STEVIE SMITH

AWAY, MELANCHOLY
Definition of ‘melancholy’
Sadness or depression of mind or
spirit.
 SANDRO BOTICCELI
LONELINESS, OR
MELANCHOLY (1488)

Discussion Task:
What do you think might have
happened before this scene?
Why might the central character
be upset, do you think?
What visual clues in the image
draw you to these conclusions?
EDVARD MUNCH - MELANCHOLY (1894) Individual
Writing
Task:
How do the
colours in this
image make you
feel?
How does the
central character
of the image
seem to be
feeling?
Write a short
paragraph
expressing this
man‘s thoughts.
EDVARD MUNCH – THE SICK
CHILD (1920)

The image shows a weak, pale young girl in bed

with an older woman, believed to be her aunt,
sitting in grief by her side. Munch’s sister Johanne
Sophie died of tuberculosis at the age of 15, which
is what he references and returns to in these
paintings. He himself also almost died of the
infectious disease, and it’s believed that the image
records his despair as well as guilt that he was the
one to survive instead of his sister.

Vocabulary Task:
Using a dictionary/thesaurus produce
a list of at least 10 words that define
the emotions of the image.
 EDVARD
MUNCH – THE
DANCE OF
LIFE 1925

Discussion
Task:
What is the
message
here, and
how does it
differ from
the The Dance of Life shows couples dancing under the moon on a summer’s evening.
previous The focus point of the painting is the couple in the middle, believed to be Munch
paintings, and the love of his life, Tulla Larsen. The image as a whole tells a story of human
do you experience, and the two women facing the couple on each side represent the
think? different stages of a woman’s life. The one on the left, reaching for the flower in her
white dress, represents child-like innocence looking forward, and the woman in dark
colors shows a mature figure looking back at the couple mournfully. This is a great
example of the painter’s emotional sensibility and somewhat melancholic outlook
on life and love.
 CLAUDE MONET–
THE TRUTH OF NATURE (1899)

Read this except from today’s poem

and discuss what the author might be
saying about melancholy.

Are not the trees green,The

earth as green?Does not the
wind blow,Fire leap and the
rivers flow?Away,
melancholy.
Read this except from today’s
poem and discuss what the author
might be saying about melancholy.

The ant is busyHe

carrieth his meat,All

things hurryTo be eaten

or eat.Away,

melancholy.
Man of all creaturesIs
superlative(Away
melancholy)He of all
creatures aloneRaiseth a
stone(Away melancholy)
Into the stone, the god
Pours what he knows of
goodCalling, good, God.
Away melancholy, let it go.

Read this except from today’s poem and discuss what the
author might be saying about strength, resilience and
goodness.
Speak not to me of tears,
Tyranny, pox, wars,Saying,
Can GodStone of man’s
thoughts, be good?Say
rather it is enoughThat the
stuffedStone of man’s good,
growing,By man’s called
God.

Read this except from today’s poem and discuss what the
author might be saying about our ability to grow and
change.
Man aspiresTo good,To love
Sighs;
Beaten, corrupted, dyingIn
his own blood lyingYet
heaves up an eye above
Cries, Love, love.It is his
virtue needs explaining,Not
his failing.

Read this except from today’s poem and discuss what the
author might be saying about our ability to find light in
any darkness we may face throughout life.
Away, melancholy,Away with it,
let it go.
Are not the trees green,The
earth as green?Does not the
wind blow,Fire leap and the
rivers flow?Away, melancholy.
The ant is busyHe carrieth his
meat,All things hurryTo be
eaten or eat.Away, melancholy.
Man, too, hurries,Eats, couples,
buries,He is an animal alsoWith
a hey ho melancholy,Away with
it, let it go.
Man of all creaturesIs Man aspiresTo good,To loveSighs;
superlative(Away melancholy) Beaten, corrupted, dyingIn his own
He of all creatures aloneRaiseth blood lyingYet heaves up an eye
a stone(Away melancholy)Into aboveCries, Love, love.It is his virtue
the stone, the godPours what needs explaining,Not his failing.
he knows of goodCalling, good, Away, melancholy,Away with it, let i
God.Away melancholy, let it go. go
Speak not to me of tears,Tyranny,
pox, wars,Saying, Can GodStone of
man’s thoughts, be good?Say
rather it is enoughThat the stuffed
Stone of man’s good, growing,By
man’s called God.Away,
melancholy, let it go.
 therapy ant imagery sense living
s world

