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 Dunlo