For Anne Gregory
1. What does the young man mean by “great honey-coloured / Ramparts at your ear”? Why does he say the young men are “thrown into despair” by them?
Answer: The “honey-coloured ramparts” refer to Anne’s beautiful yellow hair that falls around her ears. The poet uses the word “ramparts” (which usually means a defensive wall of a castle) as a metaphor. Her hair is so stunningly beautiful that it acts like a wall, preventing young men from looking beyond her physical appearance to see her true soul. Young men are “thrown into despair” because they fall hopelessly in love with her outward beauty, yet they feel they can never truly reach or be loved for who they are inside.
2. What colour is the young woman’s hair? What does she say she can change it to? Why would she want to do so?
Answer: Anne’s hair is honey-yellow. She tells the young man that she can dye her hair brown, black, or carrot (orange). She suggests this change to prove that physical beauty is merely superficial and changeable. Her goal is to find someone who loves her for her “inner self” alone, rather than being attracted to her simply because of the accidental color of her hair.
3. Objects have qualities which make them desirable to others. Can you think of some objects (a car. A phone, a dress…) and say what qualities make one object more desirable than another?
| Object | qualities |
|---|---|
| Car | Colour, speed, fuel consumption, brand |
| Phone | Userfriendly, Price, technology, memory |
| Dress | Pattern, colour, material, fit |
While setting an object, a person should highlight the different qualities of the product to help the buyer in identifying the better products in the market.