The Laburnum Top

By Ted Hughes

Laburnum: Laburnum are deciduous trees native to and

commonly found in southern Europe. The trees have beautiful
bunches of hanging yellow flowers, which give rise to their
nickname ‘the golden chain tree’ or 'the golden rain tree. All parts
of the common laburnum are poisonous – the bark, roots, leaves
and especially the seed pods.

'The Laburnum Top' refers to the canopy of the Laburnum tree

with its thick and yellowing foliage. The afternoon sunlight falling
directly on the tree, gives the tree all the more a magnificent
yellow or an aureate (golden) appearance.

About the Poet:

1. Edward James (Ted) Hughes was born in the English village of
Mythoylmroyd, in the West Riding district of Yorkshire on 17th
August, 1930. His childhood was quiet and dominantly rural. He
graduated from Cambridge in 1954.
2. In 1956, he cofounded, St. Botolph’s Review, a literary
magazine, at the launch party of which he met Sylvia Plath and
after four months of their courtship period, they got married.
3. He and his work came into prominence in the late fifties and
early sixties. Having earned the reputation of a prolific, original
and skilful poet, Ted Hughes received a lot of attention from
scholars and literary critics both in the USA and Britain. He got
his first collection of poems Hawk in the Rain published in 1957.
4. The four main sources of Hughes’ inspiration were the
Yorkshire landscape, where he grew up as a son of a carpenter,
Totemism studied by the poet at Cambridge, Theories of Charles
Darwin and Herbert Spencer and Works of Romantic Writers
5. Totemism is a system of belief in which humans are said to
have kinship or a mystical relationship with a spirit-being, such as
an animal or plant. It is expressed in an intimate relationship of
friendship and protection between a person and a particular
animal or a natural object (sometimes between a person and a
species of animal).
6. Graphic and realistic imagery, vivid and realistic Nature-
pictures, structural unity, auditory effects and extensive use of
stylistic devices, obscurity and ambiguity are some of the striking
features of his poems.

Setting
1. It is the time of early 'autumn' (the season of autumn or fall in
England begins from the month of September and lasts upto
November) and the leaves on the trees are changing their colour.

2. The drooping inflorescences, the warm sunlight and yellow

foliage portends a yellow background or setting to the poem.
3. Yellow is considered to be the most luminous of all the colours
of the spectrum . It is the colour of joyance, sunshine, positivity
and enlightenment.
4. It is a compelling colour that conveys youthfulness, mirth and
freshness. We find the colour yellow used as a dominant colour
throughout the poem.
5. From the perspective of an introspective and not a superficial
observer ( Ted Hughes), the tree in all its magnificence appears
quiet and enchanting on that autumn afternoon. There is no wind
that can cause any rustling of leaves and hence complete
inactivity prevails.

Different Levels of Interpretation of the Laburnum Top:

