There are some poems which bring a visualization of their content right before you. William Wordsworth's 'The Solitary Reaper' is one and takes you far, far away. I have always wondered and imagined what may be there when I see wisps of smoke from a house, sheep grazing in some pasture, a farmer tilling his field with oxen, a solitary tree in a vast meadow or a lake / temple far away. The feeling is more intense especially when they are far, far away.
The Solitary Reaper
Behold her, single in the field,
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 with the sound.
No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
Will no one tell me what she sings?--
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?
Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending;--
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.
The Solitary Reaper
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 with the sound.
No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
Will no one tell me what she sings?--
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?
Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending;--
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.
10 comments:
i the firstuuu
மூகாம்பிகா, மதுரையிலிருந்து வருகைக்கு நன்றி. First சரி. ஓரிரு commentsம் போடலாம்ல. :)
U r abs rt! The entire thing plays in front of ur eyes!
Welcome Swaram. A wonderful poem indeed, even more especially when you read it aloud with the right intonation.
Edha naan schoola kuda padikalai eppo dhaan padichen, super a erukku :)
Ungay blogla comment podradhula problem erukku, I cannot do it using IE, i can do it only with firefox :) adhanal dhaan seekram comment panna mudila, mannikavum :)
Srivats, Thanks for dropping by.
The last 2 sentences convey the emotion associated with the song. Beautiful song indeed.
Which version of IE are you using? I use IE7/8, Opera and Safari (pretty less though) and it seems to be working fine in these. Do you get any warning or popup? I have FF installed. Use it very rarely. I'll meanwhile check it out on a non-cached version.
Ooooh, this one? I was asked to write a commentary on it class eight.We had awesome exam system at school..One of questions was, Imagine yourself to be the lady who is reaping, and write a few verses from her point of view (about the lone guy looking at her)
Uttara, that would have been really awesome. Just about right at 8th std to have developed the right vocabulary to answer. I'd have loved to be in that class. They asked you to write verses!!! I'd have imagined asking for a dissection from the point of view from the solitary reaper. :-) And, probably your English teacher must have been very good as well.
Oh yeah.! Actually the system was brilliant. We needn't study anything as such FOR exam. Other reading was enough ace.SEriosuly, after such things, what am going through engineering is way disappointing!
Well, unfortunately that is what it is. :-( I don't know when we'll come out of the mugging routine. Maybe it has reduced, but still a long way to go.
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