Summary of Poem A Slumber did my Spirit Seal by William Wordsworth Class 9 English NCERT
Introduction of A Slumber did my Spirit SealThis poem is about the death of a loved one of William Wordsworth. How does the poet think when he thinks about her death? How does he feel grieved? How it makes his soul a seal and what makes him relieved and at peace is the theme of this poem? The poet refers to death which is a permanent sleep. The poet did not realize when his beloved Lucy slept forever i.e. she died. She had taken life for granted and realized this harsh truth of life after her death.
Summary of A Slumber did my Spirit Seal
The poet admits that he was in a sort of a deep sleep because he did not fear the harsh reality of life. He had taken life for granted and had never thought that one day death could separate him from his beloved Lucy. For him she was like an immortal goddess who was unaffected by age and mortality As she is dead, she lies motionless. She cannot hear or see. She has been buried in the earth and rotates along with the Earth. One day she will get assimilated with the trees, rocks and stones that are a part of the earth.
Stanza 1
A slumber did my spirit seal -
I had no human fears.
She seemed a thing that could not feel
The touch of earthly years.
The poet's soul had drifted into deep sleep as he did not have any realization of the truth. He had taken life for granted and had never thought that one day death would take Lucy away from him. When she was taken away, he could not bear the loss.
Stanza 2
No motion has she now, no force -
She neither hears nor sees,
Rolled round in earth's diurnal course
With rocks and stones and trees.
The poet accepts the truth that Lucy is no more. She is motionless, lifeless. She cannot see nor hear. She has been buried in the earth. She will assimilate into the earth and is rotating along with the earth. One day she will become one with the rocks, stones and trees that are a part of the Earth..
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