In this extract of the poem 'Grandfather' by Oliver Shelley, the poet is comparing the age of the child with the age of the senior. He details the qualities that show the age of the man he is talking about 1) old man 2) Grandfather 3) whole life 4) left to do. All these words tell us about the man and the length and breadth of his experience. The specific phrase 'liver-marked and shy' refers to the age-markings that older people begin to get on their skin. They can be like little splashes or moles of brown, especially notable on hands or face and are harmless. So, the subject of the poem has these splashes of age freckles and has a quiet, retiring personality which the poet seems to find quite charming, as the old guy does not push himself forward to get noticed - he waits for people to approach him. Readers get the feeling that he commands respect however and his face represents infinity.
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