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Karim Hamed Posted 18 years ago
"Meeting at Night", by Robert Browning
Hi! I've got some doubts in this poem I'm trying to analyze.
The grey sea and the long black land;
And the yellow half-moon large and low;
And the startled little waves that leap
In fiery ringlets from their sleep,
As I gain the cove with pushing prow,
And quench its speed i' the slushy sand.
Then a mile of warm sea-scented beach;
Three fields to cross till a farm appears;
A tap at the pane, the quick sharp scratch
And blue spurt of a lighted match,
And a voice less loud, thro' its joys and fears,
Than the two hearts beating each to each!
a) In line 6 you can see " i' " in bold. Does it mean 'in' ?
b) In line 9, I can't get the meaning of the phrase in bold. What I think would make more sense is this: '... the quick sharp scratches', that is the speaker got his flesh cut by a sharp piece of pane. But I'm not sure, because each word can have a different function (noun, adjective, adverb, verb). Do you know what I mean?
c) Is this expression the same as 'each other' or 'one another'?
Well, I hope you can help me with these little things. English always gets me thinking of each words due to the multiple functions and meanings of a same word.
Regards.
The grey sea and the long black land;
And the yellow half-moon large and low;
And the startled little waves that leap
In fiery ringlets from their sleep,
As I gain the cove with pushing prow,
And quench its speed i' the slushy sand.
Then a mile of warm sea-scented beach;
Three fields to cross till a farm appears;
A tap at the pane, the quick sharp scratch
And blue spurt of a lighted match,
And a voice less loud, thro' its joys and fears,
Than the two hearts beating each to each!
a) In line 6 you can see " i' " in bold. Does it mean 'in' ?
b) In line 9, I can't get the meaning of the phrase in bold. What I think would make more sense is this: '... the quick sharp scratches', that is the speaker got his flesh cut by a sharp piece of pane. But I'm not sure, because each word can have a different function (noun, adjective, adverb, verb). Do you know what I mean?
c) Is this expression the same as 'each other' or 'one another'?
Well, I hope you can help me with these little things. English always gets me thinking of each words due to the multiple functions and meanings of a same word.
Regards.
Top answer
The traveler came to the farm house, and knocked at the window. The person inside lit a match to see who was there. c) I think this means "together".
- The traveler came to the farm house, and knocked at the window.
- The person inside lit a match to see who was there.
- c) I think this means "together".
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11 Answers
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Karim:
a) yes
b) the quick sharp scratch is the sound that a wooden match makes when you light it.The traveler came to the farm house, and knocked at the window. The person inside lit a match to see who was there.
c) I think this means "together".
a) yes
b) the quick sharp scratch is the sound that a wooden match makes when you light it.The traveler came to the farm house, and knocked at the window. The person inside lit a match to see who was there.
c) I think this means "together".
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AlpheccaStars Karim:Thank you very much, AlpheccaStars. Only one mor
a) yes
b) the quick sharp scratch is the sound that a wooden match makes when you light it.The traveler came to the farm house, and knocked at the window. The person inside lit a match to see who was there.
c) I think this means "together".
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hey,
I'm studying poems in our university but I hardly can understand them, and there is nobody help me:(
actually I wanted to help you but I am the one who needs help!
I'm studying poems in our university but I hardly can understand them, and there is nobody help me:(
actually I wanted to help you but I am the one who needs help!
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Anonymoushey,Hi!! Don't worry then! Thank you for answering!
I'm studying poems in our university but I hardly can understand them, and there is nobody help me:(
actually I wanted to help you but I am the one who needs help!
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Karim HamedOnly one more thing: could you tell me the exact meaning of each word in 'the quick sharp scracth' so that I can translate it into Spanish? I mean, tell me if I was right when I said I thought 'quick' was the same as 'flesh', for example.Sorry I didn't see yur follow-up question. Did you look the words up in the dictionary? (quick = rapido, sharp =
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AlpheccaStarsKarim HamedOnly one more thing: could you tell me the exact meaning of each word in 'the quick sharp scracth' so that I can translate it into Spanish? I mean, tell me if I was right when I said I thought 'quick' was the same as 'flesh', for example.Sorry I didn't see yur follow-up question. Did you look the words up in th
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In this context, 'quick' is an adjective meaning 'fast' or 'rapid'. In other contexts, 'quick' can be used as a noun (as in the expression 'cut to the quick') but this usage is very rare and is not applicable here.
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AnonymousIn this context, 'quick' is an adjective meaning 'fast' or 'rapid'. In other contexts, 'quick' can be used as a noun (as in the expression 'cut to the quick') but this usage is very rare and is not applicable here.Thanks a lot
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hey so im posting as anonymous cut im not a user here, just stumbled upon this and thought i could help you out
A) yes this means "in" as though the boat he was on hit the slushy sand and sank into it a little, like, hoe boats do when you bring them to shore.
B) that line is meant to be read as "the quick sharp scratch, and blue spurt of a lighted match." meaning the noise a ma
A) yes this means "in" as though the boat he was on hit the slushy sand and sank into it a little, like, hoe boats do when you bring them to shore.
B) that line is meant to be read as "the quick sharp scratch, and blue spurt of a lighted match." meaning the noise a ma
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