Find one passage complimenting the musical ability of Mr. Henry Lawes (494-496), and several complimenting the Lady Alice and her two brothers (145-150, 244-264, 297-304, 366, etc.). What idea does Milton bring out in the long dialogue between the two brothers? between Comus and the Lady? For what do the several characters stand, if we take the poem as an allegory? What is the significance of the ugly heads of the monsters? of the glass of liquor? of the remarkable courage of the Lady in the face of danger? What is the central idea of the poem? FORM.--Distinguish between the mask and the regular drama; between the mask and the opera. Point out the chief lyrical passages. Find examples of blank verse, of rhymed pentameter, and of the two kinds of verse so common in _L'Allegro_ and _Il Penseroso_. Compare the meter of the dialogues with that of the lyric passages. Find passages remarkable for beauty of figurative language (like 188-192 and 375-380), others for beauty of sentiment (like 210-220 and 453-463). THE LIFE AND CHARACTER OF THE AUTHOR.--See outline for the study of _Lycidas_, page 59. What impression of Milton's character do we get from _Comus_? What suggestions do we get here of the best side of Puritanism? V. THE TEACHING OF THE ESSAY Like the lyric, the essay represents directly the author's thought and feeling. It appeals to the understanding, is practical in its nature, and for these reasons involves less difficulty in teaching; but it is often less attractive than poetry and frequently deals with matters that are uninteresting to the average boy and girl. A good essay is indirectly valuable in affording illustration of the principles of composition and rhetoric, but it is directly of great value in stimulating thought and broadening the mind. Nowhere, however, is there greater need of a wise plan of work, since the teacher must overcome mental inertia on the part of the pupils, and usually they are not spurred on, as in novel reading, by their interest in the subject itself.