starts to write
creatively. Words and creativity enable Marguerite to come out of her trauma also. With the help of Mrs. Flowers, she
reads a lot and gains her love of language. She learns the power of words.

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5. What did the narrator mean when she says that she “heard poetry for the first time” when Mrs. Flowers started to
read?

When Mrs. Flowers started to read, the narrator felt as if she had heard poetry for the first time. Marguerite was
impressed by Mrs. Flowers’ way of speaking. She spoke fluently, without any effort. Her voice was gentle, clear, and
effortless.

6. Why is Marguerite irritated by her grandmother?

Marguerite is irritated by her grandmother’s incorrect English. She does not like the fact that Momma addresses Mrs.
Flowers as ‘sister’. She thought Mrs. Flowers was an educated woman unlike Momma who is illiterate and runs a
store. Also, once, when Mrs. Flowers praises Marguerite’s school dress, which was stitched by Momma, the
grandmother gets excited and pulls the dress off the shoulders of Marguerite to show the inside hems to Mrs. Flowers.
This embarrasses and irritates Marguerite as a child.

7. What did the narrator mean when she compared being let into Mrs. Flowers’ house with being invited to take a
cup of mead with Beowulf?

Marguerite is extremely attracted by Mrs. Flowers’ grace, sophistication, and beauty. Meeting Mrs. Flowers, visiting
her home were no less achievements for Marguerite. She thinks that Mrs. Flowers’ lifestyle is as strange and perfect
as the world of books. The cup of mead in the epic Beowulf symbolized bravery, boldness, and community honour.
For Marguerite, going to Mrs. Flowers’ house was a matter of honour.

8. How did Marguerite know that Mrs. Flowers liked her?

The fact that Marguerite is treated with love, care, and affection when she visits Mrs. Flowers’ house convinces her
that she is like by her. Also, Mrs. Flowers gives her books to read and inculcates love of reading and writing in
Marguerite. Marguerite feels special, realizing that Mrs. Flowers is willing to help her.

9. Why did Marguerite’s words enrage Momma?

Marguerite’s words enrage Momma because she loosely uses the phrase “By the way.” According to Momma, there is
only one way, that is, God’s way. Jesus is the way and when such words are used unnecessarily, they become abusive.
Momma says, “Jesus was the way, the Truth, and Light.” And anyone who says “by the way” is taking God’s name in
vain.

Freedom and Democracy

- Erich Fromm

Short Questions

1. What kind of freedom does the author advocate?

The author advocates the freedom to express our thoughts, and feelings, and most importantly, the freedom to think
thoughts of our own.

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2. What effect does the separation or removal of emotion from thought have on personality?

a. An individual’s thinking is greatly weakened if emotions are separated from thoughts or creative thinking.
b. Emotions are forced to exist totally apart from intellectual side of personality, leading to insincere sentimentality.

3. What does the author mean when he says the fear of death lives an illegitimate existence among us?

The fear of death lives an illegitimate existence among us. It remains alive in spite of the attempt to deny it. However,
it soon becomes sterilized because of constant repression. This fear flattens other experiences, leading to restlessness
in people.

4. How is a child’s ability for original thinking maimed by modern education?

a. Children’s natural inclination towards curiosity about the world is not taken seriously by the adults.
b. Children’s quest of knowing the strange and powerful world encourages them to search for truth. However, the
adult world disrespects this quest. The adult world insincerely functions as it offers children a false picture of the
world.
c. Emphasis on objectivity flattens the interests of children, making them machines to register facts.
d. Longing of truth in children is curbed by labeling truth as relative. Sometimes, interests of particular groups are
considered more important than truth, which might prove harmful for the case of truth.

5. Why should balance be maintained between information and thinking?

A balance should be maintained between information and thinking because thinking without a knowledge of facts
remains empty and useless. Also, if we focus only on information, it proves an impediment (barrier) in the way of
independent thinking.

6. How is the intellectual capacity of an individual beaten to flatness and indifference by modern media?

Modern media has a devastating effect on an individual’s ability to think critically. For instance, the announcement of
the bombing of a city and the death of hundreds of people is shamelessly followed or interrupted by an advertisement
for soap or wine. The pictures of ships caught in a storm are followed by those of a fashion show. Newspapers no
longer recognize the difference between gossip and sensationalism on the one hand and events of scientific and
artistic importance on the other.

