SORROW
‘There was a man, whom Sorrow named his friend,
And he, of his high comrade sorrow dreaming,
Went walking with slow steps along the gleaming
And humming sand, where windy surges wend;
And he called loudly to the stars to bend
From their pale thrones and comfort him, but they
Among themselves laugh on and sing away.’
Tim sea, hear my most piteous story
The sea swept on and cried her old cry still,
Rolling along in dreams from hill to hill.’
‘He, in a far off, gentle valley stopping,
Cried all his story to the dew drops glistening.
But nought they held for they are always listening.
The dewdrops, for the sound of their own dropping.
`The man sought once again the shore, and found a shell,
And though, I will my heavy story tell
Till my own words, re-echoing shall send
Their sadness through a hollow, pearly heart:
And my own tale again for me shall sing.
And my own whispering words be comforting,
And lo! my ancient burden may depart.
And then he sang softly nigh the pearly rim;
But the sad dweller by the sea-ways lone
Changed all he sang to inarticulate moan
Among her wildering whirls, forgetting him.
— WB Yeats
Word-Meanings
1.gleaming: shining with a pale clear light 2. humming: murmuring 3. glistening: shining 4. whispering: speaking quietly 5. inarticulate: not able to express feelings or ideas 6. whirls: to spin or turn rapidly 7. nought: naught — nothing 8. wend : to pursue or direct one’s course 9. surges : a strong, wavelike, forward movement 10. piteous : distressing, miserable 11. sought : to go to 12. wildering: a plant that has run wild or escaped cultivation
Questions:
1. Choose the correct option:
(a) The poem sends a message of truth which is …………
 (i) personal               (ii) related to man only
(iii) animals                (iv) related to one and all
 (b) The echo of the shell is lost in the roar of the ………….
 (i) clouds                  (ii) river waves
 (iii) sea waves           (iv) falling rain
(c) The word ‘humming’ means :
 (i) singing song          (ii) producing a low sound
 (iii) weeping              (iv) sighing
(d) The word ‘dim’ is a/an…………..
(i) noun                       (ii) article
(iii) adjective              (iv) verb
 (e) An appropriate title of the poem is:
(i) Sea Shore.              (ii) Sad Man
(iii) Sad Nature           (iv) Indifference
 (f) The word ‘nigh’ means:
(i) no                           (ii) near
(iii) far away              (iv) not seenÂ
2.Answer the questions briefly:
 (a) To whom does the poet address his grief initially?
 (b) What is the reaction of those on the pale thrones?
(c) Why did the dew drops not listen to the poet’s story?
 (d) Where did the mango and what did he find?
 (e) Who engulfed the song of the man?
 (f) What is the theme of the poem?
Answers:
1.(a) iv        (b) iii         (c) ii           (d) iii           (e) iv         (f) ii
2.(a) Initially, the poet addresses his grief to the shining stars.
 (b) The stars sitting on their pale thrones simply laughed away singing joyfully, all unconcerned.
 (c) The dew drops were absorbed in the music of their own creation and hence, they didn’t listen to the poet’s story.
 (d) The man went to the seashore and found a shell.
 (e) The larger song of the sea engulfed the song of the man.
(f) The poem captures the theme that there is universal indifference to individual suffering. No one is interested in your sorrows.
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