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The Lake Isle of Innisfree
1.0About the Poet
William Butler Yeats (13 June 1865-28 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist and one of the pioneer figures of 20th century. He was also one of the founders of the Abbey Theatre. His major time of childhood was spent in Sligo. His mother belonged to this place and moreover, after his birth his family settled at the same place. Thus this place left indelible impact on his mind and he recalled the serenity of this place in his multiple works. His slow pace of writing was inherited from Edmund Spenser, P B Shelly and the Pre-Raphaelite poets. From 1900, his works displayed a major change as from now they were full of realistic thoughts rather than transcendental beliefs. He received the Nobel Prize in 1923 for his remarkable literary works. His first important poem was "The Island of Status" and it was fantasy work inspired by the writing model of Edmund Spenser and Shelley. He met Maud Gonne -a nationalist and an actress and proposed her to get married but at his despair she refused his proposal.
Summary
William Butler Yeats wrote "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" and it is one of his most famous and widelyanthologized works written in 1888. The poem extracts its content from a very small, uninhabited island in Lough Gill. At this place there a lake in Yeats's home county of Sligo, Ireland.
The speaker of this pastoral poem longs to live a simple life on Innisfree, finding peace through communion with nature. However, it becomes clear that ties to city life prevent the speaker from realizing this dream. The young poet's fixation on questions of spirituality and Irish identity is felt in this poem, which also contains the sort of archaic language that he would later abandon and decry. Following an rhyme scheme and loosely iambic meter, the poem's seemingly neat and concise structure belies its complex networks of rhythm and sound, which are responsible for much of its visceral impact and enduring popularity.
2.0Countryside Vs City
In this poem 'I' refer to the poet William Yeats who says that he wants to go to Innisfree. There he will build a small room for himself with clay and small sticks. He will grow nine rows of beans near his room as his food. Along with that, he will have a beehive to get fresh honey from the beehive. Moreover, the poet says that the open space, where he will build his room will be full of the buzzing sound of the bees. He will live there alone in peace and calmness.
In the second stanza, the poet says that living nearby the Innisfree, he will experience the peaceful and serene environment. Gradually, he will enjoy the tranquility of the place. In the morning, the view of the sky is not very clear and it appears as if the morning has worn a veil and has hidden its face like a girl. Moreover, looking at this scene will make him feel contended in life. The cricket sings their song and that sound will also bring him peace of mind and heart. In the midnight, when he will see the twinkling of the stars in the night, their shine will give him more tranquility and comfort. In the afternoon time, when the sunlight will give a purple glow, he will enjoy warmth and its scenic beauty at that place. In the evening, when he will see the linnet bird flying in the sky, then again he will enjoy this beautiful scene. In the third stanza, the poet states that now he will take a firm stand and will go to Innisfree without any delay, and then he imagines that the sound of the rippling lake striking the shore will appease his senses. Standing on the roadway or on the grey-coloured pavements, he can feel that sound deep in his heart wishing to be at that place in reality.
3.0Poetic devices used in this poem
(1) Images - Images are representation of something which draw on the five senses. Example : Visual Images (midnight's all a glimmer, noon a purple glow), Auditory Images (the bee-loud glade, the cricket sings, I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore) etc.
(2) Alliteration - Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line. Examples : "a hive for the honey-bee", "Lake water lapping with low sounds"
(3) Personification - A figure of speech in which human characteristics are attributed to an abstract quality, animal, or inanimate object. Example : "cricket sings". Singing is the characteristic of humans and has been attributed to cricket (an insect).
(4) Metaphor - A metaphor shows direct comparison between two things. Example : 'Veils of the morning' Here night is referred to as veils of morning. 'Deep heart's core'. Here poet's desires are referred to as deep heart's core.
4.0Recall
- W. B Yeats wanted to visit the lake of Innisfree which is the most desired place for him.
- He imagined that he would build a small cabin there with little crop of beans.
- He would enjoy there the humming sound of bees and an open space to live with tranquillity.
- He told his past experiences at this place where cricket sang, midnight glimmered, moon glowed purple and a lot of linnets were seen in the sky.
- Moreover, he wanted to stay there for a long time to enjoy the sound of the lake water.
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