Let what is broken so remain.

The gods are hard to reconcile;

Tis hard to settle order once again.

There is confusion worse than death,

Trouble on trouble, pain on pain

Long labour unto aged breath.

Answer: These lines have been taken from the choric song of the poem “The Lotos Eaters” by Alfred Tennyson. Here, the mariners present some reasons why they should not return to their old homes. in a remote island.

On the homeward journey, the mariners landed on lotos island. They ate the lotos fruits and their reasoning power got perverted. They began to hate their glorious but toilsome life of the past. They expressed their deep wish to spend the rest of life on-“lotos island. With this wish in mind, they wanted to rationalize their decision of giving up their journey. They thought that although once they had a happy home and hearth, all had changed due to their long absence. They would no more be welcomed by their wives and children. Or it may be that their properties have been looted by the naughty princes of the island. Their glorious deeds have been futile. legends. All these are their fate fixed by the gods. Now to go and reclaim everything would invite only trouble. They have no more willpower to face trouble. This is why they prefer to stay here on lotos island.