7. Why is man left disappointed even after he has accomplished all of the goals he had set for himself?

Man is left disappointed even after accomplishing all his goals. Though people know what they want and spend all
their energy in running after it, once they get it, they do not know what to do with it. For example, When in school,
children want good marks, as adults they want to become successful, to make more money, to have more respect, to
buy a better car, to go to places and so on and so forth. After getting everything, one realizes “What is the use of it all?
If I get a new job, If I get a better car—what then? These questions, when they arise, are very frightening, for they
question the very basis on which man’s whole activity is built.

8. Which forms of love and work unite man’s self-realisation with the world?

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Love as spontaneous affirmation of others, as the union of the individual with others on the basis of the preservation
of the individual self. This form of love leads to oneness. It overcomes differences, without leading to loss of
individuality.

Work as creation in which man becomes one with nature in the act of creation leads to self-realisation with the world.
This form of work affirms individuality of the self and at the same time unites self with nature.

9. What kind of sacrifice does fascism demand?

In Fascism, sacrifice is an aim in itself. This kind of sacrifice advocates the annihilation of the individual self and its
submission to a higher power.

10. What is the difference between democracy and fascism in their respective treatment of the individual?

Democracy is a system that creates the economic, political and cultural conditions for the full development of the
individual. Fascism is a system that makes the individual submit to irrelevant purposes and weakens the development
of genuine individuality.

ELEGY WRITTEN IN A COUNTRY CHURCHYARD

THOMAS GRAY

Thomas Gray’s “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” was first published in 1751. It is said that Gray began writing
the poem shortly after the death of his close friend Richard West in 1942. Though probably motivated in part by sorrow
over the death of West, the poem is not ‘particular’: it is an elegy for Man or at least for all ‘average’ and obscure men
who lived and died away from glare and were laid at rest in a country churchyard. As a typical elegy, the poem expresses
feelings of loss and sorrow while also praising the deceased and commenting on the meaning of the deceased's time on
earth. Gray's poem reflects on the lives of humble and unheralded people buried in the cemetery of a church.

The poem begins musically with a description of the setting, the evening time, when the church bells ring out the day and
the ‘plowman homeward plods his weary way’. The glimmering twilight is fading, and a ‘solemn stillness’ fills all the air.
The only sound that is heard is that of the beetles and of the moping owls. The poet now passes on to describe the
churchyard which is dotted with elm trees and where most of the tombs have crumbled down. The sorrowful atmosphere
created, the poet goes on to tell the lives of the ‘rude forefathers’ of the hamlet who now sleep in the yard, each in his
narrow cell. The lamentation deepens as the poet points out that they will not wake up to the breezy call of the fragrant
morning or the twittering of the swallows or the shrill clarion of the cocks. Our heart wrings in pain as he narrates that
now that they are inside the grave forever, the blazing hearth will not burn for them nor will the housewives, on their
husbands’ return from work, will be busy to entertain them. No children will run to lisp their sire’s return nor will they vie
with one another for the first kiss. They were common villagers who worked in the field, cut wood, and tended cattle.
Their joys were homely, their destiny was obscure. No grandeur they had and their annals were short and simple, poor

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men as they were. The poet, however, suddenly becomes philosophical and glorifies the annals of the poor. In a mood of
generalization, he focuses on the stark truth of life:

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,

All that beauty, all that wealth ever gave;

They pass on to the inevitable hour,

The paths of glory lead but to the grave.

Even though memorials are raised, anthems in their praise swell the cathedral hall, no dead soul can be brought back to
life. Songs of glory cannot induce the silent dust to resuscitate them nor can any amount of flattery prevail upon Death to
release them out of its prison.

The poet again swings back to the lives of the poor villagers who lay at rest in the neglected spot that the churchyard was.
The men were poor and humble, but some had hearts pregnant with celestial fire, some would even make good emperors,
some even were great connoisseurs of lyre which filled them with ecstasy. But as chill penury repressed their noble rage,
and froze the genial current of their soul, they did not have access to knowledge and their potentiality could not flourish,
and they remained hidden in the privacy of their glorious darkness. They remained obscure and away from the glare of
eminence like the gems of purest ray serene that remain under the deep ocean or like the sweet flowers that blush and
waste their sweetness in the desert. Some of them, if given scope, could have becomes Miltons and Cromwells, but their
promise did not sprout as their lot forbade. The poet, however, is not remorseful that they remained unknown Miltons and
unsung Cromwells because basically they were simple people who shunned ambition and who avoided the gory path that
leads to power. They lived far from the madding crowd’s ignoble strife, away from the shrines of Luxury and Pride. Their
wishes were sober, and they lived quietly, avoiding fuss.

