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LINES 3-4 A Maid whom there were none to praise And very few to love: Lines 3 and 4 develop Lucy's character and express what the speaker feels is worth lamenting: that Lucy, though beautiful and virtuous, didn't receive the attention she deserved in life. Also in these lines, the speaker indirectly expresses his or her love for Lucy. (It should first be noted that the speaker still hasn't by this point given Lucy's name, but for the sake of clarity this entry, like the previous one, will refer to the poem's so-farunnamed female protagonist as Lucy.) In line 3, the first thing the reader learns about Lucy is that she was a "Maid," which provides information about her character. A maid is an unmarried young woman. In its archaic sense, which wouldn't have been anachronistic in a poem published in 1800, it also means that woman is a virgin. The word, therefore, lends Lucy's character youth and innocence. The word is even capitalized, as if it were a title, but this may be the speaker's playfulness showing. Later the speaker will admit that Lucy remains for him or her, someone who loved her, "Half hidden"; it's unlikely that such a person could perfectly fit the mold of maidenhood, or any mold. In any case, says the speaker, people didn't dedicate much thought to Lucy: "there were none to praise" her. This is the first piece of the speaker's lament, who thinks it's a real shame that Lucy, this mysterious, virtuous young woman, lived practically ignored by others. But the speaker doesn't blame others for this. The way the speaker says it—"there were none to praise"—seems more like a general statement than an exasperated challenge. The speaker doesn't confront the public and say, "What is wrong with you? This woman was worthy of your attention!" Instead, the speaker admits that because Lucy lived so far off in the countryside, there was really no chance for others to get to know her. In a way, her anonymity was fated. As a sort of silver lining, however, Lucy was loved. Yes, this piece of information comes couched in the language of lament; it deepens the sorry situation of Lucy's anonymity, as in, "no one praised her and hardly anyone loved her." But the "very few" contains the material for the rest of the poem. The poem implies that the speaker was one of those few. If the reader accepts the speaker's word, that literally no one praised Lucy while she lived, then the speaker is no less to blame. On the question of love, however, the speaker has a chance to redeem him- or herself. As one of the "few" who loved Lucy, the speaker can praise Lucy through elegy. Of course, the speaker doesn't explicitly profess his or her love, but the implication is pretty strong. The colon that end-stops line 4 strengthens that implication. What follows, the poem seems to be saying, is an account of Lucy from one of the few who loved her. The line's unflagging iambic trimeter, brief compared to the tetrameter with which it alternates, enhances the colon's propulsive effect. And ve- |ry few | to love: The syllables are short, ordered, and clear, a straight arrow pointing toward stanza 2.