1. The poem has been differently interpreted by different critics
and authors. Some interpreted the poem on a literal level, some
on a symbolic level and some on an autobiographical level.
2. All levels work together for this poem. The literal gives
substance to the specific scene being described. The implied or
autobiographical expands the reality into mental image and
emotional feeling. The symbolic gives specific meaning to the
actions of the bird in the poem. They do not contradict one
another.
3. Literal Meaning of the Poem
i) On the surface level, the poem simply describes nature and its
occurrences. The poet's Romantic influence is pretty evident.
Though he started writing long after the end of the Romantic
period, yet Ted Hughes was greatly inspired by the Romantics like
Wordsworth and Coleridge.
ii) For the Romantics (the poets who glorified nature and natural
beauty in their poems), the description of the physical landscape
as well as nature was very prominent and this could be seen in
the poems of Ted Hughes as well. Just like Romantics, there is an
almost religious response to nature that could be seen in his
poems (Paganism) where he stresses that Nature should not just
be seen scientifically but as a living force, either made by
a Creator, or as in some way divine, to be neglected at
humankind's peril.
iii) The Romantics emphasized on the imagination as a positive
and creative faculty. That reasons why Hughes uses the
poisonous tree of Laburnum in his poem but the treatment he
meets out to it justifies his positive outlook towards nature
(Reminds us of Robert Frost's treatment of the hemlock tree in
the poem 'Dust of Snow')
iv) The literal interpretation of the poem 'Laburnum Top' presents
a complimentary relationship between the goldfinch and the
laburnum tree. The goldfinch which is a wild canary- a small
yellow bird with black markings on its face, builds its nest high on
the highest branches of the Laburnum Tree. Hence, the poem is
titled, 'Laburnum Top'. The golden flowers are a perfect
camouflage for the bright yellow goldfinch to safeguard and
protect its family from the predatory birds or reptiles.
v) The beginning of the poem, one September afternoon, the top
of the laburnum tree stands silent and still. The leaves are turning
yellow in autumn and the seeds have already fallen. The arrival of
the goldfinch is sleek, smooth, alert and abrupt like a lizard . It
quickly enters the dense foliage and it seems that a machine that
had lain dormant till then, awakens. The tree has been compared
to a machine. The bird's family, quiet thus far in the absence of
the goldfinch, begin to chirrup and twitch and create commotion.
vi) The tree seems to have come alive as it seems to tremble and
thrill with the movement of the bird and its family. The birds thus
are the engine of the machine - the laburnum tree. The goldfinch
stokes this engine by feeding its family. Once they have been fed,
the goldfinch moves to the end of a branch peeping out such that
only its face is visible in the yellowness of the tree. The face has
black markings which make it seem like the bird is wearing a
mask.
vii) This mask and the strange, uncanny whistle chirrup she emits
is like a warning to any predators who wish to harm its children
and on that note, she flies away into the vast infinite sky leaving
the tree empty and once again, silent as it was.

Animal Imagery in Hughes' Poems:

1.Ted Hughes‘ Nature poetry reflects a pagan life with Nature as
Goddess. In his poetry, animals are presented, not as playthings,
but as lords of life and death—they assume the status of mystical
gods. They are presented superior to men, with their lack of self
consciousness and sickness of the mind, they are less prone to
inhibitions like human beings.
2. Hughes animal poetry is based on the Shamanist idea that
animals are more powerful and spiritual beings when compared
to man, since they live a totally instinct based life. Animals are far
from limits and social values, thus they are capable of living their
own self true nature and that specialty makes them powerful and
wise. Man, on the other hand, is far from living its own true
nature due to the limitations and social values which block the
instincts. Thus, man is not free but confused, ignorant and lost.
3. To read Hughes' poetry is to enter a world dominated by
nature, especially by animals and birds. The first thing to be
encountered in Ted Hughes' poetry is his preoccupation with
animals like horses, foxes, otters, birds (hawk, crow, goldfinch
etc.) jaguar and deer that are included as title subjects for his
poems. His poems deal with animals and nature and the savagery
of both. And at the same time he uses animals to show the
beastly ways of human beings.
4. Hughes admires the positive qualities in the animals writes
about because:
i) he finds in them the unsophisticated vitality that urban man is
in danger of losing.
ii) he tries to demonstrate the epic struggle between good and
evil that occur in nature everyday which is called "Manichaeism".
iii) to portray nature and its occurrences.
iv) to use wildlife as a metaphor for human existence.
v) to express his insight into the enduring spirituality of nature.

Rhyme Scheme of the Poem:

1. The poem has been composed in 'blank verse'. Blank verse
consists of lines of iambic pentameter which are unrhymed----
hence the term "blank".
2. Of all English metrical forms it is the closest to the natural
rhythms of English speech and hence flexible and adaptive.
Analysis of stanza 1:
The mention of September imply the season of fall or autumn.
This obliquely imply the subsequent advent of winter which is the
season of decay and barrenness.
The Laburnum tree remain a passive observer of both seasons.
The yellowing of leaves and falling of seeds refer to it's impending
barren state in winter.
The poet here ironically point at the impact of industrialization
and urbanization. Industrial revolution apparently promised
materialistic comfort and progress. However, it terminated
simplicity, tranquility and happiness from social life.
Literary Devices used in the first stanza:
“Laburnum Top is silent and quite still”
Alliteration:
i) Alliteration is a stylistic device in which a number of words,
having the same first consonant sound, occur close together in a
series.
ii) In the poem, the repetition of 's' sound creates a musical effect
in the line that enhances the pleasure of reading this literary
piece.
iii) It also serves the purpose of making reading and recitation of
the poem attractive and appealing; thus, making them easier to
learn by heart.
iv) Furthermore, it renders flow and beauty to a piece of writing
and at the same the tell us how 'silence....(s sound prevailed in
the beginning of the poem).

