84-8. Enoch Arden was “a rough sailor lad” without education; and Tennyson throughout the poem tries to soften down the prosaic features of his life and to picture him as a man with nobler impulses and resolves.
92-100. An effort to dress up in more attractive form the prosaic fact that Enoch made his living by peddling fish.
93. ocean-spoil. Fish.
94. ocean-smelling osier. Willow baskets having an odour of the sea.
96. market-cross. In old days crosses were frequently erected in market places.
98. portal-warding lion-whelp. The carved figure of a lion placed over the gateway as if to guard the entrance.
99. peacock-yewtree. A yewtree trimmed in the form of a peacock. The yewtree is an evergreen.
100. Enoch provided the fish which were used on Friday.
110. He had competition in his trade.
128-31. A little cloud sometimes throws the sea into shadow around you, but away on the horizon you see a bright spot (an isle of light) on the water, which shows that the sun is shining there. So with Enoch. His misfortune was a shadow on his life, but the future was bright and he knew that the little cloud would pass away.