Sir Cecil Spring-Rice: Biography & Poetry
Sir Cecil Spring-Rice: Biography & Poetry
1918)
The Right Honorable Sir Cecil Spring-Rice was the second
son of the honorable Chas spring-Rice. He began his education at
Eton and later studied at Balliol college in oxford. He became a
clerk in the War office and the Foreign office. he became
Assistant Private Secretary to the Earl of Roesebery in 1885 and
later, in 1901 , he became the British commissioner of Pubic Debt
in Cairo. his awards included the KCMG ,in 1916.
(B) DAY
- I am busy,' said the sea.
- I am busy , think of me.
- making continents to be.
- I am busy, ' said the sea.
- I am busy, said the rain.
- when I fall itl's not in vain.
- wait and you will see the grain.
- I am busy, said the rain.
- I am busy, ' said the air.
- Blowing here and blowing there.
- up and down and everyheere,
- I am busy, said the air,
- I am busy, said the sun.
- All my planets, every one.
- know my work is never done.
- I am busy, said the sun.
- sea and rain and air and sun.
- here's a fellow toiler-one.
- whose task will soon be done.
(C) Vocabulary :
continents : Large land masses
vain : useless
grain : wheat, rice etc.
planets : earth, Mars, Venus, etc.
toiler : worker
fellow : comrade, friend .
task : Job, work
(D) Paraphrase:
The poet writes about some of the world's most
wonderful workers most wonderful workers and how busy they
are. when we have finished our task and have gone, they will still
be hard at work.
He states the various elements that build the earth and
help us to live on it. he looks at the work the sea does, building
continents that will exist in the future. He looks at what the rain
does. It does not fall uselessly; it does an important job, helping
the grain to grow to feed the world.
He continues to describe the air and its job, just blowing
here, there and everywhere. The sun too has an important job to
do and all the plantes are aware of this as they journey around
the sun. the sun's job is never finished, if it were, nothing would
exist.
At the end of the poem, the poet says that he is a fellow
worker, but unlike the sea, rain, air and sun, his task will soon be
done because he will die one day. His work is not as important or
as unending as that of the sun's or the other things mentioned in
the poem.
(E) Commentary :
The poem consists of five verses or stanzas. The rhyming
scheme is very easy, straightforward. Aaaa, bbbb, cccc, dddd,
eeee.
This scheme works well because the verses are short and
simple. The poem is not trying to deliver some important and
lasting message. Here, the poet is not trying to write a great,
heroic poem. He is just writing a short, simple children's poem.
The poem is similar to a song and the poet depends on the
relationship he creates between individual words e.g. 'rain vain,
grain and rain' this relationship emphasised by the use of
identical rhymes in the first and fourth lines e.g. 'rain, rain'.
Each of the elements is personified so that each can tell which job
it does.
Each stanza begins in the same way with the same
statement ' I am busy' so that a clear and easy comparison is
made.
No strong visual images are used, nor is sound patterning,
(alliteration)used. However, the poet depends strongly upon the
meter in his poem to create chanting sound.
this in the next five lines, showing how wonderful the world
is compared with man. However, in the 7th. Line a change of idea
is stated, despite its great size the world is nothing compared
with Man… You are more than the Earth…this idea is summed
up in the last two lines. You can love and think, and the Earth
cannot!.
The poet personifies the world imagining it to be a person,
with human characteristics, so in line 3 and 4 he says… 'grass on
your breast' , and in line 4 ' World you are beautifully dressed,'
and in line 8 he says the world cannot love.
Within the poem, the poet makes use of devices of internal
music such as alliteration- so in line 2 we read 'with the
wonderful water' and in line 6 'tremble to think,' and in line 8 '
whisper inside me seemed to say'.
The rhyme scheme is quite simple and traditional
aa,bb,cc,dd,ee.
Rands does not make use of a lot of figures of speech in this
short poem. The language is simple and straightforward.