The pity of their life becomes more touching when the poet mentions that some friends in order to protect them from
ignominy erected frail memorials on the graves with epitaphs in uncouth rhymes. Those who pass by these shapeless
sculptures cannot but heave a sigh of tribute to these humble children of God. They have gone, preys of dumb
forgetfulness but they are still remembered by their folks still alive. The tone of pathos becomes deeper when the poet
describes how they vanished, one after another. To a question, a hoary-headed swain would say that here was the man
who would hastily walk at the peep of dawn through the dewy grass to meet the sun upon the upland lawn. That man
would occasionally stretch out his body at the foot of a nodding beech tree to cool his tired nerves at noon, and with
wonder watch the brook that babbled by. Sometimes, he would be seen by the wood with a scornful smile on his face,
muttering wayward fancies. When old, he was a drooping frame, a man afflicted with cares or crossed in hopeless love, a
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woeful wan, now deserted by all. One morning he would be missing from his favourite haunts – the heath, the tree, the
hill, the lawn or the wood. Instead, he would be seen being borne through the church-way path with mourners singing
dirges. His body is now in the grave under the stone covered with thorns.

On the stone is written an epitaph that tells that the man in the grave was a youth, to fortune and fame unknown, who
lived a difficult life, who was deprived of the benefit ‘fair science’. But he was a large-hearted man, a sincere soul whom
God, in lieu of a tear shed in woe, gave him a friend which only he wanted. There is no use discussing farther his merits or
his frailties as he like his team-mates in the graveyard is now anxiously waiting to be taken into the bosom of his Father
and his God.

Question – 1: What mood do the images used in the first stanza create?

Answer: The images in the first stanza of the poem “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” create a mood of
melancholy, tiredness and finality. There are four major images in the first four lines of the poem i.e. the ‘curfew’ tolling
which refers to the tolling of bell in a church yard; the ambling herd of cows; tiredploughman heading home after a tiring
day; the falling darkness which leaves the narrator in isolation and lonely. These images which illustrates the classic
pastoral scene, also indicate that the poem takes place in the evening and in solitude.

Question – 2: What poetic feature is used in the line: “The ploughman homewards plods his weary way.”?

Answer: The line “The Ploughman homeward plods his weary way” is an example of Transferred Epithet because the
adjective ‘weary’ is shifted from the ploughman to the way. Here the ploughman is weary at the end of the day, the way is
not weary although the epithet is shifted. 

Question – 3: Pick out the words that change the mood of the poem, and explain how the shift is made.

Answer: The poem “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” opens with contemplation of a country churchyard at
twilight. This elegy has three major parts i.e. lament for dead person/s; reflection of transitory of life; and the mood of
consolation: ‘the life goes on’. The mood in this poem is sorrowful and solemn. Words like "moping owl" "dark
unfathomed caves" and "the moon complain[ing]" use dark wording with common terms to add to ideas of death.

However, the major shift comes after line no 88. Up until that point, the speaker focuses on the dead in the churchyard, or
cemetery.  The dead in the churchyard were poor and uneducated, and, therefore, their potential was unfulfilled.   The
speaker is remembering them and contemplating them. But in line 89 the speaker shifts the focus to himself.  His line of
thought at this point is that maybe someone will remember him once he is gone. Perhaps, ‘some hoary-headed swain’ may
notice that he did not come around the churchyard anymore; will notice he is gone. The stanza that beautifully marks the
turn:

For thee (himself), who, mindful of the unhonored dead,

Dost in these lines their artless tale relate;

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If chance, by lonely contemplation led,

Some kindred spirit shall enquire thy fate (ask why he doesn’t come around anymore),(lines 89-
92)

Question – 4: What warning does the speaker have for the ambitious and the pompous and why?

