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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar

The Darkling Thrush

Hello,

Could you please rephrase the marked words for me and tell me if my rewording is correct?


I leant upon a coppice gate 
    When Frost was spectre-gray,(As gray as a ghost)
And Winter's dregs made Emotion: saddesolate
    The weakening eye of day.
The tangled bine-stems scored the sky
    Like strings of broken lyres,
And all mankind that haunted nigh(lived or wandered)
    Had sought  (Had gone to)  their household fires.(a mantel or one's home or home and  family life)


  

Top answer

"Dregs" refers to the junk left over at the bottom of the wine barrel. Is winter over? Has it left some junk behind?

— Avangi

  • "Dregs" refers to the junk left over at the bottom of the wine barrel.
  • Is winter over?
  • Has it left some junk behind?
  • " "bine-stems" or "vine-stems"?
  • The verb "to score" in this context means to make lines across some surface.
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11 Answers
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"Dregs" refers to the junk left over at the bottom of the wine barrel. Is winter over? Has it left some junk behind?

You're okay on "desolate."

"bine-stems" or "vine-stems"?
The verb "to score" in this context means to make lines across some surface. When the surface is hard, the lines are typically "scratched in."
Looking up, the vines above made lines across the sky
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'Bine-stems'. I presume it speaks of woodbine.
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Mister Micawber it speaks of woodbine.
[Y] Thanks! (Did you know the poem?) Emotion: embarrassed
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It rang a dull, distant bell, but I relied on my botany for that one.
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Could you tell me please what is the exact rewording of "Household fires".

A mantel, one's home or one's home and family life?

Does this definition of to haunt refer to ghosts only? "To inhabit, visit, or appear to"
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'Household fire' = the home fireplace. They all went home and, because it is winter, they all had fires burning for warmth and comfort.
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ninaniaDoes this definition of to haunt refer to ghosts only? "To inhabit, visit, or appear to"
Not at all. It could refer to anyone who lived or visited in that area. The usage when referring to "us mortals" is a bit dated.
The noun usage is also dated: In later years I returned to some of my old haunts.

I'm puzzled by "to appear to."
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