# At the Beach explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

A poetic chapter set at a beach in England, where the narrator and others express scorn for noblemen born to title, while observing someone turning westward and enduring the discomfort of the sea.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hypocrisy and Corruption

Scorn for noblemen born to title suggests critique of inherited privilege and societal hypocrisy.

## Key lines

> At the Beach List, England, to our words of scorn For noblemen to title born!

At the beach in England, we express contempt for noblemen who inherit their titles by birth.

_Opening lines establish setting and theme of social critique._

> Yet be thine eyes awhile depressed, For one has turned his prow to-west, And we, to catch his landing-line, Are pickling all our shins in brine.

Lower your eyes for a moment, because someone has sailed westward, and we are soaking our legs in saltwater to reach his mooring rope.

_Describes a westward departure and the physical struggle of those left behind._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/at-the-beach
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters