Alfred, Lord Tennyson

The splendor falls on castle walls And snowy summits, old in story; The long light shakes across the lakes, And the wild cataract leaps in glory. Blow, bugle, blow, set the wild echoes flying; Blow, bugle; answer, echoes, dying, dying, dying.

O, hark! O, hear! how thin and clear, And thinner, clearer, farther going! O, sweet and far from cliff and scar, The horns of Elfland, faintly blowing! Blow, let us hear the purple glens replying; Blow, bugle; answer, echoes, dying, dying, dying.

O, love, they die in yon rich sky; They faint on hill or field or river. Our echoes roll from soul to soul, And grow forever and forever. Blow, bugle, blow, set the wild echoes flying; And answer, echoes, answer, dying, dying, dying.

HELPS TO STUDY.

Notes and Questions.

Why does the poet use "splendor" instead of "sun-set," and "summits" instead of "mountains"?

Line 2--What is meant by "old in story"?

Line 3--Why does the poet use "shakes"?

Line l3--To what does "they" relate?

Line l5--Explain.

Line l5--Why does the poet use "roll"?

Line l6--They "die" and "faint" while "our echoes" "roll" and "grow." Note that "grow" is the important word.

Note the refrain and the changes in its use; in the first stanza--the bugle; in the second--the echo; in the third--the spiritual echo.

Point out lines that have rhyme within themselves.

Words and Phrases for Discussion.

"wild echoes" "cliff and scar" "horns of Elfland" "rich sky" "purple glens"

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