We Are Seven

WORD MEANING OF THE POEM

 

1. Clustered - Hung round in curls

2. Rustic - lacking refinement or polish, simple, artless

3. Wildly – not clothed fashionably

4. Woodland air - having something wild about her looks

5. Churchyard – the area round a church where the dead are buried

6. Laid – buried

7. Hem – stitch the border

8. Porringer – a small cup in which children eat their porridge etc. Clustered Hem Porringer Churchyard

9. God released her of pain - Death came to her and put an end to her pain

10. Throwing words away – It was useless to argue with her

11. Crude - in a natural or raw state

QUESTION/ ANSWER OF THE POEM

 

Q1. - Describe the child the poet met.

A1.- The poet met an innocent little girl of eight years.

Q2. - What was the talk between the poet and the child in the poem?

A2.-”We are Seven" is a poem written by William Wordsworth .There was a discussion between an adult poetic speaker and a "little cottage girl" about the number of brothers and sisters who lived with her.

Q3.-How did the poet try to tell her dead brother and sister were no more?

A3. - The poet tried to make her understand that if two were in the churchyard they were now five and not seven. They had left the world forever. They were in heaven.

Q.-Was the poet able to convince the girl?

A4. - No, the poet was not convinced the girl.

Q5.-Explain why this poem appeals to you.

A5. - Because this poem convey an idea that the death of the physical body is not the end of a person's existence.

Q6. - How many siblings did the little girl have?

A6. - The little girl had six siblings.

Q7.-Where were the graves of John and Jane?

A7. - The graves of John and Jane were in the churchyard.

Q8.-Who does the little girl represent in this poem?

A8. - The little girl represents all children in this poem.

Q9. - What does the poem bring out?

A9. - The poem brings out the idea of innocence of childhood.

Q10. - Where did the little girl live?

A10. - The little girl lived in the churchyard cottage.

ABOUT THE POET -WILLIAM WORDSWORTH

 

William Wordsworth (7 April 1770 – 23 April 1850) was an English Romanti poet . Wordsworth is a nature poet, a fact known to every reader of Wordsworth. He is a supreme worshipper of Nature. He conceived Nature as a living personality. One of England's most beloved poets and a pioneer of Romanticism, William Wordsworth was made Poet Laureate in 1843.

 

INTRODUCTION OF THE POEM

 

An innocent child, the little girl in the poem who does not understand the meaning of death. She had six brothers and sisters. Two of them had died. They lay in their graves in the churchyard. But her dead sister and brother are alive even though they are buried in the earth for her. She visits them, sings to them, sits for hours near their graves.

 

A simple child,

That lightly draws its breath,

And feels its life in every limb,

What should it know of death?

I met a little cottage girl:

She was eight years old, she said;

Her hair was thick with many a curl

That clustered round her head.

She had a rustic, woodland air,

And she was wildly clad:

Her eyes were fair, and very fair;

—Her beauty made me glad.

"Sisters and brothers, little maid,

How many may you be?"

"How many? Seven in all," she said,

And wondering looked at me.

"And where are they? I pray you tell."

She answered, "Seven are we;

And two of us at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea.

"Two of us in the churchyard lie,

My sister and my brother;

And, in the churchyard cottage, I

Dwell near them with my mother."

"You say that two at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea,

Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,

Sweet maid, how this may be."

Then did the little maid reply,

"Seven boys and girls are we;

Two of us in the churchyard lie,

Beneath the churchyard tree."

"You run about, my little maid,

Your limbs they are alive;

If two are in the churchyard laid,

Then ye are only five."

"Their graves are green, they may be seen,"

The little maid replied,

"Twelve steps or more from my mother's door,

And they are side by side.

"My stockings there I often knit,

My kerchief there I hem;

And there upon the ground I sit,

And sing a song to them.

"And often after sunset, sir,

When it is light and fair,

I take my little porringer,

And eat my supper there.

"The first that died was sister Jane;

In bed she moaning lay,

Till God released her of her pain;

And then she went away.

"So in the churchyard she was laid;

And, when the grass was dry,

Together round her grave we played,

My brother John and I.

"And when the ground was white with snow

And I could run and slide,

My brother John was forced to go,

And he lies by her side."

"How many are you, then," said I,

"If they two are in heaven?"

Quick was the little maid's reply,

"O master! we are seven."

"But they are dead; those two are dead!

Their spirits are in heaven!"

'Twas throwing words away; for still

The little maid would have her will,

And said, ‘Nay, we are seven’.

 

Lines 1-16

A simple child,

That lightly draws its breath,

And feels its life in every limb,

What should it know of death?

I met a little cottage girl:

She was eight years old, she said;

Her hair was thick with many a curl

That clustered round her head.

She had a rustic, woodland air,

And she was wildly clad:

Her eyes were fair, and very fair;

—Her beauty made me glad.

"Sisters and brothers, little maid,

How many may you be?"

"How many? Seven in all," she said,

And wondering looked at me.

 

EXPLANATION OF THE POEM

 

Ref. to the Context- These lines have been taken from the poem ‘We Are Seven’ written by William Wordsworth. Here poet brings out the sweet innocence of childhood.

Explanation – In these lines the poet gives us a picture of an innocent child. That takes lightly its breath and who is full of life. He is asking what a simple child who is full of life could know about death. Once he met a little cottage girl. She was eight years old and had thick curly hair. Her curls hung around her head. She is crude but very beautiful. She is rustic and woodsy (relating to or characteristic of wood or woodland), but very beautiful, and she made the poet happy. He asked her how many siblings she had. She wondered and replied that they were seven including her.