Potential Meaning and Purpose of The Poem

‘Away, Melancholy’ is an emotional poem in which the poet conveys __________________________________ in
the face of __________________, or specifically _____________________. It is fundamentally about finding
light in the darkness.
Throughout, Smith uses powerful _________________ that taps into multiple _____________________, in
order to remind the reader of the innate __________________________________________they live in.
The poem takes the reader through the basic reasons why the speaker believes there’s no reason to feel
melancholy. She taps into humanity’s goodness, its ________________________, and resilience. Humans, she
reminds the reader, are also animals and are just as much a part of the instinctual natural world as an
___________________ is.
In ‘Away, Melancholy,’ the poet explores the prominent theme of nature. Throughout natural images, the poet sets
the poem up to remind the reader of the basic beauty of the ________________________________. She uses
an ant, the wind, and the rain to express ways of helping to relieve someone’s melancholy. Nature acts as a kind
_______________________________ here.

her argument for melanchol beauty of the sorrow strength

positivity y world
Potential Meaning and Purpose of The Poem
‘Away, Melancholy’ is an emotional poem in which the poet conveys her argument for positivity in the face of
sorrow, or specifically melancholy. It is fundamentally about finding light in the darkness.
Throughout, Smith uses powerful imagery that taps into multiple senses, in order to remind the reader of the innate
beauty of the world they live in.
The poem takes the reader through the basic reasons why the speaker believes there’s no reason to feel
melancholy. She taps into humanity’s basic, decent nature, its strength, and goodness. Humans, she reminds the
reader, are also animals and are just as much a part of the instinctual natural world as an ant is.
In ‘Away, Melancholy,’ the poet explores the prominent theme of nature. Throughout natural images, the poet sets
the poem up to remind the reader of the basic beauty of the living world. She uses an ant, the wind, and the rain,
as a way to bring someone’s melancholy back around reality. Nature acts as a kind therapy here.

Away, melancholy,Away with it,
let it go.
Are not the trees green,The
earth as green?Does not the
wind blow,Fire leap and the
rivers flow?Away melancholy.
The ant is busyHe carrieth his
meat,All things hurryTo be
eaten or eat.Away, melancholy.
Man, too, hurries,Eats, couples,
buries,He is an animal alsoWith
a hey ho melancholy,Away with
it, let it go.
She personifies “melancholy” and casts it off. She’s willing it
away with the effort of her words, asking herself, and anyone
listening to “let it go.”
The trees are green, the wind blows, and the rivers flow. The
elements of the world are aligned and working just as they
always do. This is something to take pleasure and comfort in. It
should be enough to banish any sense of melancholy.
Everything, like the ant, is going about its business. It’s ready to
“be eaten or eat.” The ant is not sad, so why should we be?
The refrain of “away, melancholy” at the end of the stanza feels
like an invocation of goodwill. It becomes a mantra. 
The fourth stanza connects the behavior of the ant and the
broader animal world to the human world.
Humans are also animals and have instincts and simple joys to
fill their lives with. The use of the musical “hey ho” in the fourth
line means that the poet creates a perfect rhyme with “also” and
“go” in the preceding and the following line. This lifts the
whole tone of the poem. 
Man of all creaturesIs
superlative(Away melancholy)
He of all creatures aloneRaiseth
a stone(Away melancholy)Into
the stone, the godPours what
he knows of goodCalling, good,
God.Away melancholy, let it go.
Speak not to me of tears,Tyranny,
pox, wars,Saying, Can GodStone of
man’s thoughts, be good?Say
rather it is enoughThat the stuffed
Stone of man’s good, growing,By
man’s called God.Away,
melancholy, let it go.
If we are “superlative”, then we should be able to rid ourselves of
sorrow.
She uses the metaphor of a stone, raised by God and humankind
to a higher status.
The speaker brings God, or the idea of a god, into the poem.
Perhaps she is suggesting that faith, as well as nature, can
provide lightness in the dark. Whatever we are feeling
melancholic about, there is more to life!
The sixth stanza transitions into first-person, using the pronoun
“me.”
  not remind me of the world’s evils, but instead tell me of the
Do
goodness of people.
She refuses to ask if God can be “good.” She wants everyone to
know that it’s enough that humanity is good - or was made good.
Or, depending on one’s interpretation of these lines, that
humanity made a good God.

