
Quotations
“In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.”
Explanation: This famous line means that in spring, young people naturally begin to think about love and new beginnings.
“O my cousin, shallow-hearted! O my Amy, mine no more!”
Explanation: The speaker laments that Amy, whom he loved, is no longer his. He feels hurt and calls her “shallow-hearted” because she left him for someone else.
“For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see,”
Explanation: The speaker hopes for the future. He looks ahead and dreams of the amazing progress and new things that could come to the world.
“Cursed be the social wants that sin against the strength of youth!”
Explanation: The speaker is angry at social rules and expectations that destroy the joy and strength of young people.
“Let the great world spin for ever down the ringing grooves of change.”
Explanation: The speaker hopes the world will always keep changing and moving forward, bringing progress and new opportunities.
“Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers, and I linger on the shore.”
Explanation: The speaker says people may learn many things, but true wisdom comes slowly. Wisdom is harder to gain than knowledge.
“A sorrow’s crown of sorrow is remembering happier things.”
Explanation: Remembering past happiness makes one’s current sadness feel even deeper.
“The heavens fill with commerce, argosies of magic sails…”
Explanation: The poet imagines a future where the sky will be full of airships carrying goods, showing the progress of science and trade.
“Woman is the lesser man.”
Explanation: The speaker makes an unfair claim that women are less than men, reflecting the gender prejudice of that era.
“Forward, forward let us range”
Explanation: The speaker encourages everyone to keep moving ahead, always looking toward improvement and new opportunities.