Poetry · Chapter
To G. A. W. explained
The speaker addresses a nymph-like figure, musing on which moment of her day reveals her greatest beauty—whether in speech, thought, or playful movement—and concludes that she is so perfectly formed that no single mood can be deemed best.
What happens
The speaker addresses a nymph-like figure, musing on which moment of her day reveals her greatest beauty—whether in speech, thought, or playful movement—and concludes that she is so perfectly formed that no single mood can be deemed best.
Themes in this chapter
Beauty and Transience
The poem explores the fleeting, varied moods of the nymph's beauty, questioning which moment is most lovely.
Art and Poetry
The speaker uses poetic imagery and classical allusion (Apollo, the Graces) to frame the beloved's beauty as an artistic subject.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“Nymph of the downward smile and sidelong glance, In what diviner moments of the day Art thou most lovely?”
You, who have a downward smile and a sidelong glance, at which sacred time of day are you most beautiful?
The speaker opens by addressing the nymph and posing the central question of the poem.
“I shall as soon pronounce which Grace more neatly Trips it before Apollo than the rest.”
I could as easily decide which of the three Graces dances most gracefully before Apollo as choose your best mood.
The speaker concludes that the nymph's beauty is so complete that no single mood surpasses another, just as the Graces are equally graceful.