My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold
William Wordsworth
Class : 11 | The Magic of Words
Summary
This poem is composed by William Wordsworth. In this poem, the poet has expressed his feeling about natural beauty of rainbow and recollected an experience of his childhood days. According to this poem, the poet says that his heart begins to beat when he sees a rainbow in the sky. He compares his life with rainbow of the sky. He is standing on the earth as the rainbow in the sky. The poet says that he was born with rainbow because when he was born, it was there and it still remains there. He believes that the rainbow will remain there throughout his life. The poet presents the continuity of life and nature from past to future. In this poem, the rainbow gives the continuation of nature and human life. He really expresses that present is the result of the past and future is the outcome of present. Wordsworth is the worshiper of nature. According to him nature is both God and religion. The paradoxical line," the child is the father of the Man", has made the poem interesting. It is true because this can have different meanings. One meaning is that the things we do as children, and the things we feel as children, affect and control the way we feel when we are adults. It means that child is the beginning of man. The man is greatly affected by his childhood. As morning shows the day like the child is the father of the man. Therefore, the poet wishes that his days would be bounded by natural piety. He says that natural beauty is unforgettable. He praises the nature. The poet wants to escape from present life and wants to enjoy from his childhood days. He spends his life in nature. It means that the system of life should be bound in the circle of nature. Life is moral nature is immortal. Death is certain but nature is not faced with death.
Important Questions
1. Explain the paradox `The Child is the father of Man.'
Ans: In this poem the poet William Wordsworth says," The child is the father of man". He wants to say that present is the outcome of past. According to him, the child grows up and becomes father. Manhood is outcome of the childhood. So, the poet says this statement. This paradox might have different meaning. The poet might have said that the child is innocent. We can learn many things from the child who never lies. In reality, we try to learn from father. We can also say that a man can be younger by age but may be more matured by mind that is what the poet wants to express through this paradox.
2. Why does the heart of the poet leap up when he sees a rainbow in the sky?
Ans: The poet William Wordsworth is identified as a nature loving poet. He enjoys on nature and natural things. The poet was the worshipper of the nature. He enjoys the scenic beauty of nature. He saw the same rainbow when he was a child. It is the same as in the past. It will remain the same but the poet will die soon. Here, the rainbow symbolizes the continuation in his life but it is not possible. So, his heart leaps up.
Questions for Practice
1) Explain what William Wordsworth means by "Natural piety" that binds every day.
2) Write a critical appreciation of the poem "My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold".
3) Give a summary of "My Heart Leaps Up" and add your impressions about the poem.
4) Give a summary of "My Hearts Leaps UP Again." Explain what it means when poet says that child is man's father.
5) Summarize the poem "My heart Leaps up When I behold" in a paragraph.
6) Give the main idea of Wordsworth's poem "My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold"
7) Why does William Wordsworth wants his heart to leap up when he sees a rainbow as an old man?
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English