Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- Why do you think Pound is trying to show us that beauty is a strong, possibly violent thing? How might this change the way we look at beauty in the modern world?
- What do you make of the ending of this poem, where we hear about the "fauns chiding Proteus"? What might Pound mean by a line like this?
- What do you think the moral is of the story Pound borrows from Ovid, where the sailors try to kidnap the boy-god Dionysius to sell him for slave money? What parts of the poem support your answer?
- What do you think Pound means when he says in line 2, "There can be but the one 'Sordello'"? Who is he talking about and why?
- When the elders of Troy start muttering their displeasure at Helen coming to the city of Troy, why are they so upset or worried? Why are they afraid of this woman?
- How do you think Acoetes knows that the young boy from Scios might actually be a god in disguise? Does he have clues, or is it just a gut feeling? What parts of the poem support your answer?