In the 8th and 10th lines, the final lines, the main idea of the
poet is summed up. This is that Man is so far the greatest
creature on Earth. Here the last 2 lines are much longer than the
previous shorter ones and this makes a contrast.
(A) William Wordsworth
He was the first great poet of the Romantic period. He was
born in Cumberland England and educated at Hawkshead
Grammar School, where he was allowed to roam the countryside
and come close to the life of country people. This early and
continuous contact with nature influenced his poetry very much.
Wordsworth and Coleridge produced their book, Lyrical
Ballads in 1789. Wordsworth's preface to this book was his most
important contribution to literary criticism .
His main concept of poetry was that it is ' a spontaneous
overflow of powerful emotions, recollected in tranquility'.
Among his famous sonnets and lyrics are :" Composed
upon Westminster Bridge', The Solitary Reaper', 'I wandered
Lonely as a Cloud'.
In 1843 wordsworth was crowned Poet Laureate', the
highest honour England gives to her poets.
(B) I wandered Lonely as a Cloud.
- I wandered lonely as a colud.
- That floats on high o'er vales and hills.
- When all at once I saw a crowd.
- A host, of golden daffodils.,
- Beside the lake, beneath the trees.
- Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
- Continuous as the stars that shine.
- And twinkle on the Milky Way,
- They stretched in never-ending line.
- Along the margin of a bay.
- Ten thousand saw I at a glance.
- Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
- The waves beside them danced; but they
- Outdid the sparkling waves in glee
- A poet could not but be gay.
- In such a jocund company:
- I gazed-and gazed-but little thought
- What wealth the show to me had brought:
- For often, when on my couch I lie.
- In vacant or in pensive mood.
- They flash upon that inward eye
- Which is the bliss of solitude.
- And then-my heart with pleasure fills.
- And dances with the daffodils.
(C) Vocabulary
daffodils : yellow flowers
o'er : over
vales : small valleys
host : a large number
flutter : move/ tremble
the Milky : a constellation of stars in the sky way
sprightly : lively
outdid : excelled / became better than
glee : happiness and gaiety
jocund : gay / merry
pensive : thoughtful / dreaming
inward eye : the eye of the mind
bliss : heavenly happiness
(D) Paraphrase
the poet describes the great beauty of daffodils, shows how
he is moved by the beautiful scene, then describes how later on,
he recollects the emotions evoked in him by that scene.
The poem is composed of four stanzas. In the first
stanza he says: 'I was wandering alone when suddenly I saw a
large number of daffodils moving as if they were dancing'
In the second stanza he says. 'The daffodils stretched along
the lake like the stars that shine in the sky.'
In the third stanza the says.
'The water in the lake was moving and dancing as well, but
the daffodils were lovelier and happier. Their happiness made
me happy too'.
In the last stanza he says:
Sometime, when I lie at home thinking and feeling
unhappy, I remember the beautiful daffodils which I was that
day, and then my heart fills with happiness and peace'.
(E) Commentary :
- The Poem is composed of four stanzas. The rhyme scheme is ab
ab cc.
- Besides the description of the beautiful daffodils, the poet is
writing about himself. He is writing about nature and, at the
same time, is writing about himself in relation to nature.
- There is contrast in the first stanza:
- The poet was 'lonely' then, suddenly, he saw a 'crowd' of
daffodils.
In the second and the third stanzas, he describes the beauty of
daffodils together with other objects of nature, stars and waves.
There is personification. The daffodils are pictured as people
dancing and feeling gay and happy. Waves are dancing too.
(A) William Blake (1757-1827)
William Blake (1757-1827), English poet and artist, was
born in London. His father, James Blake was a hosier. The
family consisted of four sons and a daughter. William was the
second son, the only one to achieve distinction. William began to
show his artistic learings at an early age.
His father wisely encouraged this side of his nature, and
sent him at the age of ten, to Par's drawing school. His mind was
profoundly influenced by the surroundings in which he worked.