Man aspiresTo good,To loveSighs;
Beaten, corrupted, dyingIn his own
blood lyingYet heaves up an eye
aboveCries, Love, love.It is his virtue
needs explaining,Not his failing.
Away, melancholy,Away with it, let it
go
The speaker’s hope in life comes from the fact that there is love
and that humanity aspires “To good” and “To love.” It seems that
she is suggesting love is the counterpart to melancholy. If we can
love, then we are strong.
Even in the darkest moments of life, when one is dying in his own
blood, humanity raises an eye to the sky and “Cries, Love, love.”
There is no reason to delve into the failings of humankind, the
speaker says. It’s more interesting to consider the depths of
humanity’s goodness. That is where the true complexity and
amazement lies.
The final lines of the poem reiterate the first stanza and the
refrain that’s structured the entire piece.
 Tone of annoyance, belittling melancholy, shooing it like an annoying fly. The shortness of
Tone of
optimism, this stanza really
Imagery –
Away, melancholy,Away with it, let it of all creaturesIs superlative(Away focusing on makes it stand
energy and Man Task: Label
go. the positives out. The whole
power. melancholy)He of all creatures alone
Are not the trees green,The earth as the poem over the poem’s meaning
Powerful nature Raiseth a stone(Away melancholy)Into is captured in
green?Does not the wind blow,Fire leap
the stone, the godPours what he with knowsthe negative
is heavily and the rivers flow?Away, melancholy. things in life. these short lines.
contrasted with of goodCalling, good, God.Away,
petty
The ant is busyHe carrieth his meat,All
melancholy, let it go. annotations.
things hurryTo be eaten or eat.Away,
melancholy. melancholy.
Assonant Man aspiresTo good,To loveSighs;
Man, too, hurries,Eats, couples, buries, Beaten, corrupted, dyingIn his own blood lying
rhyme He is an animal alsoWith a hey ho
emphasizes Yet heaves up an eye aboveCries, Love, love.It is
melancholy,Away with it, let it go. his virtue needs explaining,Not his failing.
this contrast.
Eponymous Away, melancholy,Away with it, let it go
Refrain – has
the tone of a Speak not to me of tears,Tyranny, pox, wars, The use of
chant, or Saying, Can GodStone of man’s thoughts, be asyndeton
mantra, to the good?Say rather it is enoughThat the stuffed speeds up the
self/ reader.
Stone of man’s good, growing,By man’s pace, reflecting
Asyndeton called God.Away, melancholy, let it go. the fleeting
once more. rapidity of life.

