The Earthly Paradise

May flowers and the voices of young singers surround the elders who gather to exchange stories in this second part of William Morris's narrative poem. Arranged under May, June, July and August, the volume brings classical myths and medieval tales into a shared setting of seasonal feasts. Its opening turns to Cupid and Psyche, introducing a king's daughter whose beauty troubles Venus and whose father seeks an answer from Apollo's oracle.

Elsewhere, a sailor leaves his companions on a Greek island and explores a ruined castle, overgrown gardens and the remains of an ancient shrine. Such scenes place human curiosity beside traces of vanished lives. The rhymed verse gives room to landscape, conversation and the telling of old stories, while the seasonal passages set youthful celebration beside the elders' awareness of passing time. Readers interested in poetry drawn from myth and legend can follow both the individual tales and the gatherings that connect them.