How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #1
Back out of all this now too much for us,
Back in a time made simple by the loss
Of detail […] (1-3)
Our trip starts on uneven ground. With the very first word, "back," you might wonder—are you being given an order or a description? Are you supposed to back out (like out of a parking space), or is the guide asking you to cast your attention back in time? Can it be both at once? From the get-go, it's clear that while our speaker knows what he wants us to do, he's not going to hold our hand while we do it.
Quote #2
There is a house that is no more a house
Upon a farm that is no more a farm
And in a town that is no more a town. (5-7)
What the Shmoop? No there, there? How do we explore something that doesn't even exist anymore? Unless, that is, we're doing some time-traveling here.
Quote #3
The road there, if you'll let a guide direct you
Who only has at heart your getting lost,
May seem as if it should have been a quarry— (8-10)
Doesn't it seem strange to have a guide directing us who admits he wants to get us lost? But people "lose themselves" all the time by looking at a sunset, being dazed by love, watching TV, etc. Getting lost can be both positive and negative. Do you think "losing yourself" in this poem allows for greater exploration of yourself?