this state of the facts. Possibly in using the name 'Adonais' he
intended to refer the reader indirectly to the 'Adonis' of Bion; and he
prefixed to the preface of his poem, as a motto, four verses from the
Elegy of Moschus upon Bion. This may have been intended for a hint to
the reader as to the Grecian sources of the poem. The whole matter will
receive detailed treatment in our next section, as well as in the Notes.

The passages of _Adonais_ which can be traced back to Bion and Moschus
are not the finest things in the poem: mostly they fill out its fabular
'argument' with brilliancy and suavity, rather than with nerve and
pathos. The finest things are to be found in the denunciation of the
'deaf and viperous murderer;' in the stanzas concerning the 'Mountain
Shepherds,' especially the figure representing Shelley himself; and in
the solemn and majestic conclusion, where the poet rises from the region
of earthly sorrow into the realm of ideal aspiration and contemplation.

Shelley is generally--and I think most justly--regarded as a peculiarly
melodious versifier: but it must not be supposed that he is rigidly
exact in his use of rhyme. The contrary can be proved from the entire
body of his poems. _Adonais_ is, in this respect, neither more nor less
correct than his other writings. It would hardly be reasonable to
attribute his laxity in rhyming to either carelessness, indifference, or
unskilfulness: but rather to a deliberate preference for a certain
variety in the rhyme-sounds--as tending to please the ear, and availing
to satisfy it in the total effect, without cloying it by any tight-drawn
uniformity. Such a preference can be justified on two grounds: firstly,
that the general effect of the slightly varied sounds is really the more
gratifying of the two methods, and I believe that, practised within
reasonable limits, it is so; and secondly, that the requirements of
sense are superior to those of sound, and that, in the effort after