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Questions and Answers
What is the speaker asking the shepherd to do in the poem?
What is the speaker asking the shepherd to do in the poem?
What does the speaker plan to do in the high field's dark corner?
What does the speaker plan to do in the high field's dark corner?
What sound can the speaker hear from uplands far away?
What sound can the speaker hear from uplands far away?
What does the speaker see in the high field?
What does the speaker see in the high field?
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What is lying on the grass near the speaker?
What is lying on the grass near the speaker?
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What is the speaker reading in Glanvil's book?
What is the speaker reading in Glanvil's book?
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What did the Oxford scholar poor do?
What did the Oxford scholar poor do?
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Where is the narrator recalling the main character to have wandered?
Where is the narrator recalling the main character to have wandered?
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What is the main difference between the main character and mortal men?
What is the main difference between the main character and mortal men?
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What is the narrator suggesting is the cause of exhaustion in mortal men?
What is the narrator suggesting is the cause of exhaustion in mortal men?
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What is the narrator implying about the main character's existence?
What is the narrator implying about the main character's existence?
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What is the narrator criticizing about modern life?
What is the narrator criticizing about modern life?
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What is the narrator suggesting about the main character's future?
What is the narrator suggesting about the main character's future?
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What is the narrator's tone towards the end of the poem?
What is the narrator's tone towards the end of the poem?
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What is the scholar's past occupation?
What is the scholar's past occupation?
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What do the gypsies claim to have the power to do?
What do the gypsies claim to have the power to do?
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What is the scholar often seen doing?
What is the scholar often seen doing?
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Where is the scholar often seen walking?
Where is the scholar often seen walking?
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What do the people who encounter the scholar notice about him?
What do the people who encounter the scholar notice about him?
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What is the scholar waiting for?
What is the scholar waiting for?
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Where does the speaker encounter the scholar in winter?
Where does the speaker encounter the scholar in winter?
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What is the speaker concerned about in the poem?
What is the speaker concerned about in the poem?
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What is the speaker afraid will happen to the shepherd?
What is the speaker afraid will happen to the shepherd?
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What is the speaker comparing themselves to?
What is the speaker comparing themselves to?
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What is the speaker trying to protect the shepherd from?
What is the speaker trying to protect the shepherd from?
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What is the cargo of the Grecian coaster?
What is the cargo of the Grecian coaster?
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What is the speaker's opinion of the shepherd's life?
What is the speaker's opinion of the shepherd's life?
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What is the speaker's fear for the shepherd?
What is the speaker's fear for the shepherd?
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What is implied about the speaker's life?
What is implied about the speaker's life?
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What does the speaker want to avoid?
What does the speaker want to avoid?
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Study Notes
The Scholar-Gipsy
Poem by Matthew Arnold
- The poem is about a scholar who leaves his academic life to join a group of gypsies and learn their secrets.
Description of the Scholar-Gipsy
- The scholar is described as a wanderer who roams the countryside, often seen by shepherds, maidens, and boys in rural areas.
- He wears an outlandish garb, with a dark, vague-eyed, and soft abstracted air.
- He is often seen carrying a heap of flowers plucked from shy fields and distant Wychwood bowers.
The Scholar's Life
- The scholar has one aim, one business, and one desire, which is to learn the secrets of the gypsies.
- He has not lived a life of mortal men, with change and repeated shocks, and has not exhausted his energy.
- He has not spent his fire on other things and is exempt from age, unlike others.
Comparison with Modern Life
- The poet contrasts the scholar's life with modern life, where people are plagued by sick hurry, divided aims, and palsied hearts.
- Modern life is described as a disease that infects people with stress, anxiety, and a lack of direction.
- The poet suggests that the scholar's life is free from these troubles and is more peaceful and focused.
The Poet's Message
- The poet warns the scholar to avoid contact with modern people, lest he be infected by their mental strife.
- The poet advises the scholar to keep his solitude and his inviolable shade, and to continue his life of freedom and joy.
- The poem ends with the image of a Tyrian trader fleeing from the modern world, seeking refuge in a more peaceful and idyllic life.
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Description
Test your understanding of Matthew Arnold's poem 'The Scholar-Gipsy' with this quiz. Explore themes, imagery, and analysis with this poetry-based quiz.