Contrasts man
with god. Makes Contrast once
us realise that more to highlight
that we should
even if god is evil,
we can be good. focus on the
Repetition good, and not the
Tone of humour bad. A simple yet
through the Asyndeton again. draws our
The jolly tone continues. Destructive attention to the effective
archaic phrasing. message we can
Uplifts the imagery. central
message. all learn from.
reader’s spirit.
 Tone of annoyance, belittling melancholy, shooing it like an annoying fly.
The shortness of
Imagery – Powerful nature this stanza really
energy and is heavily Eponymous makes it stand
power. contrasted with Refrain – has out. The whole
petty the tone of a poem’s meaning
Away, melancholy,Away with melancholy.
it, let it chant, or
Man of all creaturesIs superlative(Away is captured in
mantra, Man aspiresTo good,To
theseloveSighs;
go. Assonant melancholy)He of all creatures aloneto the short lines.
Beaten, corrupted, dyingIn his own blood lying
Are not the trees green,The earth as
rhyme self/ reader.
Raiseth a stone(Away melancholy)Into Yet heaves up an eye aboveCries, Love, love.It
Asyndeton again.is
green?Does not the wind blow,Fire leap
emphasizes the stone, the godPours what he knows his virtue needs explaining,Not his failing.
and the rivers flow?Away, melancholy.
this contrast. of goodCalling, good, God.Away, Tone of Destructive
optimism, Away, melancholy,Away with it, letimagery.
it go
The ant is busyHe carrieth his meat,All melancholy, let it go.
things hurryTo be eaten or eat.Away, focusing on
melancholy. the positives
Man, too, hurries,Eats, couples, over the
Tone ofburies,
humour negative
He is an animal alsoWith a hey ho
through the Repetition
melancholy,Away with it,archaic
let it go.phrasing. things in life.
draws our
Uplifts the attention to the
reader’s spirit. Asyndeton central
Speak not to me of tears,Tyranny,
oncepox, wars,
more. message.
The use of Saying, Can GodStone of man’s thoughts, be
asyndeton good?Say rather it is enoughThat the stuffed
speeds up the Stone of man’s good, growing,By man’s Contrast once
pace, reflecting called God.Away, melancholy, let it go. more to highlight
the fleeting that we should
rapidity of life. focus on the
good, and not the
Contrasts man bad. A simple yet
with god. Makes effective
us realise that message we can
The jolly tone continues. even if god is evil, all learn from.
we can be good.
Possible Essay
Questions:
1. In her poem, Away, Melancholy, how does
Smith attempt to encourage her readers
feel more optimistic about life?
2. In her poem, Away, Melancholy, how does
Smith explore the battle between good
and evil?
3. In her poem, Away, Melancholy, how does
Smith use contrast and imagery effectively
in order to convey a message?
4. Make up a question of your choosing.
 After writing your essay (see word doc attached for the plan),
reflect on your analysis. Here is an example paragraph to guide
your thinking.
Red Pen Needed! TITLE: Reflecting,
Improving and Developing
Example Paragraph
Smith uses an upbeat tone to mirror her message of positivity. The repeated refrain
she utilises in, “Away, Melancholy Let it Go” creates a hymn-like tone. Hymns are
traditionally religious which creates a tone that emphasises Smith’s message for
spiritual growth, which is key to overcoming melancholy. I find it surprising that
she is being so casual about melancholy because it is something that can be very
painful, but perhaps that is her key point: to not let it rule over us, we must
consciously dismiss it, and not hold on to it. Furthermore, she implies we can find
the strength we need to dismiss our sorrows in nature, as she describes how fire
“leaps” and rivers “flow.” These elements symbolise the strength of nature, and as
we are also nature, the strength we have within ourselves is symbolised here too.
Smith shows us that we are part of the ecosystem and should not strive for
perfection, but see the beauty in all things, even our own imperfections. Through
her wise words, we are encouraged, empowered and enlightened.
 Red Pen = Write one improvement/extra paragraph.
This will result in 1 bonus mark to your grade.
REFLECTION TASK: Taking into account the feedback I have written on your paper, and
after hearing Luca and Bruno’s pieces, and after your own personal reflection, write one
more paragraph analysing Away, Melancholy by Stevie Smith.
Remember (NO COPYING THESE IDEAS – THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHERS):
Topic sentence (E.G. Smith uses an upbeat tone to mirror her message of positivity.)
Technique and Embedded Quote (E.G. The repeated refrain she utilises in, “Away, Melancholy Let it Go” creates
a hymn-like tone. Hymns are traditionally religious which....)

Analysis, Author’s Message, Personal Opinion (E.G. …creates a tone that emphasises Smith’s message for spiritual growth,
which is key to overcoming melancholy. I find it surprising that she is being so casual about melancholy because it is something
that can be very painful, but perhaps that is her key point: to not let it rule over us, we must consciously dismiss it, and not hold
on to it.)
Development (E.G Furthermore, she implies we can find the strength we need to dismiss our sorrows in nature, as she describes
how fire “leaps” and rivers “flow.” These elements symbolise the strength of nature, and as we are also nature, the strength we
have within ourselves is symbolised here too.)
Development (E.G Smith shows us that we are part of the ecosystem and should not strive for perfection, but see the beauty in all
things, even our own imperfections. Through her wise words, we are encouraged and enlightened.)