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Sonnet 2 Notes
line 3, "A Toast" is the title of one of Preseren's poems, later adopted by his country as the text of its national anthem. "To the Poet" is another poem, each of whose five stanzas rhyme on a vowel, and "A Wreath of Sonnets" is, as mentioned in the note on the title, an intricate series of sonnets dedicated to the woman he loved and which caused him disgrace. line 4, ivo is Slovenian for beer. line 5, "Dragon Bridge"--a bridge across the Ljubanica river from the old town to the side on which Preseren's memorial now stands. According to legend, Slovenia's capital, Ljubana, was founded by Jason who sailed into the Ljubjanica River with his Argonauts in search of the golden fleece and slew a terrible monster -- the Ljubjana dragon now depicted in its coat of arms as well as being represented in four impressive wrought iron sculptures, two on each entry to the bridge. line 6, Preseren was a frequenter of cafes and taverns. line 8, Primoz Trubar gave the Slovenes their first printed book, a catechism, in 1550. lines 9/10 echo lines and sentiments in some of Preseren's poems. line 12, Preseren published only one slim volume of poetry during his life, yet it was enough to secure his reputation as the national poet of a land which, due to its many centuries of occupation, did not have a tradition of national literature./font>
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