TSL581

LITERARY TEXTS IN
MALAYSIAN SCHOOL
Fazilah Binti Md. Daud
Alyani Binti Baharudin
Nuraingnee Binti Ya

Lake Isle of Innisfree

The "Lake Isle of Innisfree" is a poem written
by William Butler Yeats about an island in Lough Gill. It
was contained in a collection of his poetry titled The
Countess Kathleen and Various Legends and
Lyrics published in 1893.
Biography of Poet
William Butler Yeats (1865 1939 )

Born Ireland
Died France

Fell in love with Maud Gonne, an Irish Nationalist who faught
for social justive. His love was not returned. He remained heartbroken
till he was 52 years old, the age when he finally got married.

Even though he was of English origin, he loved Ireland very much
and thought of himself as an Irishman. His father, John Butler Yeats,
was also an artist and encouraged him to write poetry. Being a patriotic Irishman,
he wrote many poems on the beauty of Ireland, its magix, folklore
and political scenario. Apart from that he wrote many poems
to Maud Gonne, hoping for her love in return.

Accomplishments :-
Won the Nobel Prize for Literature (1923)
Member of Irish Senate (1922 1928)
Referred to as the greatest Irish poet

The Lake Isle of Innesfree
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping
slow
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket
sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evenings full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear the lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
Slide 14
Glossary
Arise wake up and go
Wattles sticks twisted together as a
material for making fences, walls
Bee-loud glade a small open area of
grass in a forest
Veils a thin layer that stops one from
seeing something
Glimmer a faint unsteady light
Glossary (cont)
Linnet a small brown and grey bird of the
FINCH family
Lapping touching something gently and
regularly, often making a soft sound
Pavements a flat part at the side of a road for
people to walk on.
Urge a strong desire to do something
Natural heritage the natural environment, the
environment that we inherit

Understanding The Poem

First stanza
Yeats imagines building a tiny hut on the little island of Inisfree. He dreams of living
on beans and honey which he will cultivate himself. Obviously he is unrealistic. He
also wants to get away from people: live alone.

Second stanza
Yeats imagines finding harmony on the island:
And I shall have some peace there.
He dreams further of living in a delightful climate there:
noon a purple glow.
He also dreams of listening to songbirds at dusk:
evening full of the linnet's wings.

Third stanza
The thought and action develops. Yeats states his decision to leave the pavements
grey of London. He is obsessed with or crazed by the sound of lake water and has to
leave the city. Finally he admits that he has a deep need to live in a beautiful place
encircled by the sound of water:
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
Themes
The poet dreams of moving away from the city to live alone on an
island:
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree.
Note how the repetition of go emphasises his wish to travel away
from the city.

The poet wishes to escape to a beautiful place with wonderful light
and colours:
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow.
Note how the repeated i and o sounds make it seem like a musical
place.

The poet celebrates the beauty of a private place on a country lake:
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore.
Note how the repeated l sound adds to the beauty of the situation.

Tones
Sometimes the tone is determined:
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree.
Note how the repetition of go emphasises his wish to depart.

Sometimes the tone is dreamy:
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made.
The clay and wattles show that he is unrealistic about his comfort and therefore a
dreamer.

Sometimes the tone is soft and warm [mellow]:
for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the mourning to where the cricket sings.
This image of peace pouring from the morning mist and lasting till dusk when the
cricket sings is very mellow. The repetition of dropping makes it very mellow.

Sometimes the tone is bleak and sad:
the pavements grey.
By placing grey after pavement Yeats is emphasising how much it depresses him.
He reveals a lonesome tone as he refers to the streets and pavements.

IMAGERY
Sense of sight
a small cabin, clay and wattles, bean-
rows, hive for the honeybee, glade,
cricket, midnight, glimmer, purple,
evening, linnets wings, night & day,
lake water, shore, roadway,
pavements, grey
Sense of Touch
clay, wattles, veils of the morning
IMAGERY (cont)
Sense of Hearing
bee-loud glade, cricket sings, linnets
wings, water lapping, hear it in the deep
hearts core
Sense of Smell
honey
Sense of Taste
honey
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Alliteration [the repetition of first letters]:

lake water lapping with low sounds by the
shore.
The l and s sounds here show alliteration and
create music.

Note the 4 l sounds also in this quote:
live alone in the bee-loud glade

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE (cont)
Assonance [repetition of vowels]:
Note the ea' and ee sounds in I hear it in the
deep heart's core.
These sounds reveal a tone or mood of longing
in the poet.

Rhyming [The words of the first and third lines
rhyme and the words of the second and fourth
lines rhyme in each stanza]:
The end sounds in the first stanza are as
follows:
ee, ade, ee, ade.
The Lake Isle of Innesfree
Metaphor
The poet uses this to compare two or
more things without using the words
'like' or 'as', e.g. 'peace (evening) comes
dropping slow', veils of the morning.
Moral Values
The poem deals with nature and the
environment.
From the poem, we learn that it is
important to appreciate nature. Nature has
many wonders to offer but as human
beings we take them for granted
We must learn to be close to nature and
enjoy its beauty