At the same time he was cultivating his mind in other ways. Is
creative faculty found its outlet in these early years, in poetry.
Some of his poems have survived in a thin volume of poetical
sketches printed for Blake by his friends I 1783. These pieces
were composed between his twelfh and twentieth years. Is
postiton in the history of the art of his country England is
peculiar owning to his double achievements as a poet and as
painter. H died on August 12, 1827.
(B)The Tiger
Tiger! Tiger ! burning bright
In the forestsof the night,
What immortal hand or eye.
Could frame the fearful symmery?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thing eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?
And what shoulder, and what art,.
Could twist the sinews of the heart?
And when they heart began beat
What dread hand ? and what dread feet?
What the hammer? What the chain?
In what furnace was they brain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp?
Dare its deadly terrors clasp ?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And water'd heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tiger! Tiger! Burning bright.,
In the forests of the night.
What immortal hand or eye.
Dare frame they fearful symmetry?
(C)Vocabulary:
1. Burning: glowing brightly
2. immortal : eternal, unfading
3. frame: (to)form.
4. fearful : causing fear
5. symmetry : beauty based on excellence of proportion.
6. distant :far, remorte.
7. Thine : your
8. dare : venture.
9. aspire : hope
10. seize: take hold of
11. art : skill
12. twist: bend
13. sinews : tough cords tat untite a muscle with some other
part.
14. they : your
15. dread : arousig great fear
16. hammer : an instrument for driving nails.
17. chain: a series of metal rings passing through one
another.
18. furnace : an enclosed place in which heat is produced.
19. anvil : the block on which metal is shaped, as by
hammering.
20. grasp : seize
21. deadly : causing death
22. clasp : seize with the hand.
23. spears: sharp, pointed instruments
24. lamb: a young sheep.
(D) Paraphrase:
The poet addresses the tiger that shines and glows with
fiery eyes and shining fur in the forest during the nigh. He asks
the tiger. "Who created you with such a beautiful body?"
What deep power created this blazing fire in your eyes?
Who can dream of catching such a quick and fast animal? Who
dares to approach such a fierce animal?
The poet goes on to say when stars shine brightly sending
down their rays, when heaven waters the earth with rain, God
must be pleased to see his wonderful creation. Again the poet
asks if he who created the lamb did create the tiger.
(E)Commentary:
The poem is divided into six stanzas of four lines each. Te
rhyme scheme of this poem is aa-bb-cc –dd.
The Tiger' is a poem in which the poet gives a beautiful
description of the animal. In the first two lines he describes how
it look like in the forests in the night. Then he turns to wonder
how great God is to create such beauty.
The pet goes on describing the courage and strength of the
tiger when it feels danger. He is also asking himself if he, who
creatd the lamb, created the tiger.
The poem is simple, allowing for pauses at the end of every
line.
(A) the Rescue
by : Serraillier
the wind is loud It isn't crying.
The wind is blowing. His or hers.
The waves are big. Or yours or mine?
The waves are growing. Is it dying?
What's that? What's that ? is it dying?
A dog is crying. The wind is loud
It's in the sea. The wind is blowing
A dog is crying the waves are big. His or
His or hers he waves are growing.
Or yours or mine? Where's the boat?
A dog is crying. It's upside down.
A dog is crying and where's the dog?
Is no one there? And must it drown?
A boat is going. His or hers.
The waves are big. Or yours or mine?
A man is rowing. O, must it drown?
The waves are big. O, must it drown?
The waves are growing.
Where's the dog?
Where's the man ? So tired and wet
He's on the sand And still it lies.
So tired and wet I stroke its head.
He cannot stand. It opens its eyes.
And where's the dog? It wags its tail
It's in his hand. So tired and wet.
He lays down I call its name.
Upon the sand. For its my pet,
His or her not his or hers
Or your or mine? Or yours, but mine
The dog is mine. And up it gets.
