... In Part I of Trystan and Esyllt we find a vessel driving toward the coast of Ireland in a March storm and on board it a wounded man.  (But who is the man?  Why is his aspect sad?  Why does the grey of the grave cover his splendor?)  The answer to this question occupies the rest of the canto, and tells us of Trystan's birth and rearing, of his fight with Morollt, and of his attempts to find a cure for his wound.  Part II begins with Trystan sitting on the Cornish coast singing of Esyllt.  March (Mark), passing by, hears him and asks if she is more beautiful than Gwenhwyfar.  Trystan assures him that she is, and tells March the story of his trip to Ireland—how by his harping he had won the favor of the king and queen and had been healed of his wound.  March falls in love with the maiden Esyllt whom he has never seen, and upon the advice of Trystan's enemies he sends his nephew to Ireland to win her and bring her back to Cornwall... (The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, Goebel, 1922)