Will ye believe The wonders of the ocean? how its shoals Sprang from the wave, like flashing light; .. took wing, And, twinkling with a silver glitterance, Flew through the air and sunshine? yet were they To sight less wondrous than the tribe who swam, Following like fowlers, with uplifted eye, Their falling quarry: .. language cannot paint Their splendid tints! though in blue ocean seen, Blue, darkly, deeply, beautifully blue, In all its rich variety of shades, Suffus'd with glowing gold.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker marvels at the ocean's beauty and the sight of sea birds diving for fish, saying the birds are more wonderful than the ocean itself.
- In plain terms
- The ocean is beautiful, but the birds hunting in it are even more amazing.
- What can you take from it?
- Action in nature surpasses static beauty.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What is more beautiful: place or life?
- How does language fail nature?
Another view
It romanticizes hunting as splendid without critique.
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