Childhood

By Markus Natten
Introduction
Childhood is written by Marcus Natten. In this poem, the poet
thinks over his lost childhood. He wonders about the moment
where he lost his innocence and realized that the world is not
what he seemed it to be. He recalls when his thoughts changed
and he realized the hypocrisy of the people around him. He
finally settled down to the idea that his childhood went to some
forgotten place and is hidden in the face of an innocent infant.
Poem

When did my childhood go?

Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!

When did my childhood go?

Was it the time I realised that adults were not
all they seemed to be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!

When did my childhood go?

Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
But my own, and mine alone
Was that the day!
Where did my childhood go?
It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.
Poem Explanation

Stanza 1
When did my childhood go?
Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!
Meaning
Ceased – come to an end
Explanation
In the above lines, the poet wonders about when his childhood
came to an end. He asked himself was it the day he was no
longer eleven years old? Was it the day when he realized that
Hell and Heaven existed and yet could not be found in
geography or on the map. He realized they are imaginary
places that actually do not exist in this world.

Stanza 2
When did my childhood go?
Was it the time I realised that adults were not
all they seemed to be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!
Meaning
Preached – talked or spoken
Explanation
In the above stanza, the poet again repeats the same question
about when did his childhood go? He wonders about the day
when he started seeing the world with a new perception that
adults are hypocrites and are not how they seemed to be. The
adults who talked of love and preached of love and yet never
behaved so lovingly. They are double-faced in reality. Was that
the day when his childhood go?

Stanza 3
When did my childhood go?
Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
But my own, and mine alone
Was that the day!
Explanation
In the third stanza, the poet deliberates on the same question
about when he lost his childhood. He asked himself about
possibilities. He wonders about the day he realized that his
mind was his own and could use it the way he wants. When he
realized that he could produce his own thoughts which were not
bound by anyone. When he sensed his own individuality and a
separate personality. Was that the day he lost his childhood?

Stanza 4
Where did my childhood go?
It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.
Meaning
Infant – newborn baby
Explanation
In the last stanza, the poet remorses about his lost childhood.
He concludes that his childhood had gone to some forgotten
place which will never come back. He cherished his innocence
which vanished now and could be only seen in a baby’s face.
He only has sweet memories of his childhood which would
soon fade away. He also conveyed a message that the
innocence of childhood stays till the time one is an infant and
that is all he knows.
Literary Devices
Rationalism – the poet rationalizes the lost childhood when he was eleven and
when he found out that hell and heaven don’t exist and are not found in geography.
Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realized that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
Rhyme Scheme – the rhyme scheme used in the poem ‘Childhood’ is
ABBCCD.
Refrain – a group of phrase which is repeated in the poem
When did my childhood go?
Was that the day!
Individuality – In stanza 3, the poet realized that he can use his own mind and
can produce his own thoughts. He discovered a sense of individuality in himself.
Antithesis – where two opposite words are used together in a sentence in a
poem
Hell and Heaven
Alliteration – The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of
closely connected words
The time
My mind
Whichever way
Thoughts that
Inversion – when the subject-verb order is reversed
To use whichever way I choose

Summary
In the poem, the poet wonders when he lost his childhood and
the innocence he had. He became conscious that he no longer
sees the world as he did earlier and he can sense the hypocrisy
in people. He recalled many instances in his life when he could
have lost his childhood. He wondered if it was the day he
ceased to be eleven or he realized that Hell and Heaven didn’t
exist in this world and no one could find them in the geography.
Next, he talks about the possibility when he realized that adults
are not what they seemed to be and they are hypocrites. They
talk and preach of love but their actions don’t say so. Was it the
day when he realized that his mind was his own and capable of
producing his own thoughts? No one could own that and he is
an individual with his particular personality. In the last stanza,
he talks about the whereabouts of his childhood. He concludes
that it had gone to some forgotten place and it can only be
found in the innocent face of an infant.

Question Answers
Think it out
1. Identify the stanza that talks of each of the following.
Individuality, Rationalism, Hypocrisy
Ans:
Individuality – Third stanza
When did my childhood go?
Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
But my own, and mine alone
Was that the day!
Rationalism – First stanza
When did my childhood go?
Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!
Hypocrisy – Second stanza
When did my childhood go?
Was it the time I realised that adults were not
all they seemed to be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!

2. What according to the poem is involved in the process

of growing up?
Ans: According to the poem, the process of growing up involves
attaining maturity and becoming a rational and logical thinker.
When the poet became an adult, he was able to see the
hypocrisy in other people. He could distinguish in the behaviour
of double-standard preach and talk of love. A grown-up can tell
a difference between reality and fantasy. A mature person
stresses on his thoughts and is capable of having his own
opinion.

3. What is the poet’s feeling towards childhood?

Ans: The poet is disappointed and puzzled by the loss of his
childhood. He wanted to know when was the moment he
became a grown-up and loss the innocence of an infant. He
expresses his confusion by asking that when and where did his
childhood go.

4. Which do you think are the most poetic lines? Why?

Ans: The lines in the last stanza are the most poetic lines in the
poem.
It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.
The poet beautifully describes the disappearance of his
childhood. He talks about how one can find innocence in an
infant’s face. It is a process of life that an individual grows up
and slowly starts understanding the concept of the world and
people around them. During childhood, a person believes in
things that aren’t true or has a different set of reality. When the
child grows up and is able to process his own thoughts, he
realizes that many things don’t exist the way he thought them to
be.