Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard are sweeter
This poetic statement distinguishes between real life and art. Here 'heard melodies' refers to the music which is perceived by the auditory -sense or the sense of hearing. In other words, this music represents reality. On the other hand, 'unheard melodies' refers to
the music which is not perceived by the sense of hearing but realized by imagination. This kind of music here represents the world of art or imagination. By saying that unheard melodies are sweeter than heard melodies the poet actually asserts the superiority of the imagination over reality. The pleasures of the senses may be great but those Of the imagination are certainly greater. The unheard music is far sweeter than the music heard by the mortal ears. If we listen to a song sung by a real singer in a real situation, the song may be pleasing to our ears and we may enjoy and appreciate it temporarily.
As this music is transient in nature, it must come to an end. On the other hand, if we see a picture of that singer with a flute in hand and imagine him or her to be singing, we will not be able to hear any melodious sound with our ears. But we can imagine hearing a song for an indefinite period of time. This song will never come to an end and we can enjoy it forever. Our imagination has a special power to create and enjoy things
in a better way than our physical senses can. The music heard in imagination can surpass the music heard in reality. The permanent world of art and imagination is thus superior to the transient world of reality.
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