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Free as the wind is,

Free as the sea,
Free!"

Which lines in the poems referred to seem to you to sing most gaily the song of freedom? Which poem do you like best? Why? What do you do when the wanderlust seizes you?

John Masefield also belonged to the "Vagabondia" group. Read the biographical notes, pages 298-299, to see how far Masefield lived out his theories of freedom.

Read "Sea-Fever" (p. 301). Do you know the sea well enough to respond to "the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea gulls crying"? Compare "Sea Fever" with Bliss Carman's "Autumn" in regard to the strength of its appeal to you. Which poem do you think would appeal most to an inland-bred boy or girl?

LAUGHING LEGENDS.

"Irwin Russell was among the first-if not the very first of Southern writers to appreciate the literary possibilities of the negro character." (See biographical note, page 56.)

"De Fust Banjo".

.Russell (p. 56)

"In this poem the old story of Noah is told, with delightful additions, from the colorful angle of the darky, local in its setting, diverting in its modern details, and revealing in its quaint psychology." (Biographical note, page 56.) ..Daly (p. 88)

"Mia Carlotta"

T. A. Daly tells many a laughing legend. In what way does he show his sympathetic insight with foreigners? "The Turning of the Babies in the

Bed"

...Dunbar (p. 90) Paul Laurence Dunbar supplies laughing negro legends

in abundance. What is the special charm you feel in this particular poem?

"Robinson Crusoe's Story"....C. E. Carryl (p. 43) "The Sycophantic Fox and the Gullible

Raven"

..G. W. Carryl (p. 93) "The Ballad of the Billycock".... Deane (p. 275) How do the first two poems differ from other "laughing legends" you have read? Which seems the more humorous to you? How does the third poem compare with the others in regard to hunor and sympathetic treatment of character? Do you laugh with characters in the legends or at them?

THE MELTING POT.

"When the Frost is on the Punkin".... Riley (p. 46)

James Whitcomb Riley gives the dialect of the uneducated farmhand or farmer. This poetic insight into the nature of one uncouth lover of things simple and wholesome, helps to awaken interest in the "hayseed." City dwellers have long taken to themselves a certain feeling of superiority, because they have been brought up on the artificial conveniences of life in a town. The country boy frequently wins in the race for success because he has been accustomed to the austere, uncompromising demands of

nature.

Do you know any other poems which treat of the same type of character?

Have you been conscious of the rhythm of this poem? "The Song of the Thrush". ..Daly (p. 87) ...Daly (p. 88)

"Mia Carlotta".

Children are often inclined to ridicule "Pat" and the "Dago." Sympathetic treatment in literature often makes for better understanding of the gifts these new Americans bring with them. Try writing either in verse or prose a similar word picture of some such character you may know

or imagine. Remember that "we are all brothers under the skin." Do you know any other poems which bring out the idea of the brotherhood of all men?

"The Turning of the Babies in the

Bed" ...

"A Coquette Conquered"

...Dunbar (p. 90) .Dunbar (p. 91)

The negro has received fair treatment at the hands of Dunbar. He "has studied the American negro objectively and has presented him as he found him." Can you add any interesting detail of negro qualities as you have observed them? Do you think these two little negro studies of character could be as well given in prose as in verse?

"The Valley That God Forgot"....Knibbs (p. 97) H. H. Knibbs treats another type of American-the Western cowboy. Are men like Davison in the poem usually superstitious? Did the townspeople believe that the phantom friends had made the well?

What do you understand by:

"Time and the times have tamed it,
His yarn-and this desert spot."

"... Lindsay has been tremendously influenced by the colorful suggestions, the fantastic superstitions, the revivalistic gusto and, above all, by the curiously syncopated music that characterizes the black man in America." (See Preface, page 20.)

"The Congo"

. Lindsay (p. 128)

What idea does this poem give you of negro characteristics? Have you read Stribling's novel, The Birthright? It is the story of a young negro Harvard graduate who went back to his native Southern village eager to serve and help his people.

LYRICS AND LYRICISTS.

The lyric is peculiarly the form in which every poet

sooner or later expresses himself. It is the means by which he attempts to make the world share his deeper emotional moods, gay or sad, philosophical or rebellious. It is interesting to make a comparative study of the work of a few women and men lyricists.

"Tears"
"Spicewood"

.Reese (p. 59) ..Reese (p. 60)

"A host of younger lyricists owe much of their technique to her admirable models, and few sonneteers have equaled the blended music and symbolism of 'Tears.'" (Biographical note, page 59.) What is the germ-thought of this lyric? Are there any lines in the poem which stick in your memory easily?

Do you happen to know the spicewood in the spring? Would you know where to look for it from this poem? Why did the boy passing by "Whistle afresh his foolish town-caught airs"? Do you usually think of the spring as the young of the year? Do you like the phrase "the white riot of the cherry tree"? Are there any other words or lines which attract you particularly?

"Spring Night"..

"Night Song at Amalfi"...

"Water Lilies"

....Teasdale (p. 157)

.Teasdale (p. 158)

Teasdale (p. 158)

"Two Songs for Solitude"......Teasdale (p. 159) Which poem do you like best?

Do you see that in each one you are given a glimpse deep into the poet's heart? Notice how much background one's imagination paints behind the few simple lines of each poem. It is as if the poignancy of a whole story, rich in character revelation and descriptive imagery were condensed into one flashing picture. Read the poems aloud and try to feel the swing of the rhythm. "Sunday Evening in the Com

mon"

Wheelock (p. 183)

"Love and Liberation".

...Wheelock (p. 184) In "Sunday Evening in the Common" do you like the image of the stars as blossoms on the topmost branches of the world? What is the effect of this feeling of great height on the buildings round about? Which word expresses the contrasting lowness of other things? Have you ever felt anything similar to that "one breathless moment" when the "city's moaning fades" and "there is no sound around the whole world's rim, save in the distance a small band droning some desolate old hymn"? What is the effect of the line "So tawdry and so dear"?

Does "Love and Liberation," a song of ecstasy, exaggerate the power of love? Is it true that if an abiding love is in the heart of man he is the conqueror of all things? What kind of love is meant?

"God's World"..

...Millay (p. 203) Compare this poem with Sara Teasdale's "Spring Night" to determine the element of difference in the two poems. In what aspect are they alike? Select particularly effective words or phrases.

"When I Was One-and-Twenty". Housman (p. 250) "Reveillé" Housman (p. 249)

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Try setting this song, "When I Was One-and-Twenty,' to music. Why would it almost sing itself? Should the music be gay or sad, or neither? Why? Sing one of Robert Burns' songs. Does the music fit the idea of the poem?

Notice the title of this poem. Do you see anything particularly fitting about it? Do you think this would be an easy poem to memorize? Has this poem a message for boys or for girls, or for both?

Do you think this lyric, "Reveillé," would have any effect on a "sleepy head"? Can you give the meaning of

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