mixed emotions toward love in the poem by describing the nymph's attitude using such terms as a. cynical, disbelieving, and guarded. b. amused, wishful. Students could include points similar to the following: a. In the first stanza, the nymph makes a disparaging remark about the truthfulness of shepherds. b. The nymph uses organic images to tell the shepherd the gifts he offers are foolish, unreasonable, and short-lived. c. In the final stanza of the poem, the nymph indicates that she will remain unbending so long as the world is the way it is. d. In the final stanza, she also reveals a more generous attitude in saying that if things were otherwise, she might have been happy to accept the shepherd's offer. In addition, students could describe the nymph's attitude toward the future as discouraging or serious because a. the images in stanzas 2-5 are all associated with withering, dying, fading, and so on. b. she offers little reason for refusing the shepherd's offer other than that the passage of time discourages dalliance and foolishness.