The dog is mine! And up it gets!
(B) Vocabulary:
rescue : to save/ helping someone our of danger
wage : to move from side to side.
(C) Paraphrase:
This poem is a ballad. A ballad is a poem which tells a story.
There was a storm at sea. The poet heard a dog crying for help. The
dog was drowning. A man was rowing hard against the high waves,
but the boat was turned upside down. The poet lost hope. He thought
that the man was unable to save the dog.
Suddenly, the man reached the shore. The dog was carried
safely to the shore as well.
(D) Commentary :
The idea of the story is a simple one. The poem is compose of five
parts, of twelve lines each.
In the first stanza, the poet describes the storm. The sea is rough, the
winds are strong and the waves are high. The cries of the dog are
heard.
In the second stanza, the poet sees a man in a boat. The man is
rowing hard against the strong high waves.
In the third stanza, the boat is upside down. The poet is worried
about the poor dog. Hope of saving the dg is almost lost.
In the fourth stanza, the man reaches the shore safely with the
poor wet dog in his hands. The poet recognises the dog. It is his dog!
In the fifth stanza, we see the feelings between the poet and his
dog. The poet pats his dog tenderly and lovingly and the dog shows
gratitude. The dog is on its feet again.
The language is easy. There are no difficult words. The lines are
very short. There is a rhyme scheme. There is a repetition of lines. All
these things make the story easy to understand and to follow.
The poem shows the ties and the mutual love between the poet
and the dog, between man and animal.
(A)Robert Louis Stevenson(1850-
1894)
Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh. He as the son of
Thomas Stevenson. Robert entered Edinburgh University in
1867 and studied engineering, but soon abandoned this to study
law and was admitted as advocated in 1875. in 1879 he travelled
to California and married Mrs. Osbourne in America in 1880.
He was an invalid practically all his life. He die in Vailima in the
South Seas. Stevenson wrote some remarkable poetry, Collected
in " An child's Garden of Verses" (1885)and Underwoods'
(1887) . He collaborated with WE Henley in some drams.
(B)Bed in Summer:
In winter I getup at night
And dress by yellow candle- light
In summer, quite the other way.
I have to go to ed by day.
I have to go to bed and see.
The birds still hopping on the tree.
Or hear the grown-up people's feet
Still going past me in the street.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play.,
To have to go to bed by day?
(C)Vocabulary :
Hopping : to hop: to leap on one foot
Grown-up: mature
(D)Paraphrase:
This poem has some interesting things about England to tell
those who have never been there. In the winter months, around
Christmas, it is dark until about 8 o'clock in the morning. In the
summer months, June to September, it is light until about 9
o'clock at night.
The poet does not like the idea of having to go to bed early
in summer when the sky is clear and blue. On the other hand he
has to get up early during winter when it is still dark.
(E)Commentary
The poem consists of three stanzas of four lies each. The
rhyme scheme s the same in the three stanzas; aa, bb. The poet
accentuates the difference between light and day-dark and
night.
(A)William Blake (1757- 1827)
The son of a London hosier , did not go to school, but James
Basire, engraver to the Society of Antiquaries took him as an
apprentice. His earliest poems are contained in 'poetical
Sketches', published in 1783. in 1789 he engraved and published
his 'songs of Innocence' in which he first showed the mystical cat
of his mind. Blake's theory of imagination, 'the real and eternal
world' are obvious in his work.
Blake engraved many of his poems on plates, with illustrations
which he coloured b hand.
(B) Night :
- The sun descending in the west,
- The evening star does shine,
- The birds are silent in their nest,
- And I must seek for mine.
- The moon, like flower,
- In heaven's high bower,
- With silent delight
- Sits and smiles on the night.
(c) Vocabulary :
Descending : setting –going down.
Seek : look for, try to find.
Bower : an arbour.
