Alas! what boots it with uncessant care
To tend the homely, slighted Shepherd's trade,
And strictly meditate the thankless Muse?
Were it not better done, as others use,
To sport with Amaryllis in the shade,
Or with the tangles of Neaera's hair?
Who are Amaryllis and Neaera in the above extract from John Milton's "Lycidas"?
1
Both were one-time lovers of Lycidas, the dead shepherd.
2
Amaryllis is a shepherdess mentioned in ancient pastoral poetry, notably in Virgil's Eclogues; Neaera, a nymph who appears in Virgil's Eclogues.
3
Both were goddesses of love and war respectively appearing in Greek pastoral poetry.
4
Amaryllis is a shepherdess mentioned in Shakespeare's romantic comedies; Neaera, a minor character in Love's Labour's Lost.