The Haunted House

Summary:

“H.W. Longfellow’s poem “Haunted Houses” delves into the nature of memory and the passage of time.
The poem paints a vivid picture of a deserted house, once vibrant and full of life, now abandoned and
haunted by the memories of its past inhabitants. Longfellow uses rich imagery and evocative language
to describe the house as a symbol of bygone days, where laughter, joy, and love once resided.

The poem opens with a description of the house, its windows boarded up and its rooms empty, creating
an eerie and desolate atmosphere. Longfellow personifies the house, attributing it with a sense of
loneliness and sorrow as it stands silent and neglected. He uses the metaphor of the house as a “ghost”
to emphasize its haunting bygone existence.

Longfellow then takes the reader on a journey through the house’s memories, invoking images of the
past inhabitants — families, children, and lovers — who once inhabited its walls. He reminisces about
the sounds of music and laughter that once filled the rooms, contrasting sharply with the present
silence. The poet laments the passage of time, reflecting on how quickly moments and lives fade away,
leaving behind only echoes and memories.

The poem’s central theme revolves around the transient nature of life and the inevitable march of time.
Longfellow reflects on the fleeting nature of human existence, highlighting how even the most vibrant
and lively places eventually succumb to abandonment and decay.

Moreover, the poem invites contemplation on the significance of memories and the emotional
resonance of places tied to our past. Longfellow suggests that while physical structures may deteriorate,
the memories embedded within them persist, haunting the empty spaces and preserving the essence of
what once was.

In conclusion, “Haunted Houses” is a poignant exploration of nostalgia, time’s relentless passage, and
the enduring power of memories. Through vivid imagery and reflective verses, Longfellow crafts a
hauntingly beautiful portrayal of a forsaken house, urging readers to ponder the transient nature of life
and the emotional weight of the past.”

Explanation: (Based on 4 lines consecutively of the poem in each paragraph of this explanation )

The poet says that houses are dwelling places where men are born, they live and then, they die. He says
that these houses are haunted by ghosts. These ghosts enter through the doors when they remain open.
They move so lightly and smoothly that they do not make any noise. They are harmless ghosts who
roam around doing their work.

He adds that they are present everywhere -at the door, on the stairs and they move through the
passages. They cannot be touched or felt but their impressions remain in the air. One can feel the
movement of something in the air.
He again insists on their presence at the dining table. The number of guests is more than the host has
invited, the ghosts being the uninvited guests. The hall is well lit and is full of harmless ghosts who are
silent. The poet compares them to the paintings on the wall to say that the ghosts are quiet in a similar
manner.

The poet says that there is a stranger sitting next to him by the fireplace. That person cannot see these
ghostly forms nor can he hear the sounds that the poet can hear. The stranger can only see the living –
the present while the potent can see everything from the past till date. Here, we get an indication that
perhaps, the speaker is a ghost because he can see other ghosts while the stranger sitting next to him is
a human.

The ghosts do not own the houses at present but they owned them in the past, when they were alive.
They are buried in the graves and have been forgotten by their descendants. Form these graves, they
stretch out their hands which are full of dust where they lie. Their dusty hands still want to take over or
possess these houses (properties) which they once owned. They want to possess them and do not want
to give away these to their descendants.

There exists a world of the living. This world is surrounded by a world of the dead or the ghosts. This
world of the ghosts is similar to the atmosphere which is prevalent everywhere. The world of the dead
mingles lightly with the world of the living through the mist and dense vapours in the air. This world of
the dead is an important part of the worldly atmosphere.

There is a balance in our lives – between the desire to enjoy life and the more virtuous desire to achieve.
So, this dilemma develops a balance in human life.

Human life is full of desires which lead to mental disturbance. We have desires and ambitions which
make us sad. Our human mind and thought process is also controlled by a mysterious star, an unknown
planet in the sky.

The moonlight which travels from the moon to the earth is like a bridge of light. It trembles in the air
and at night, during our dreams, it gives us imaginations which are the guiding factor for our actions.