 

Lines 17- 32

"And where are they? I pray you tell."

She answered, "Seven are we;

And two of us at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea.

"Two of us in the churchyard lie,

My sister and my brother;

And, in the churchyard cottage, I

Dwell near them with my mother."

"You say that two at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea,

Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,

Sweet maid, how this may be."

Then did the little maid reply,

"Seven boys and girls are we;

Two of us in the churchyard lie,

Beneath the churchyard tree."

 

 

 

EXPLANATION OF THE POEM

 

Ref. to the Context- These lines have been taken from the poem ‘We Are Seven’ written by William Wordsworth. Here poet brings out the sweet innocence of childhood.

Explanation – In these lines the poet/the speaker then asked the child where her brothers and sisters were. She answered that they were seven. Two of them lived at Conway. Two had gone to the sea. The remaining lay in the church-yard. One of them was her sister and the other was her brother. She told the poet that she and her mother lived in the churchyard cottage near the graves of her sister and brother. She did not know what is death. The poet is confused and asked her how they could be seven, if two were in Conway and two had gone to sea. To this, the little girl simply replied that were seven boys and girls. She said that the remaining two lay in the churchyard, beneath a tree.

 

EXPLANATION OF THE POEM

 

Lines 33-48

"You run about, my little maid,

Your limbs they are alive;

If two are in the churchyard laid,

Then ye are only five."

"Their graves are green, they may be seen,"

The little maid replied,

"Twelve steps or more from my mother's door,

And they are side by side.

"My stockings there I often knit,

My kerchief there I hem;

And there upon the ground I sit,

And sing a song to them.

"And often after sunset, sir,

When it is light and fair,

I take my little porringer,

And eat my supper there.

Ref. to the Context- These lines have been taken from the poem ‘We Are

Seven’ written by William Wordsworth. Here poet brings out the sweet innocence of childhood.

Explanation – In these lines the poet /the speaker said that the little girl still said that they were seven in all. The poet tried to make her understand that if two were in the churchyard they were now five and not seven. He told her that while she could run about, her brother and sister could not. They had become lifeless. They were dead and gone. But the little girl told him that their graves were green and just twelve steps from their house. She then describes her interactions with them, claiming she often sat near the graves and knitted her stockings and sew handkerchiefs. She sat on the ground to sing to them. She also told that she often took her supper out to the church yard to eat with them.

EXPLANATION OF THE POEM

 

Lines 49- 60

"The first that died was sister Jane;

In bed she moaning lay,

Till God released her of her pain;

And then she went away.

"So in the churchyard she was laid;

And, when the grass was dry,

 

Together round her grave we played,

My brother John and I.

"And when the ground was white with snow

And I could run and slide,

My brother John was forced to go,

And he lies by her side."

 

Ref. to the Context- These lines have been taken from the poem ‘We Are Seven’ written by William Wordsworth. Here poet brings out the sweet innocence of childhood.

Explanation – In these lines the little girl explained that first her sister Jane died from sickness. She lay in her bed crying with pain. The little girl said that God released her sister of her pain and then she went away. She was laid to rest in the church grave yard. That was in summer when the grass was dry. She described how her brother John and she played around her grave. When the winter came and snow covered the area, the girl ran and slid above the ice. But, John fell ill, and he died from the effect of a disease. Now he lies next to Jane.

EXPLANATION OF THE POEM

 

Lines 61-69

"How many are you, then," said I,

"If they two are in heaven?"

Quick was the little maid's reply,

"O master! we are seven. “

"But they are dead; those two are dead!

Their spirits are in heaven!"

'Twas throwing words away; for still

The little maid would have her will,

And said, ‘Nay, we are seven’.

 

Ref. to the Context- These lines have been taken from the poem ‘We Are Seven’ written by William Wordsworth. Here poet brings out the sweet innocence of childhood.

Explanation – In these lines the poet asked the little girl that how many siblings she had. The little girl said that they were seven in all. She did not know the meaning of death. She talked of her dead brother and sister as if they were alive. She counted them with the living ones. The poet tried to make her understand the meaning of death. They had left the world forever. They were in heaven. But when he asked again how many they were. She quickly replied, ‘We are seven’. The little girl was too innocent to understand the meaning of death.

Now the poet was frustrated. He said but they are dead and their spirits were in heaven. But the girl did not seem aware of her loss. His attempt to make her understand her loss was in vain. The poet found it useless to argue with her. It was like throwing words away. The girl would have her way and said as confidently as ever that they were seven!

SUMMARY OF THE POEM

 

Once the poet met a little cottage girl. She was eight years old and had thick curly hair. Her beauty made the poet happy. He asked her how many siblings she had. She replied that they were seven including her. The poet asked the child where her brothers and sisters were. She answered that they were seven. Two of them lived at Conway. Two had gone to the sea. The remaining lay in the church-yard. One of them was her sister and the other was her brother. She told the poet that she and her mother lived in the churchyard cottage near the graves of her sister and brother. The poet tried to make her understand that if two were in the churchyard they were now five and not seven. But she still replied, ‘We are seven’. The poet found it useless to argue with her. The little girl was too innocent to understand the meaning of death. Really childhood is a period of sweet innocence.