(d) Paraphrase:
The poet is talking about night. The sun is setting, the
evening star is shining, everything is quiet; even the birds
are silent in their nest and the writer must go to his own nest
(home). The moon looks like a flower in heaven's bower
(arbour), it sits and smiles on the night.
(e) Commentary:
The poem consists of two stanzas. The rhyming scheme is
ab ab (fist stanza)cc dd (second stanza).
The poet uses the letter's frequently to imply the softness
and quietness of night: silent –seek –silent – sits – smiles.
The beauty of the night is accentuated by using some
figures of speech such as "I must seek for mine' which is a
metaphor where the poet must seek for his own home. The moon
is personified for it 'sits' and 'smiles' on the night. The moon
resembles a flower (simile) and heaven is an arbour.
(A) Sir Wal'er Scott(1771-1832):
Sir Waleter Scott is a Scottish poet and a novelist. He was
born in Endinburgh on August. 15th 1771. He came from an old
border family that first directed him to the study of border
history.
Scott's health inboyhood was uncertain, and his nature was
so lively and excitable that it was considered dangerous to press
him to keep him back. He was, therefore, left very much to
himself in the matter of reading and began at an early age to
accumulate the romantic lore of which he made such splendid
use later. He mastered the French language when he was a school
boy, and this enabled him to read Italian romantic literature.
In spite of his lameness and his serious illness in youth, his
constitution was naturally robust, and his spirits were high.
He was a member of a puritanical, well-ordered Scottish
household.
He became a member of the Faculty of advocates in 1792.
he seemed to have read law books for four years at least.
(B) Hunting song :
- Waken lords and ladies gay,
- On the mountain dawns the day.
- All the jolly chase is here.
- With hawk and horse and hunting-spear.
- Hounds are in their couples yelling,
- Hawks are whistling, horns are knelling,
- Merrily, merrily mingle they,
- "Waken, lords and ladies gay"
- The mist has left the mountain grey,
- Springless in the dawn are steaming,
- Diamonds on the brake are gleaming,
- And foresters have busy been,
- To track the buck in thicket green,
- Now we come to chant our lay,
- Waken, lords and ladies gay,
- Louder, louder, chant the lay.
- Waken, lords and ladies gay!
- Tell them youth and mirth and glee,
- Run a course as well as we;
- Time, stern huntsman who can balk,
- Stanch as hound and fleet as hawk;
- Think of this, and rise with day,
- Gentle lords and ladies gay!
(C) Vocabulary :
Waken :Stop sleeping
Lord :a title used in speaking to noblemen of certain rank
Dawn :daybreak (the beginning of the day).
Chase :hunt-follow.
Jolly : merry
Hawk :bird of prey with a strong hooked beak.
Hunting :a weapon for hunting. Spear.
Hounds :dogs.
Yelling :crying our with a clear loud sound.
Whistling : making a clear musical sound through the lips.
Horn : one of the bony pained growths on the head of some
animals or a musical instrument.
Kneeling : ringing of bells or horns.
Merrily : happily
Mingle : mix.
Gay : happy
Mist : fog
Springlets : fountains
Steaming : giving off steam
Brake : a place overgrown with hushes or shrubs
Foresters : persons who look after trees.
Track : to follow the way
Buck :deer
Thicket : wood
Chant : to sing
Lay : song – a single melody
Youth : state of being young
Mirth : delight, joy
Glee :joy
Course : line of action (direction taken)
Stern : firm
Balk : delay (hinder)
Stanch : strong and loyal
Fleet : swift, fast
(D) Paraphrase:
The poem is basically a description of a sport which was
once popular in England. This sport was deer hunting. In the
first verse, the poet asks the gay lords and ladies to wake up
because a new day has dawned, and the hunt is about to begin.
All the participants in the hunt are ready, namely the hawks, the
horses, the hunting spears (the weapons)and the hounds, which
hunt in pairs. He tries to create the atmosphere of the hunt by
describing the noises, such as the whistling, and the kneeling
(sounds) of horns. All these noises mingle and mix together.