2. Personification
i) When a poet or a writer attributes humanly qualities to non-
human things or non-living objects or abstract ideas/ qualities it
is called personification.
ii) In the poem, the poet has given the quality of being 'silent'
to a tree to accentuate the lingering quietude in and around the
Laburnum tree.

Till the goldfinch comes with a twitching chirrup

Twitch: small, often involuntary movement of a body part.
Chirrup: An onomatopoeic word capturing and imitating the
sound made by a bird.
Twitching Chirrup: short chirping sounds.
Literary device : Use of Onomatopoeia or sound word (chirrup)

The Laburnum tree undergoes a sudden transformation and the

poet enthused over the enchanting chaos that is brought in with
the advent of the delicate goldfinch. The vicinity around the tree
suddenly reverberates with the twitching chirrup of the bird. The
bird renders life and motion to the otherwise dull and quiet
Laburnum tree due the sudden involuntary movement of its body
and it's short chirping sounds.

Then sleek as a lizard, and alert and abrupt,

She enters the thickness

Sleek: smooth
Thickness: The denser part of the tree
Abrupt: unexpected or sudden

Figurative device: 1. Simile: Sleek as a lizard ( The swift and

spontaneous movement of the bird is compared to that of a
lizard)
2. Assonance: alert and abrupt (repetition of the vowel sound
here gives a rhythm to the line)
Once the bird perches on the branch end it glides it's way
instantaneously towards the denser part of the tree where it has
it nest built. Its journey from the branch end to it nest is swift
and smooth like a lizard. It is alert and vigilant about its
surroundings as it keeps a watch on the predators around and
also on it's own movement, lest it is discerned and lives of its
fledglings are endangered. Hence, one can note over here that
the goldfinch is cautious enough not to enter the thickness of the
tree at once.
..and a machine starts up
Of chitterings, and a tremor of wings, and trillings---

Chitterings (an onomatopoeic word): The twittering sounds made

by birds
tremor of wings: the involuntary flapping of wings
Tremor: shake, shiver
Trillings(Onomatopoeic word) : to sing repeatedly.

Poetic device:
1. Onomatopoeia or sound words. ( Onomatopoeia is the process
of creating a word that phonetically imitates, resembles, or
suggests the sound that it describes.) *twitching, chitterings,
trillings*

2. Metaphor: The tree being metaphorically compared to

machine. An implicit or hidden comparison has been made by the
poet.
The poet implicitly compares the tree with a machine that had
lain dormant till the advent of the bird. From complete inactivity
that had prevailed earlier, now there is life and motion in the
tree.
As the bird reaches its nest and there is discordancy created by
the trillings, twittering and chitterings of her fledglings. There is a
lot of noise and confusion due to the birds emitting different
sounds and due to the continuous flapping of their wings (
indicating that their flight feathers have grown but they are yet to
mature).The fledglings' excitement on seeing their mother could
be well perceived by the poet. Hughes unflagging interest in the
animal world is brought to the fore in this line. His comparison of
the tree with a machine does echo the cacophony and discord
that lingers when a machine gets started.

The whole tree trembles and thrills.

It is the engine for her family.

Poetic device:
Alliteration: ' The whole tree trembles and thrills', there is a
repetition of the consonant sound of 't' in the line.

It seems that the fledglings have been anticipating the arrival of

their mother as she would bring them food (nutrition) which
would keep them alive just like for the smooth running of a
machine, its engine needs to be fueled. Hence the bird's family is
compared to an engine that requires nutrition to keep the tree
(machine) alive and lively.

