POEM 5 :THE SCHOOL BOY – WILLIAM BLAKE

I. SIGHT WORDS
1. Huntsman 2.Skylark 3. Outworn 4. Sighing 5. Dismay
6. Drooping 7.Anxious 8. Bower 9.Dreary 10.Nipped
II. PARAPHRASE
Stanza 1:
The boy likes to rise from his bed in a summer morning. He finds the birds singing on every
tree. In the distance he hears the sound of a horn blown by a hunter. He likes to sing with
the skylark. The morning seems to be full of pleasant company for him.
Stanza 2:
One thing is a great kill-joy on a summer morning. It is going to school. In the school a tired
and unfeeling teacher teaches the young children. So the school boys spend their day in
moans and distress.
Stanza 3:
In the school, sometimes the boy sits exhausted in the class. He spends many worrisome
hours in this manner. He cannot enjoy reading his books. He is tired and the dull shower of
word fails to teach him.
Stanza 4:
A bird is born to sing happily. However, it cannot do so when it is in cage. In the same way a
fearful child cannot feel happy. A caged bird droops its tender wings and forgets to fly. In
the same manner, the school boy forgets to be happy. The fresh spring of joy dries up
inside.
Stanza 5:
Parents must realise that their children are like tender plants. What will happen if early in
the morning a plant’s buds are plucked and the flowers blown away? No doubt, it will be
depriving the plant of all its joys at the sprouting stage. The same thing happens with a
school boy when sorrows and cares dishearten him.
Stanza 6:
If everything was destroyed before its time, the plants would be deprived of buds, flowers
and fruits. Summer would not be associated with plenitude and joy. Similarly, a child
requires the right kind of mixture of love, care, affection and freedom to become a pleasant
and soothing person.
III. POETIC DEVICES

1. Alliteration is displayed in the repetition of consonants 's' and 'd' in 'skylark sings'
and 'day...dismay' in the first and second stanza.

2. Anaphor is shown in the repetition of words like 'Nor' and 'And' in the stanzas third
and fifth.

3. Metaphor: The comparison between 'youth and happiness' displays the use of
metaphor.
IV ANSWER THE FOLLOWING
1. Why does the school boy not want to go to school in a summer morning?
The school boy loves to rise early in a summer morning because of its beauty and
joyfulness. Birds sing on every tree. He likes to hear the sound of horn coming from a
distance. He enjoys the company of the skylark which sings with him. So he does not want
to go to school on such a morning. It will take away all his joy and make him unhappy.

2. What does the school boy compare himself to and why?

Ans: The school boy compares himself to a caged bird because he has no freedom at school.
He also compares himself to a bud that withers away before it could bloom fully. The boy
feels so because his joyful youth is also at stake.

V. READ THE FOLLOWING EXTRACTS AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS.

a. O! Father and Mother, if buds are nip’d,
And blossoms blown away,
And if the tender plants are strip’d
Of their joy in the springing day,
By sorrow and cares dismay,
How shall the summer arise in joy,
Or the summer fruits appear?

1. Who are these lines addresses to?

Parents
2. What happens to tender plants if their joys of spring are taken away?
Ans: Tender plants can’t bear summer fruits if their joys of spring are taken away.
3. Why does the poet compare himself to a nipped bud?
Ans: The poet compares himself to a nipped bud because his dull and burdensome life has
made him unhappy.
4. How does the boy, attempt to explain his plight to his parents.
The boy attempts to explain his plight by employing the natural imagery of plants and
flowers.
5. What happens if the tender plants are stripped?
If the tender plants are stripped in spring, they would not bear any fruits when the summer
comes.