cachalot. The cachalot or sperm-whale
is one of the largest cetaceans, often attaining a
length of more than 80 ft.
le grand mat, the mainmast.
deferle (of a wave), ‘breaks.’
l.38. See the remarks, in the Introduction, on
Hugo’s treatment of shadows.
etrave, the stern of a vessel.
etambot, the stern-post.
l.53. The vessel pitches as she meets the waves
(le tangage qui brave); the rolling throws
up most foam (le roulis qui fume).
eclat, splinter.
fauve, savage, barbarous. See note on
EVIRADNUS.
Le dernier siecle. “Pleine Mer”
and “Plein Ciel” form a section of the
Legende, entitled Vingtierne Siecle.
sur la Tamise. Hugo was hostile to England.
He regarded the British Empire as one of the two great
dominions the shadow of which was oppressing the world
in the middle of the nineteenth century, the other
being Russia. England embodied “l’esprit
de commerce, de ruse et d’aventure”.
He developed this theme with a nervous and forcible
eloquence, if not with great political insight, in
Le Rhin: Conclusion (published in 1842).
portemanteaux, davits, on which the boats are
slung.
grelin, a hawser or warp.
palans, tackle for raising heavy weights; block
and pulley.
amure, rope by means of which the lower corners
of a sail are held, ‘tack.’
se le passaient, passed it along, i.e.
the ship.
Nemrod. Nimrod is in Hugo the incarnation
of the spirit of war. Cf. especially La Fin
de Satan: Le Glaive.
pavois, as a naval term, ‘bulwarks.’
vrille, gimlet. The conception is of some
immense spiked ram.
alcoran, the Koran. Al is the Arabic
definite article.
L. 191 refers to the texts in the Koran which order
the death of those who do not accept Mahometanism.
simoun, simoon, the hot wind of the Sahara.
Analysis.
The vision of a ship in the sky. What is it?
It is man, who has burst the bonds that held him to
earth and risen into the clouds. It is matter
soaring through the heavens.
First lyrical passage. The passage of the ship
through the sky.
Description of the life in the ship; the absence of
arms; the feeling of power and joy. Description
of the ship’s movement.
Second lyrical passage. The voyage amongst the
stars.
Whither will man go? He has thrown off his oid
nature, his past history is buried, he aspires to
immortality.
Third lyrical passage. Is man to reach Heaven
without death?
No, man must remain man, but the weight has been taken
from his feet. War has vanished; man is good
and just.