Animal Symbolism:
1. Ted Hughes has employed animal symbolism to represent the
Industrial Revolution. 'Animal Symbolism' is a poetic technique
where animals are used as symbols of something entirely
different and figuratively, much larger. The gold finch has been
interpreted by scholars as symbolic of the industrial revolution.
2. Ted Hughes' poetry is generally replete with animal symbolism.
Each animal symbolically represents something or the other in his
poems. Bird denotes personality characteristics of beauty, love
and joy. It also symbolizes the transcendental quality that lifts
man from his lower self to his higher self, from the material world
to the spiritual world.
3. In this poem, the poet has used the goldfinch as a symbol of
Industrial Revolution that had taken England by a storm by the
time the poet had started writing.

4. Scholars have interpreted the goldfinch as a symbol of

Industrial Revolution which entered rural, calm and serene
England and quickly brought thrill and excitement.
5. However, the poet seems to claim that this revolution hid its
true face behind a mask and when one looked beyond the mask
or when the initial impact of the revolution phased out, England
was left emptier than ever before. He might be referring here to
the collapse of faith, rural serenity, human employment
opportunities and the pious environment.
6. Ted Hughes refers to industrial terms, (for instance, 'machine',
'engine', 'stokes it full') in his poetry for the purpose of connoting
the Industrial Revolution.

IMAGERY
The poet has employed three kinds of Imageries in the poem.
Imagery is the language used by poets to create images or visual
description in the minds of readers. They include figurative and
metaphorical language to improve the reader's experience
through their senses.
The poet uses:
1. Visual imagery in "yellow afternoon", "September afternoon"
and "fallen seeds".
2. Auditory Imagery in expressions and words like " Chitterings",
"trillings", " whistle chirrup to show the enchanting chaos of the
Goldfinch's family.
3. Tactile Imagery: "Abrupt, and alert" "flirting to a branch",
"launching away to the Infinite".

Impact of Industrial Revolution were:

1. It changed the economy and environment drastically .
2. People lost faith in religion as religion couldn't explain the fall
of aristocracy or the loss of livelihood.
3. A middle class arose which quickly gained power and
momentum in the society.
4. Textile industry was particularly transformed when James
Hargreaves invented 'spinning Jenny ' that produced multiple
spools of thread, rendering thousands of workers unemployed
5. Agrarian and rural England changed into Industrial England.
6. Machineries and factories played central roles.
She stokes it full

stoke: to add coal or other solid fuel to (a fire, furnace, boiler,

etc.). (here) to feed

1. The goldfinch's arrival filled her little ones (fledglings) with

excitement and anticipation for food. She has not just given them
birth but is also responsible for their sustenance and safety.The
imagery of life and sustenance has been employed by the poet to
show how the mother is not just their life- giver but also a
sustainer. So, no matter where she is her arrival is much awaited
by her fledglings.

2. The goldfinch is cognizant of their vulnerability. They are too

young to fly with their semi- grown plummage (which they can
flap to show their excitement on seeing their mother but not to
fly) and hence can neither feed nor protect themselves. The
goldfinch's arrival is also an assurance for them that she is there
to care and protect them.

3. The bird feeds her little ones as she needs to keep the engine
of her family running. This engine ( the bird's family) if fueled
properly(with the food/ nutrition) would cause the machine (the
tree) to experience the enchanting chaos everyday. J So the bird
feeds her fledglings (just as a stoker feeds coal to an engine)
before departing the tree for her next flight to the 'infinite'.
4. The poet's usage of the word 'stoking' instead of the word
feeding is again a grim reminder of the Industrial Revolution-- to
emphasise how dominant a role the machinery played in the
Industrial England especially during the second and third phase of
IR.

then flirts out to the branch end

Showing her barred face identity mask.

Flirt out: to move abruptly with light steps

barred: marked with bands of colours ( in case of the goldfinch,
the black stripes/ markings across its face)
Identity mask: the marks/ the black stripes makes the goldfinch
distinct from other species of birds and hence it is her identity.
Poetic device: Transferred Epithet ( barred face identity mask)

The life- sustaining goldfinch retraces its journey back to the

branch end as carefully as before, to avoid any suspicion,
revealing its black striped face only, through which it could be
recognized.

