Statement

(lines 1, 2)

The English language is the richest for poetry.

Qualification of statement

(lines 3 – 10)

This doesn’t mean that England has produced the greatest poets or amount of poetry.

Clarification

(lines 11 – 14)

English is the richest language for poetry because it has the largest vocabulary.

Supporting statement + examples

(lines 14 – 29)

This richness is due to the variety of elements of which English is made of:

a)      Germanic elements

b)      Scandinavian elements

c)      Norman French elements

d)      French elements

e)      Latin elements

f)        Celtic elements

Further clarification + examples

(lines 29 – 40)

The English language is also rich in its rhythmic variety. The elements are:

a)      Early Saxon verse

b)      Norman French

c)      Welsh

d)      Latin

e)      Greek

First restatement

(lines 41 – 44)

English is a good language for poetry because it is derived from so many linguistic sources.

Second restatement

(lines 44 – 48)

England has not necessarily produced the greatest poets.

Statement + examples

(lines 49 – 51)

It is generally thought that the greatest peoples excel in one art. Examples:

a)      Italy and France in painting

b)      Germany in music

c)      England in poetry

Refutation + example

(lines 52 – 68)

This is not correct because:

a)      No art is exclusive possession of one country of Europe

b)      England hasn’t always taken the lead in poetry

Example: France took the lead in poetry in the second half of the nineteenth century

Further refutation + example

(lines 68 – 76)

A nation which leads in a particular art form in a particular period does not necessarily produce the greatest artists. Example: Goethe is the greatest poet of Romantic period even if he isn’t English.

Statement

(lines 77 – 86)

No European nation would have accomplished what it has, as far as culture is concerned, if other countries had not developed the same art forms.

Statement

(lines 86 – 99)

The ability of European literature to renew itself depends on two factors:

a)      to receive and assimilate influences from abroad

b)      to go back and learn from its own sources