This moon light is a connection between the world of spirits and the world of the living. The bridge
trembles and waivers and along with it, our thoughts also travel into mysterious regions. These great
mysterious thoughts and ideas come to our mind in the form of dreams and guide us towards the
actions and deeds.

Reference to Context:

PASSAGE-1

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"All houses wherein men have lived and died

Are haunted houses. Through the open doors

The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,

With feet that make no sound upon the floors"

(i) What does the poet mean by the first sentence of the extract?

Ans. It means that all houses are visited by the ghosts of those who once lived there.

(ii) In what way are all houses ‘haunted’?

Ans. They are haunted because the ghosts of those who lived there visit these houses.

(iii) Why is the phrase ‘harmless phantoms’ unusual?

Ans. The general perception is that ghosts are evil and they harm the living. So this phrase is unusual.

(iv) What kind of the spirit-world is conceived by the poet later in the context?

Ans. It is present everywhere like the atmosphere.

(v) Where can we, according to the poet, meet ghosts?

Ans. At the doorway, stairs and passages

PASSAGE-2

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"We meet them at the doorway, on the stair,

Along the passages they come and go,

Impalpable impressions on the air,

A sense of something moving to and fro."

(i) Who are the uninvited guests at table?

Ans. The inoffensive ghosts

(ii) Why are they there uninvited?

Ans. They are not a part of the living world, the descendents have forgotten them and so, they are not
invited.

(iii) What is surprising about these uninvited ghosts?

Ans. They are harmless.

(iv) What is meant by “As silent as the pictures on the wall”?

Ans. The ghosts are absolutely silent just like a picture hanging on the wall does not make any sound.

(v) What can the speaker see and hear which others cannot?

Ans. He can see and hear the ghosts.

PASSAGE-3

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"There are more guests at table than the hosts

Invited ; the illuminated hall

Is thronged with quiet, inoffensive ghosts,

As silent as the pictures on the wall."

(i) Who are the uninvited guests at table?

Ans. The inoffensive ghosts

(ii) Why are they there uninvited?

Ans. They are not a part of the living world, the descendents have forgotten them and so, they are not
invited.

(iii) What is surprising about these uninvited ghosts?

Ans. They are harmless.

(iv) What is meant by “As silent as the pictures on the wall”?

Ans. The ghosts are absolutely silent just like a picture hanging on the wall does not make any sound.

(v) What can the speaker see and hear which others cannot?

Ans. He can see and hear the ghosts.

PASSAGE-4

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"The stranger at my fireside cannot see

The forms I see, nor hear the sounds I hear;

He but perceives what is; while unto me

All that has been is visible and clear."

(i) What contrast is made in the first two lines here?

Ans. There is a contrast between the world of the living and the world of the dead.

(ii) What do you think of the extraordinary powers of the speaker?

Ans. He has extraordinary powers to see and hear ghosts because he is one of them.

(iii) What has been told by the speaker about the unseen ‘forms’ earlier in the context?

Ans. They visit the houses where they once lived.

(iv) What does the poet mean by ‘All that has been is visible and clear’?

Ans. He can see all ghosts who lived in the house in the past.

(v) Who is ‘He’ in Line 3? Is he a normal human being?

Ans. He is the present occupant of the house, a normal human being.

PASSAGE-5

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"We have no title-deeds to house or lands;

Owners and occupants of earlier dates

From graves forgotten stretch their dusty hands,

And hold in mortmain still their old estates."

(i) What idea of ghosts is given earlier in the context?

Ans. They are harmless and they visit the houses where they once lived.

(ii) Where can we ‘meet’ the departed spirits?

Ans. They are in the graves but they come out and go to the houses where they once lived.

(iii) Who do not have title-deeds to their ‘house or lands’?

Ans. The ghosts

(iv) What do the departed spirits claim from their graves?

Ans. The permanent ownership of the houses which they once owned and where they were born, they
lived and they died.
(v) Explain the phrase ‘hold in mortmain’.

Ans. To have intransferable ownership

PASSAGE-6

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"The spirit-world around this world of sense

Floats like an atmosphere, and everywhere

Wafts through these earthly mists and vapoursdense

A vital breath of more ethereal air."

