I.—ALEXANDER'S FEAST; OR, THE POWER OF MUSIC. [INTRODUCTION.-The ode entitled Alexander's Feast was written by Dryden in 1697 for an English musical society that annually celebrated the festival of St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music.' It was composed in a single night. Lord Bolingbroke states that Dryden said to him, when he called upon him one morning, "I have been up all night. My musical friends made me promise to write them an ode for their feast of St. Cecilia, and I was so struck with the subject which occurred to me that I could not leave it till I had completed it. Here it is, finished at one sitting." Macaulay pronounces this ode Dryden's greatest work. "It is," he says, "the masterpiece of the second class of poetry, and ranks just below the great models of the first." Dryden himself, as it appears, shared this opinion. When Chief-justice Manlay, then a young lawyer, congratulated him on having produced "the finest and noblest ode that ever had been written in any language,' You are right, young gentleman,” replied Dryden, “a nobler ode never was produced, nor ever will !”]

NOTES.

I.

77 66

His valiant peers were placed around, Their brows with roses and with myrtle bound, (So should desert in arms be crowned).

Line I. 'Twas at, etc. By poetic license Dryden opens with a bold ellipsis. To parse the passage, we must read somewhat thus: "It was at the royal feast on account of Persia won

Great (356-323 B.C.), son of Philip, King of Macedon. He conquered "the world" (Persia in B.C. 331, 330). The "royal feast" took place at Persepolis, the capital of Persia.

by Philip's warlike son that 7. Their brows, etc. At a Greek ban

what follows happened."-for,

on account of.

2. Philip's warlike son. Alexander the

quet the guests were garlanded with roses and myrtle leaves. (See Becker's Charicles.)

LITERARY ANALYSIS.—3, 4. Aloft... sate. Transpose these two lines into the prose order.

7. Their brows... bound. What kind of phrase is this?

1

It should be remembered that the ode was designed to be set to music. This was done at the time, and also by Handel in 1736.

5

The lovely Thaïs by his side

Sate, like a blooming Eastern bride,
In flower of youth and beauty's pride.
Happy, happy, happy pair!

None but the brave,

None but the brave,

None but the brave deserves the fair!

2.

Timotheus, placed on high
Amid the tuneful quire,

With flying fingers touched the lyre:
The trembling notes ascend the sky,
And heavenly joys inspire.

The song began from Jove,
Who left his blissful seats above,

(Such is the power of mighty Love.)

A dragon's fiery form belied the god:

9. Thaïs, a celebrated Athenian beau- | 13. None. Literally no one.
ty and wit, the companion of 16. Timo'theus: a celebrated Greek
Alexander, whom she accom-
musician and a great favorite
panied in his invasion of Persia.
of Alexander.

"Her name is best known by 21. from Jove: that is, with Jove (Jupi-
her having stimulated Alexan-

ter).

der, during a festival at Persep- 22. seats. The plural form is a Latin-
olis, to set fire to the palace

of the Persian kings; but this

ism; we should now use the singular number.

anecdote, immortalized as it has 24. A dragon's flery form, etc. The

been by Dryden's famous ode

[see lines 118-121], is, in all
probability, a mere fable."
(Smith's Classical Dictionary.)

LITERARY ANALYSIS.-10. Sate, like, etc. See Def. 19.)

prose word-arrangement would be, "The god (Jupiter) belied (counterfeited) a dragon's fiery form."

What is the figure of speech?

13-15. None but the brave... brave. What is the figure of speech? (See Def. 36.)—deserves. With what subject does this word agree?

16-20. Timotheus. . . inspire. Analyze this sentence.-Point out two examples of the "historical present" tense.-What is the subject of "inspire?" 23. Such. What part of speech?

20

The listening crowd admire the lofty sound;

A present deity, they shout around;

A present deity, the vaulted roofs rebound.
With ravished ears

The monarch hears,
Assumes the god,

Affects to nod,*

And seems to shake the spheres.

3.

The praise of Bacchus then the sweet musician sung,
Of Bacchus ever fair and ever young.

The jolly god in triumph comes;
Sound the trumpets, beat the drums;
Flushed with a purple grace

He shows his honest* face:

*

Now give the hautboys breath; he comes, he comes.

Bacchus, ever fair and young,

Drinking joys did first ordain;
Bacchus' blessings are a treasure,
Drinking is the soldier's pleasure:

25

25. spires (often incorrectly printed 40. hautboys, oboes. The hautboy, or

spheres), spiral lines.

32. to nod: that is, to signify the will

oboe, is a wind instrument of music like the clarinet.

of the god (Jupiter) by nodding. 41, 42. Bacchus . . . ordain: that is,

30

35

40

LITERARY ANALYSIS.-25. on radiant spires. To what word is this expres.

sion an adjunct?

26. the lofty sound.

27. A present deity.

What is meant by this expression?

Supply the ellipsis.

29-33. With ravished ears... spheres. Supply the ellipsis and analyze this

sentence.

34. sung. What form should we now use?

38. Flushed... grace. Explain this expression.

39. honest. Justify, from its etymology, this use of the word.

Rich the treasure,

Sweet the pleasure,

Sweet is pleasure after pain.

4.

Soothed with the sound, the king grew vain ;

Fought all his battles o'er again;

And thrice he routed all his foes, and thrice he slew the slain.

45

LITERARY ANALYSIS. 45, 46. Rich the treasure... pleasure. Supply the ellipsis. Remark on the position of the adjectives "Rich," "Sweet." (See Def. 45.)

49. Fought all his battles. Name some of the victories that resulted in the conquest of Persia. (See Grecian History). Fought... o'er again. Explain this sentence.

50. thrice he slew the slain. What is the figure of speech? (See Def. 34.)

54. Changed his... pride. To whom does the former "his" refer? The latter? What fault would this be in prose? Is it avoidable here? 55. muss. What is the figure of speech? (See Def. 28.) 59, 60. Fallen... Fallen, etc. What is the figure? (See Def. 35.)

50

55

60

On the bare earth exposed he lies,
With not a friend to close his eyes.

With downcast looks the joyless victor sate,
Revolving in his altered soul

The various turns of chance* below;
And, now and then, a sigh he stole,
And tears began to flow.

5.

The mighty master smiled to see
That love was in the next degree:
'Twas but a kindred sound to move,
For pity melts the mind to love.

Softly sweet, in Lydian measures,
Soon he soothed his soul to pleasures.
War, he sung, is toil and trouble,
Honor but an empty bubble,

Never ending, still beginning,

Fighting still, and still destroying.

64. exposed, cast out.

65. a one, its primary meaning.

72. was in the next degree: that is, came next in order after pity.

67. Revolving, turning over, reflecting 73. 'Twas but, etc.: that is, all he had

69. a sigh he stole: that is, he sighed 75. Lydian measures.

inaudibly.

See L'Allegro,

page 55, line 128, and note.

LITERARY ANALYSIS.-66. sate: modernize.

66-70. With downcast looks... flow. Change into an equivalent sentence, using different words and the prose order.

73. but. What part of speech here?

78. bubble.

What is the figure of speech? (See Def. 20.) Dryden may

have had in mind Shakespeare's well-known lines:

"Then a soldier

Seeking the bubble reputation [= honor]
Even in the cannon's mouth."

79, 80. What is it that is "Never ending," etc.? What "Fighting still,"

etc.?