The Inchcape Rock Questions And Answers & Summary 

The Inchcape Rock summary 

"The Inchcape Rock" is a famous poem by Robert Southey. Here are some questions and answers related to the poem:

Part 1 

No stir in the air, no stir in the sea,

The ship was still as she could be,

Her sails from heaven received no motion, 

Her keel was steady in the ocean.

Without either sign or sound of their shock 

The waves flowed over the Inchcape Rock;

So little they rose, so little they fell,

They did not move the Inchcape Bell.

The Abbot of Aberbrothok

Had placed that bell on the Inchcape Rock;

On a buoy in the storm it floated and swung,

And over the waves its warning rung.

When the Rock was hid by the surge's swell,

The mariners heard the warning bell;

And then they knew the perilous Rock, 

And blessed the Abbot of Aberbrothok.

Part 2 

The sun in heaven was shining gay,

All things were joyful on that day;

The sea-birds screamed as they wheeled round

And there was joyance in their sound,

The buoy of the Inchcape Bell was seen

A darker speck on the ocean green;

Sir Ralph the Rover walked his deck,

And he fixed his eye on the darker speck

He felt the cheering power of spring;

It made him whistle, it made him sing;

His heart was mirthfül to excess.

But the Rover's mirth was wickedness.

His eye was on the Inchcape float;

Quoth he, 'My men, put out the boat,

And row me to the Inchcape Rock,

And I'll plague the Abbot of Aberbrothok'

The boat is lowered, the boatmen row,

And to the Inchcape Rock they go;

Sir Ralph bent over from the boat,

And he cut the Bell from the Inchcape float.

Down sunk the Bell with a gurgling sound; 

The bubbles rose and burst around;

Quoth Sir Ralph, 'The next who comes to the Rock

Won't bless the Abbot of Aberbrothok.

 

Part 3 

Sir Ralph the Rover sailed away,

He scoured the seas for many a day;

And now grown rich with plundered store

He steers his course for Scotland's shore.

So thick a haze o'erspreads the sky

They cannot see the sun on high;

The wind hath blown gale all day,

At evening it hath died away

On the deck the Rover takes his stand.

So dark it is they see no land.

Quoth Sir Ralph, 'It will be lighter soon,

For there is the dawn of the rising moon.

'Canst hear', said one 'the breakers roar? 

For methinks we should be near the shore' 

Now where we are I cannot tell,

But I wish I could hear the Inchape Bell'.

They hear no sound; the swell is strong; 

Though the wind hath fallen they drift along,

Till the vessel strikes with a shivering shock 

'Oh Christl it is the Inchcape Rock'.

Sir Ralph the Rover tore his hair,

He cursed himself in his despair;

The waves rush in on every side;

The ship is sinking beneath the tide.

But even in his dying fear

One dreadful sound could the Rover hear, 

A sound as if with the Inchcape Bell

The Devil below was ringing his knell.

The Inchcape Rock Questions And Answers 

Q: What is the poem "The Inchcape Rock" about?

A: The poem is about a legendary rock in the North Sea that caused many shipwrecks. The poem tells the story of an abbot who placed a bell on the rock to warn sailors of its presence. However, a pirate cut the bell from its moorings, and the next time the pirate sailed past the rock, his ship was wrecked on it.

Q: Who wrote "The Inchcape Rock"?

A: "The Inchcape Rock" was written by Robert Southey, a poet and historian who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Q: What is the significance of the bell in the poem?

A: The bell serves as a warning to sailors of the danger posed by the Inchcape Rock. When the bell is cut from its moorings, sailors are no longer warned of the rock's presence, which leads to the pirate's shipwreck.

Q: Who was the pirate in the poem?

A: The pirate is not named in the poem. He is simply referred to as a "roving corsair" who cuts the bell from the Inchcape Rock.

Q: What is the moral of the poem?

A: The moral of the poem is that actions have consequences. The pirate's greed and desire for personal gain led to his own downfall. The poem suggests that those who seek to harm others will ultimately harm themselves.

Q: What literary devices are used in the poem?

A: The poem makes use of several literary devices, including alliteration, personification, and symbolism. For example, the rock is personified as a "giant" and a "fiend," while the bell is symbolic of the warning that sailors need to navigate safely through the dangerous waters.

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