Original artwork, not a still
A Defence of Poetry · 1840
Revenge is the naked idol of the worship of a semi-barbarous age.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The speaker describes revenge as an idol worshipped by a partly barbarous age. The image turns vengeance into an object of devotion rather than a reasonable response. Calling the idol naked strips away any dignity its worshippers might try to give it.
Context reviewed