McGuffey's Sixth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson LI · Part 6: Lessons XLIX-LX: Sieges, patriots and pilgrims

57. Song of the Greek Bard (Lord Byron)

Goal: Your student reads Byron's song on fallen Greece and explains its contrast between past glory and present shame.

⏱ About 35 minutes · 7 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • The book, or the scan beside this guide
  • A notebook and pen
  • A dictionary

What's in the book

An author note on Byron, then the song "The isles of Greece," mourning Greece under the Turks. Definitions and notes follow.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Words and meanings

    The book's definitions and notes explain Chersonese (the ancient name for a peninsula), Bacchanal (a follower of Bacchus), phalanx (a close Greek battle formation), Sunium (a headland southeast of Athens), and Pyrrhus and Polycrates.

  2. About the author

    The book says Lord Byron (1788-1824) was born lame and inherited his title at ten. His early poems were harshly reviewed; Childe Harold's Pilgrimage made him famous. He left England for good, lived mostly in Italy, and spent his last year helping Greece fight for independence from the Turks, dying at Missolonghi. The book praises the power of his poetry but calls much of it unwholesome.

  3. Read it aloud

    The song begins with the famous cry "The isles of Greece, the isles of Greece!" Your student reads it aloud with feeling, slowing on the sad lines and lifting the voice on the proud ones.

  4. Talk about it

    SayWhat was Greece once famous for, according to the first stanza?

    SayWhat has changed? Find the line that says all is set "except their sun."

    SayThe bard mentions Marathon. Why does he dream there that Greece "might still be free"?

    SayByron died helping Greece. How does knowing that change how you read the poem?

  5. Tell it back

    Your student explains the song's message: what Greece was, what it is, and what the bard wishes.

  6. Copywork and memory

    Copy the first stanza from the book and learn it.

  7. Write (optional)

    Write a paragraph comparing the spirit of this poem with "Marco Bozzaris."

Tip

The text of this song could not be quoted from the scan when this guide was written. Read the stanzas from the book page.

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