Then with eerie delicate whistle- chirrup whisperings

She launches away, towards the infinite
eerie- strange and frightening, uncanny, mysterious
delicate- soft and mild, low in intensity
whisle- chirrup whisperings- short mild pitched sound that is akin
to whisperings
launches away- flies away
the infinite- the sky

Figurative device:
Onomatopoeia- whistle and chirrup
Repetition- chirrup

1. Ted Hughes makes uses of the literary device of ambiguity

when he mentions the departing chirrup of the bird as eerie. The
word eerie with respect to chirrupings may have several
connotations. The chirrup can either be a warning to the
predators nearby or a reassurance to the fledglings that the bird
is around and no one can injure or hurt them or it can mean
nothing at all.

2. We must remember that it is not always easy to understand

Hughes’s poetry. Some of the lines and words in his poems are
really very obscure and, therefore, puzzling; and some of the
lines are ambiguous so that we find it difficult to decide what the
poet really means.
3. Soon after that, the bird takes another flight towards the vast
infinite sky in the hope to collect food for little ones so that she
may nurture and nourish them. This also reminds us how her
responsibilities towards her family forces her leave them behind.

And the Laburnum subsides to empty.

subsides: reduces in intensity or comes back to the normal state

1. The tree that was marked by conspicuous stillness in the

beginning of the poem returns back to it its original state with the
goldfinch leaving the tree and the chirrupings of her family
coming to a halt.
2. It seemed that for the moment the tree was touched by
vitality, excitement, liveliness and an enchanting chaos which the
tree becomes devoid of post the bird's departure.
3. Quietude prevails once again in and around the tree on that
September afternoon.
4. The poem presents a beautiful interaction between the
elements of nature – the tree and the bird. The universal concept
of the exchange of energy is an important aspect of the poem.
The goldfinch enlivens the tree with its presence while the tree
serves as a nesting place for the goldfinch’s family.
Conclusion
1. The poem contains a series of nature- pictures which are most
graphic, vivid and realistic like natural setting of poem and the
colour yellow used in the background.
2. There is structural unity in the poem as it is well- knit and
compact.

3. Rhythm plays a very important role in this poem and so does

the sound of words. Even though the poem has been composed
in blank verse, yet the rhythm and sound created by the sound
words, use of alliteration and assonance , repetition of the word
'chirruping' renders a musical quality to the poem, an auditory
effect and rhythmic delight.

4. The poet has used the laburnum tree and goldfinch as a

symbol of life and its fluctuations.It indicates that life is a process
of exchange and transformation. The poem symbolises that
happiness is short lived which is evident from the poem as with
the arrival of goldfinch the tree suddenly becomes active,noisy
and full of life.But this happiness is temporary as with the
departure of goldfinch,the tree becomes silent once again.

Universal theme: Man’s relation with the universe, with the

natural world and with his own inner self. Human consciousness
about the environment and the need to preserve and safeguard
nature and the natural processes.

Subjective theme: The reciprocal relationship between the

laburnum tree and goldfinch. The goldfinch enlivens the tree
with its presence, while the tree serves as the nesting place for
the goldfinch and it's family to remain safe and protected.

The Laburnum Top

Questions:

1. Which stylistic technique has been instrumental in bringing

Hughes pertinacious interest in the animal world to the fore? How
has it been employed in the poem?

2. What are the evocative imageries that have been used by the
poet to accentuate the transformation that the tree undergoes
with the advent of the goldfinch?

3. In his attempt to portray nature and it's occurences, the poet

has shed light upon the complementary relationship-- the
exchange of energy between the tree and the goldfinch.
Comment.
4. Why is the auditory agreeableness of the sound words and
their inherent melody perceived as harsh, rough and unmusical,
when the poem is interpreted connotatively?

5. How does the poet stress upon the imagery of life and
sustenance through his poem ' The Laburnum Top'?

6. What are the various stylistic devices of comparison used by

the poet in the poem? How?

7. Which poetic devices add rhythmic effect to the poem and how
have they been employed in poem?

8.How has the poet extrapolated societal condition through his

artistic expression?

9. What message is conveyed through the poem?