When a man hath no freedom to fight for at home,
Let him combat for that of his neighbours;
The poem starts out with the narrator urging the audience to take up arms and go fight for freedom, in whatever place it needs protecting. However, the way the lines are written, it has been argued that a good deal of irony is hidden within these words. Therefore, one can either argue that the fight for freedom is considered honorable or despicable by the narrator. Unfortunately, both interpretations work for the better part of the poem.
To do good to mankind is the chivalrous plan,
And, is always as nobly requited;
In this central part of the poem, the narrator states that a fight for freedom is always worthwhile. What kind of benefit the fighters reap is left to the imagination of the audience. This ambiguity in asking more question than it answers is a core element of this poem.
Let him think of the glories of Greece and of Rome
The continuation of the initial quote, the narrator invokes pictures of ancient warriors. Ancient Greece has a plethora of both successful and disastrous battle stories, which goes from the battle of the 300 of the Spartans to the loss of Greece to the Roman Empire. The same goes for the Roman Empire. It was one of the most powerful forces in history and renowned for its prowess on the battlefield. However, internal fighting and strong forces collapsed the empire in the end. This quote, while seemingly powerful and inspiring, again contains the ambiguity of the whole poem.