The second verse describes the early morning when the mist
has cleared and the dew is sparkling on the brake (the thicket or
small bushes). The foresters have been busy following the tracks
of the male deer (buck)in the forest.
This is for the 3rd stanza which is not in the
book:
The pet continues to urge the lords and ladies to be quick to
join the hunt in the green forest and see the deer captured or
brought to bay. He can show them where the deer is hiding. He
describes this animal as 'fleet of foot and tall of size'. The deer
had left its marks on the oak tree, where he has rubbed his
antlers (horns)against the tree.
The last verse is the final urge to the lords and ladies to come to see
the hunt. They must think of all the excitement, mirth (laughter and
fun) they will have. It is time for the huntsmen to go. They also are as
strong as the hounds and as fleet (fast)as the hawks. So if the lords and
ladies keep all these things in mind, they must rise (get up)to join the
hunt.
The poem is written in the form of a song and each verse
begins as an address to the lords and ladies telling them to wake
up. Each verse also ends in the same way as it begins, except the
last one, which begins loudly and enthusiastically, full of
excitement, but ends more quietly with a polite request.
"Think of this, and rise with day.
Gentle lords and ladies gay'.
(E) Commentary
The rhyme scheme is aa, bb, cc ………….
The poet begins his poem by giving us a vivid picture of an
early hunting day. It is clear that the poet is fond of the
description of scenery. The construction of the poem is very
simple.
The poet is considered one of the romantic poets. He is
interested in the general romance of human life, i.e. in the world
and its activities.
(A) William Shakespeare (1564-
1616)
William Shakespeare was born at Stratford – on Avon in 1564.
Little is known of Shakespeare's first eighteen years. In 1587, he
began his acting career in the Globe Theatre in London. A few years
later he became owner of that theatre.
Shakespeare was a genius. He was a great poet and an
outstanding dramatist. He wrote many poems. He also wrote thirty
seven plays. Among his plays are:
'As You Like It', Antony and Cleopatra' and 'Hamlet'.
Shakespeare's works are famous all over the world. "He was not of an
age; but for all time".
(B) Under The Greenwood Tree "As you like
it":
- Under the greenwood tree
- Who loves to lie with me,
- And turn his merry note
- Unto the sweet bird's throat,
- Come hither, come higher, come hither;
- Here shall he see.
- No enemy
- But winter and rough weather
- Who doth ambition shun
- And loves to live I'the sun,
- Seeking the food he eats,
- And pleased with what he gets,
- Come hither, come hither, come hither;
- Here shall he see
- No enemy
- But winter and rough weather.
- If it do come to pass
- That any man turn ass,
- Leaving his wealth and ease
- A stubborn will to please,
- Ducdame, ducdame, ducdame;
- Here shall he see
- Gross fools as he,
- An if he will come to Ami.
(C) Vocabulary :
hither : here
ambition : desire to be better and get more
shun : avoid – neglect/
come to : to happen pass
turn ass : become a fool
a stubborn : determined to do as one wishes without
will to : listening to arguments please
ducdame : Is a word with no meaning, sung only to go with the
time. Jaques, the Duke's attendant, said afterwards
that it was a Greek call to call fools to stand in a circle,
he was joking and making un of his fellows.
Gross : big
An if : if
(D) Occasion:
Amiens and Japques, the Duke's attendants were together
with some others in the forest. Amiens began to sing the first
stanza. He was encouraged and pressed by Jaques to proceed on,
as Jaques was depressed. Aminens excused himself because his
voice was rough. Therefore, they sang the second stanza all
together. Then Jaques, cheered cheered up, gave Amiens the
third stanza to sing.
(E) Paraphrase:
1. The song reveals the happiness of life in the forest of Arden. The
first verse emphasizes the peace and freedom people feel in the
Greenwood. It assures people that the hardest enemy that could
be met in the cold weather.
