NCERT Solutions for Class 9th: The Lake Isle of Innisfree (Poem) Beehive
English
William Butler Yeats
Page No: 54
Thinking about Poem
I.
1. What kind of place is Innisfree? Think about:
(i) the three things the poet wants to do when he goes back there
(stanza I);
(ii) what he hears and sees there and its effect on him (stanza II);
(iii) what he hears in his “heart’s core” even when he is far away
from Innisfree (stanza III).
Answer
1. (i) (a) The poet wants to build a small cabin of clay and wattles.
(b) He wants to plant nine rows of beans.
(c) He wants to keep honey bees hive.
(ii) (a) He hears the cricket’s song.
(b) He holds linnets flying in the sky.
(c) He sees glimmering midnight and glowing rooms.
(iii) When the poet is far away from Innisfree he hears the sound of the
lake water washing the shore in his “heart's core”.
2. By now you may have concluded that Innisfree is a simple, natural
place, full of beauty and peace. How does the poet contrast it with
where he now stands? (Read stanza III).
Answer
The poet contrasts the clay and wattle made cabin, bee loud glade,
morning with dews and crickets songs, midnight with glimmer, noon
with purple glow, evenings with linnet’s songs lake water lapping with
low sounds by the shore etc.
3. Do you think Innisfree is only a place, or a state of mind? Does the
poet actually miss the place of his boyhood days?
Answer
Although Innisfree is the poet’s boyhood haunt, it also represents his
state of mind. The poet wishes to escape to Innisfree as it is more
peaceful than where he is now−the city. Innisfree is representative of
what the poet considers an ideal place to live, which is devoid of the
restless humdrum of his life.
Yes, the poet actually misses the place of his boyhood days. Even when
he is away from Innisfree , he recalls the sound of the lake water
washing the shore.
Page No: 55
II.
1. Look at the words the poet uses to describe what he sees and hears
at
Innisfree
(i) Bee-loud glade
(ii) Evenings full of the linnet’s wings
(iii) Lake water lapping with low sounds
What pictures do these words create in your mind?
Answer
(i) These words bring to our minds the image of buzzing bees.
(ii) These words bring up the image of linnets flying across an evening
sky.
(iii) These words evoke not only the image but also the soft sound of
a lake's water washing the shore.
2. Look at these words:
...peace comes dropping slow
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings
What do these words mean to you? What do you think “comes dropping
slow...from the veils of the morning”? What does “to where the cricket
sings” mean?
Answer
The given lines indicate that peace of mind can be slowly acquired from
the natural surroundings.
It is peace that “comes dropping slow...from the veils of the morning”.
The phrase “to where the cricket sings” indicates a peaceful place
where one can hear the vibrant sounds of nature− sounds such as the
songs of the crickets at the time of dawn.