Answer: The speaker asks the ambitious and highly placed people not to mock at the 'useful toil', 'homely joys' and
'destiny obscure' of the poor. According to him, all the pride and glory and power associated with beauty, pomp and
wealth, is transitory, and awaits the final doom. The poet advises the proud men not to blame these poor people if grand
memorials are not erected to commemorate them or high sounding praises are not heaped on them after their death. He is
of the view that by erecting memorials or busts of these dead men, we cannot bring them back to life. Similarly, songs of
praise and honour cannot persuade death to spare their lives. Death is inevitable and will come to all whether they be rich
or poor.

Question – 5: Explain what is meant by “Can storied urn or animated bust/Back to its mansion call the fleeting
breath.”

Answer: The poet advises the proud men not to blame these poor people if grand memorials are not erected to
commemorate them or high sounding praises are not heaped on them after their death. He is of the view that by erecting
memorials or busts of these dead men, we cannot bring them back to life. Similarly, songs of praise and honour cannot
persuade death to spare their lives. Death is inevitable and will come to all whether they be rich or poor. The theme of
contrast between rich and poor, the great and the humble, is referred to in these stanzas. The difference between rich and
poor is illusory so far as death is concerned. Death is a great leveller.

Question – 6: Who or what, according to the poet, is to be blamed for the future of the poor rustics?

Answer: The dead people buried in the churchyard had much potentialities for development. If chance had been given
they might have become great men, great politicians, great poets. But their enthusiasm was chilled by poverty and they
could not benefit from the rich treasures of human knowledge. The poet believes that many men remain unknown like
gems that lie hidden in the dark caves of ocean, and like many a flower which grows in the desert where its beauty and
fragrance remain unenjoyed and unadmired.

Question – 7: How are the reference to Hampden, Milton and Cromwell apt to the given context?

Answer: The speaker says among those dead forefathers of the village, there may be somebody who might have become
great like Hampden, Milton and Cromwell. But their merits remained unrecognized and their talents unutilized. It was not
their destiny to command respect and receive praise in the senate or to defy pain and ruin. Nor was it in their lot to make
their country happy and prosperous, and thus to become famous in history.

Question – 8: How is the peasants’ wretchedness a blessing in disguise for them?

Answer: The ‘peasants’ wretchedness a blessing in disguise for them’ because if these poor people were restrained from
becoming great and famous, and their powers of doing good were held in check, their capacity for harming others was
also limited by their inability to do much in life. Their fate confined their crimes or forbade them to ascend the throne by
violent methods or gaining any other advantage through cruel means. These people did not have to hide truth or suppress
feelings of shame or to foster luxury and pride through flattery. The poet means to point out here both the advantages and

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disadvantages of death. If it deprives man of his chances to become great and renowned and to do good to others, it also
restrains him from acts involving cruelty, selfishness and violence. In a way, therefore, death is good for man.

Question – 9: Who is “This pleasing anxious being.”? Why?

Answer: The speaker express the dead men's nostalgic feeling for the world and their desire to be remembered and
honoured after their death. Nobody wants to leave this world as a prey to 'dumb forgetfulness'. Nobody goes away from
this world without desiring to be remembered after death and without casting one longing lingering look behind. The
dying man desires some dear person to shed tears on his death as a mark of mourning. Even from his grave, the dead man
desires to be remembered with love and sympathy. Even in the ashes of the dead man, there are the sparks of a craving for
love and sympathy of his fellow beings, which is natural in man. These two stanzas nicely depict a man's desire for the
perpetuation of his memory after his death.

Question – 10: What does the speaker hope will happen in return for singing about ‘the short and simple annals of
the poor’?

Answer: The speaker or the poet thinks about his own fate and he relates the 'artless tale' about the 'unhonoured dead' in
this poem. Someday some wayfarer may come, and enquire about his fate. Then some old peasant will tell this wayfarer
(some kindered spirit) that he had usually seen the poet at dawn rushing towards the upland so as to reach there before
sunrise. There beneath the beech, he would lie down and keep looking at the murmuring stream. He would wander there
muttering crazily as if he were alone and full of anxieties or had felt frustration in love. The old peasant would further tell
they wayfarer that one day he did not find the poet on his favourite spot. Nor was he there the next day. The following day
his body was seen being carried away towards the churchyard where he was burried. The peasant would ask the wayfarer
to approach the poet's grave and read the epitaph engraved on it.

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