Word: wanderings
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Dates: during 1873-1873
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...many sonnets and odes are there in which we have to wander through endless similes and comparisons to reach a point which is generally blunted by the very additions which are meant to adorn it! It is undeniable that a certain amount of figurative language is beautiful in a poem; indeed, if used with taste and skill, it may constitute the poem itself; but how much more true feeling there is in a sentiment when plainly and simply expressed, than when it is encumbered with an excess of figurative language! For instance, compare the two expressions: "Wilt thou remember...
...wander o'er the river in my birchen bark canoe...
...whene'er his hand would wander...
Wild bees wander murmuring...
...time for deliberation. On all the practical questions which he discusses, Mr. Arnold appears to speak impartially and carefully and with good judgment. More than this, however, we cannot say. He is not a deep thinker, but is rather content to repeat what has been said before, or to wander off into anecdotes and instances, very interesting in themselves, but not good as arguments. We would gladly forgive a few more errors, or arguments which would provoke opposition, for the sake of greater originality. It is but fair to say that the book is worth reading, if only...