The Early Poems of Alfred Lord Tennyson Part 31

[Footnote 3: The epithet many-fountain'd [Greek:'polpidax'] is Homer's stock epithet for Ida. 'Cf. Iliad', viii., 47; xiv., 283, etc., etc.]

[Footnote 4: A literal translation from a line in Callimachus, 'Lavacrum Palladis', 72:

[Greek: 'mesambrinae d'eich horos haesuchia']

(noonday quiet held the hill).]

[Footnote 5: So Theocritus, 'Idyll', vii., 22:--

[Greek: 'Anika dae kai sauros eph aimasiaisi katheudei.']

(When indeed the very lizard is sleeping on the loose stones of the wall.)]

[Footnote 6: This extraordinary mistake in natural history (the cicala being of course loudest in mid noonday when the heat is greatest) Tennyson allowed to stand, till securing accuracy at the heavy price of a pointless pleonasm, he subst.i.tuted in 1884 "and the winds are dead".]

[Footnote 7: An echo from 'Henry VI.', part ii., act ii., se.

iii.:--

Mine eyes arc full of tears, my heart of grief.]

[Footnote 8: ?none was the daughter of the River-G.o.d Kebren.]

[Footnote 9: For the myth here referred to see Ovid, 'Heroides', xvi., 179-80:--

Ilion aspicies, firmataque turribus altis Moenia, Phoeboeae; structa canore lyrae.

It was probably an application of the Theban legend of Amphion, and arose from the a.s.sociation of Apollo with Poseidon in founding Troy.

A fabric huge 'Rose like an exhalation,'

--Milton's 'Paradise Lost', i., 710-11.

'Cf. Gareth and Lynette', 254-7.]

[Footnote 10: The river Simois, so often referred to in the 'Iliad', had its origin in Mount Cotylus, and pa.s.sing by Ilion joined the Scamander below the city.]

[Footnote 11: 'Cf'. the [Greek: synophrys kora](the maid of the meeting brows) of Theocritus, 'Id'., viii., 72. This was considered a great beauty among the Greeks, Romans and Orientals. Ovid, 'Ars. Amat'., iii., 201, speaks of women effecting this by art: "Arte, supercilii confinia nuda repletis".]

[Footnote 12: The whole of this gorgeous pa.s.sage is taken, with one or two additions and alterations in the names of the flowers, from 'Iliad', xiv., 347-52, with a reminiscence no doubt of Milton, 'Paradise Lost', iv., 695-702.]

[Footnote 13: The "'angry' cheek" is a fine touch.]

[Footnote 14: This fine sentiment is, of course, a commonplace among ancient philosophers, but it may be interesting to put beside it a pa.s.sage from Cicero, 'De Finibus', ii., 14, 45:

"Honestum id intelligimus quod tale est ut, detracta omni utilitate, sine ullis praemiis fructibusve per se ipsum possit jure laudari".

We are to understand by the truly honourable that which, setting aside all consideration of utility, may be rightly praised in itself, exclusive of any prospect of reward or compensation.]

[Footnote 15: This pa.s.sage is very obscurely expressed, but the general meaning is clear: "Until endurance grow sinewed with action, and the full-grown will, circled through all experiences grow or become law, be identified with law, and commeasure perfect freedom". The true moral ideal is to bring the will into absolute harmony with law, so that virtuous action becomes an instinct, the will no longer rebelling against the law, "service" being in very truth "perfect freedom".]

[Footnote 16: The Paphos referred to is the old Paphos which was sacred to Aphrodite; it was on the south-west extremity of Cyprus.]

[Footnote 17: Adopted from a line excised in 'Mariana in the South'.

See 'supra'.]

[Footnote 18: This was Eris.]

[Footnote 19: Helen.]

[Footnote 20: With these verses should be compared Schiller's fine lyric 'Ka.s.sandra', and with the line, "All earth and air seem only burning fire,' from Webster's 'd.u.c.h.ess of Malfi':--

The heaven o'er my head seems made of molten bra.s.s, The earth of flaming sulphur.]

[Footnote 21: In the Pyrenees, where part of this poem was written, I saw a very beautiful species of Cicala, which had scarlet wings spotted with black. Probably nothing of the kind exists in Mount Ida.]

THE SISTERS

First published in 1833.

The only alterations which have been made in it since have simply consisted in the alteration of "'an'" for "and" in the third line of each stanza, and "through and through" for "thro' and thro'" in line 29, and "wrapt" for "wrapped" in line 34. It is curious that in 1842 the original "bad" was altered to "bade," but all subsequent editions keep to the original. It has been said that this poem was founded on the old Scotch ballad "The Twa Sisters" (see for that ballad Sharpe's 'Ballad Book', No. x., p. 30), but there is no resemblance at all between the ballad and this poem beyond the fact that in each there are two sisters who are both loved by a certain squire, the elder in jealousy pushing the younger into a river and drowning her.

We were two daughters of one race: She was the fairest in the face: The wind is blowing in turret and tree.

They were together and she fell; Therefore revenge became me well.

O the Earl was fair to see!

She died: she went to burning flame: She mix'd her ancient blood with shame.

The wind is howling in turret and tree.

Whole weeks and months, and early and late, To win his love I lay in wait: O the Earl was fair to see!

I made a feast; I bad him come; I won his love, I brought him home.

The wind is roaring in turret and tree.

And after supper, on a bed, Upon my lap he laid his head: O the Earl was fair to see!

I kiss'd his eyelids into rest: His ruddy cheek upon my breast.

The wind is raging in turret and tree.

I hated him with the hate of h.e.l.l, But I loved his beauty pa.s.sing well.