Essay Questions

What was the street mentioned in the poem “Advice to the Grub Street Verse-writers”?

As the name of the poem suggests, the street was named Grub Street and it is a reference made to an old street on the outskirts of London. Grub Street was known for housing impoverished families as well as a large number of writers. The rent in Grub Street was relatively low and as a result it was preferred by struggling artists who tried to make a living from their creations. A group referred to as “hack writers”, a term used to refer to writers who did not produced quality literature, lived in Grub Street. These writers were also known for their large number of books since many produced many literary pieces in an attempt to raise the possibility of gaining fame. Among the now famous writers who once lived on Grub Street we can mention Samuel Johnson, John Taylor and also John Milton.

What is a nymph?

The main character of the poem “A Beautiful Young Nymph Going to Bed” is a nymph named Corinna, who has a high tower as her house. Corinna is described as being extremely beautiful to the point no man was able to resist her charms and avoid falling in love with her. The term nymph comes from the Greek mythology where nymphs were described as beautiful women living in forests and large bodies of water. Nymphs are associated with the natural elements and they have the job of protecting nature. Nymphs are considered as being primordial deities and are given great powers and while at firsts they were seen in mythology as simple spirits, they evolved in time to hold the same power and importance as the major Gods and Goddesses. Nymphs are usually described as being the result of the union between a God and a Goddess or a supernatural being and a mortal. Because of this, nymphs are generally regarded as being mortal even though they are presented as being thousands of years old.

What does the oil umbrella mean?

In “A Description of a City Shower”, the narrator describes the way in which the people in the city try to escape the rain, including using an oil umbrella. During the time when the poem was written, umbrellas were made of various natural fabrics such as silk and cotton. These fabrics are not water-repellent and to ensure an umbrella had a practical functionality, oil was used to make the umbrellas waterproof. The oil had to be reapplied at regular intervals and thus maintaining the functionality of an umbrella was at times a tedious task. Because the umbrella used them could sometimes fail to perform its functionality, the narrator wants to transmit through this idea that sometimes, the measures we take to protect ourselves from problems in life may fail and we may still have to suffer as a result.