(i) Why does the poet describe all houses as haunted earlier in the context?

Ans. All houses are visited by the ghosts of those who once lived there and died there.

(ii) How have the ghosts been described by the poet?

Ans. They are harmless, doing their work.

(iii) What can the speaker see or hear?

Ans. He can see and hear the ghosts.

(iv) What kind of the world of spirits is? How does the poet describe the spirit-worlds?

Ans. It is present everywhere and is wrapped around the world of the living. It mingles into the world of
the living through ther mist and vapours of the air.

(v) What crosses through earthy mists and vapours?

Ans. The ghosts

PASSAGE-7

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"Our little lives are kept in equipoise

By opposite attractions and desires;

The struggle of the instinct that enjoys,

And the more noble instinct that aspires."

(i) Whose lives are being referred to in Line 1?

Ans. They lives of the normal human beings.

(ii) What brings about balance in our short lives?

Ans. The desire to enjoy life and the instinct of achieving our ambitions are two opposite wishes which
create a balance.

(iii) Explain the last two lines of the extract.

Ans. There is a constant struggle between our desire to relax and enjoy life and our ambition to work
hard and achieve.

(iv) State what fills our life with anxieties and fears, later in the poem.

Ans. The constant dilemma of whether to enjoy or work creates anxiety and fear.

(v) Which ‘bridge of light’ connects our world to the heavenly world?

Ans. The moonlight

PASSAGE-8

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"These perturbations, this perpetual jar

Of earthly wants and aspirations high,

Come from the influence of an unseen star

An undiscovered planet in our sky."

(i) What brings about balance in our lives, as mentioned earlier in the context?

Ans. The desire to enjoy life and the instinct of achieving our ambitions are two opposite wishes which
create a balance.

(ii) Explain the metaphor used by the poet in the first two lines.

Ans. The perpetual jar refers to the immortal soul. Our soul is ridden by the constant dilemma to decide
whether to enjoy life and relax or to work hard and achieve.

(iii) What do you mean by ‘earthly wants and aspirations high’?

Ans. The needs of man which make him ambitious

(iv) What are ‘perturbations’?

Ans. Mental disturbance

(v) What is determined by an unseen, undiscovered planet in our sky?

Ans. It gives us ideas and imagination which trigger our actions – either towards enjoyment or towards
achievement.

PASSAGE-9

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"And as the moon from some dark gate of cloud

Throws o’er the sea floating bridge of light,

Across whose trembling planks our fancies crowd

Into the realm of mystery and night,-"

(i) When and how is a ‘bridge of light’ formed?

Ans. The moonlight travels from the sky, over the sea and reaches the living world. Thus a bridge is
formed.

(ii) What is the function of this bridge?

Ans. It connects the two worlds – of the dead and the living.

(iii) Which figure of speech is used in the first two lines here?

Ans. Personification

(iv) Where does our fancy take us?

Ans. Fancy takes us into a mysterious region through our dreams and imaginations.

(v) Which realm is the poet talking about in this extract?

Ans. Realm of imaginations.

PASSAGE-10

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :

"So from the world of spirits there descends

A bridge of light, connecting it with this,

O’er whose unsteady floor, that sways and bends,

Wander our thoughts above the dark abyss."

(i) What has the poet told us about the world of spirits?

Ans. It is harmless, present everywhere.

(ii) Where can we ‘meet’ the departed spirits?

Ans. The departed spirits visit the houses where they once lived

(iii) What is the significance of ‘So’ in Line 1?

Ans. It concludes the previous ideas.

(iv) Which bridge descends from the world of spirits? What has it been compared to?

Ans. A bridge of light comes down from the world of the dead. It is compared to the moonlight.

(v) What do we often think of?

Ans. We think of enjoying life and of achieving our ambitions.

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More QAs:

Q) What is the central idea of the poem haunted house?

Ans: The poem is actually a comforting and sentimental meditation on the transience of the material
and the permanence of the spiritual; its message is that our loved ones always remain with us, in our
thoughts and memories; their presence doesn't diminish even long after they're gone from this physical
plane.