2. In the forest, men forget their ambition, they enjoy a simple,
uncomplicated life in perfect contentment. They seek no more
than food and good friendship.
3. Then the poet contradicts himself n the last verse. He doubtfully
declares that it's a pity that someone should be a fool to leave his
easy, comfortable and wealthy life to go and live in a forest. He
encourages people to enjoy their life together in the town,
because they wouldn't find the same pleasure in the forest where
there's nothing but nature.
This contradiction reveals the state of mind in which the
(B) Leisure
- What is this life, if full of care,
- We have no time to stand and stare ?
- No time to stand beneath the boughs?
- And stare as long as sheep or cows.
- No time to see, when woods we pass.
- Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
- No time to see, in broad daylight
- Streams full of stars, like skies at night,
- No time to turn at Beauty's glance.
- And watch her feet, how they dance.
- No time to wait till her mouth can
- Enrich that smile her eyes began.
- A poor life this, if full of care,
- We have no time to stand and stare.
(C) Vocabulary:
Leisure : Free time.
Boughs : branches of trees.
Squirrel : a small animal with a bushy tail.
Glance : quick look
Enrich : to make rich.
(D) Paraphrase:
If in our busy life we fail to enjoy the beauty of nature we
will have a poor life.
We must find time to look at all the wonders God has
created around us and fully enjoy and appreciate them.
(E) Commentary :
The poet expresses his idea clearly and in easy language.
The poem is composed of fourteen lines, each two lines rhyme.
The first two lines and the last two lines have the same rhyme.
Each two lines begin with " no time" emphasising the poet's
idea about failing to find time and missing all the beautiful things
that God has created.
There is imagery. The poet personifies beauty by giving it
human characteristics.
(E) Commentary:
- The poem is composed of four stanzas.
- There is much comparison.
- "keep your head" " losing theirs"
- lied about " "don't deal in lies"
- "truth" impostors"
- triumph" "disaster"
- "winnings" "loss"
- "foes" "Loving friends"
These comparisons serve in clarifying the picture of
perfection which the poet is trying to describe
The poet, says clearly and simply that if his son can do these
things which he has listed, his life will be enriched with meaning
and in addition, the son will be a man. In this context, the word
'man' connotes a person ho has good morals, strength of
character and a generous, loving understanding, forgiving
nature.
The poet repeats if several times in each stanza, then the
answer to all those ifs comes in the last two Lines. This makes the
picture complete.
William wordsworth
[Link] her, single in the filed,
Yon solitary Highland Lass !
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass !
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen !for the vale profound
Is overflowing wit the sound.
[Link] nightingale did ever chant
(D) commentary :
the poem is divided into four stanzas of eight light lines
each.
Wordsworth eas mainly interested in man in relation to
nature. Lt has been said of this poem that if .
The girl is presented as singing a 'melancholy tune' . the
preoccupation with melancholy ( sadness ) was to become
one evident from the works of the younger romantics :
byron, keats and Shelley.
Another proerty of the Romantics was the they were
always fascinated by strange things; things that far away in
either time or space. This is clear in wordsworth's choice of
imagery in the second stanza where he compares the girl's
choice of imagery in the second stanza where he compares
the girl's singing to that of the nightingale in Arabia or the
cuckoo in the Hebrides. Both Arabia and Hebrides were
sufficiently for removed to be considered strnge to the
Englishman of the early nineteenth century ! the girl's song
was even strange to the poet because it was obviously in
Scottish dialect. He wonders about the theme of the song,
saying "Will no one tell me what she sings?"
In the fourth stanza Wordsworth says that "the maiden
sang as if her song could have no ending,". Lndeed the
song had no ending, for the poet bears the music in his
heart long after his ears have ceased ( stopped ) to hear it.
Tee music he bore in his heart makes him recollect the
song.
Name :
Group
First year
Sciences
Interpretation
[Link] takla