DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL, DWARKA

THE LAKE ISLE OF INNISFREE

POETIC DEVICES

A. ALLITERATION – Repetition of consonant sound in closely placed words.

EXAMPLES: 1. Hive for the honeybee – repetition of ‘h’ sound

2. Lake water lapping with low – repetition of ‘l’ sound

3. Hear…deep hearts core- repetition of ‘h’ sound

B. REPETITION – use of same words or phrases for sake of emphasis.

EXAMPLE: ‘I will arise and go now’ – repeated in stanza 1 and 3.

C. PERSONIFICATION – giving human characteristics to non-living objects.

EXAMPLE: Morning -has been personified, as she lifts her veil of mist to reveal her bright face.

D. METAPHOR – indirect comparison between two objects or ideas to denote similarity.

EXAMPLE: Veils of the morning -the white mists of the morning are compared to a lady’s veil

REFERENCE TO CONTEXT

Hint:

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evenings full of the linnet's wings.

a) Name the poem and the poet.

Ans: The above lines are from the poem ‘The Lake Isle from Innisfree’ written by the Irish poet, W.B.
Yeats.

b) What will the poet have at Innisfree and how will he find it?

Ans: The poet will have much desired peace at Innisfree. Peace descends there from the morning sky
to the place where crickets pour out their music.
c) What is special about the noon and evening at Innisfree?

Ans: The noon at Innisfree is marked by a mellow, soft light.

Evenings at Innisfree are characterized by innumerable brown and grey birds, linnets, flying in the
sky and singing sweetly.

d) What kind of person is the poet?

Ans: The poet is a peace-loving person who likes to be in the midst of sights and sounds of nature.
He hates the hustle and bustle of city-

life.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Question 1. Describe the Lake Isle of Innisfree as seen through the eyes of the poet.

Answer: The Lake Isle of Innisfree is an island that is incredibly peaceful. The island is also a place of
great natural beauty. Yeats describes many different aspects of its appeal, from the various birds and
insects to the striking light at different times of day. This place is close to nature and has not been
damaged by human interference.

Question 2. Why does the poet want to go to Innisfree?

Answer: The poet wants to go Innisfree in search of peace. He does not like London with its noise
and grey pavements. He wants to live in a place which is the opposite of London; he craves for some
peace and hence he wants to go to Innisfree where he will be self-sufficient. He will build a small
cabin and grow beans and make his own honey by keeping honeybees. Instead of city noise, he will
hear the buzzing of the bees and the sound of lake water lapping against the shore

Question 3. How is the city life different from the life at the Lake of Innisfree?

Answer: City life according to the poet is routine and wearisome. The city is noisy, the pavements
are dull and grey; there is chaos all around. But at Innisfree, he can escape the noise of the city and
enjoy the “lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore.” On this small island, he can return to
nature by growing beans and having bee hives, by enjoying the “purple glow” of noon, the sounds of
birds’ wings, and, of course, the bees. He can even build a cabin and stay on the island.

Question 4. What kind of life does the poet William Butler Yeats imagine in his poem “The Lake
Isle of Innisfree”?

Answer: Yeats imagines Innisfree as an idyllic place of peace and solitude. He imagines living in a
“small cabin” of “clay and wattles” where he will support himself on beans he plants and honey from
his bee hive, and he will “live alone in the bee-loud glade.” There is also a sense that the “peace” he
will find there is connected to its natural beauty.

Question 5. Write three things that the poet would like to do when he goes back to Innisfree.

Answer: Innisfree is a perfect island that provides everything desired by the poet. The poet will build
a small cabin of clay and fence. He will have nine rows of beans. He will also have a hive for the
honeybees.
THINK AND WRITE

Q6. The Isle of Innisfree is both a place and the poet's state of mind. Discuss.

Ans- The Isle of Innisfree is a small habitat in Ireland. Yeats had spent his childhood days here. The
calm, serene, and peaceful environment of Isle impressed him in such a way that it had made a
permanent place in his heart. He has developed a spiritual kinship with Innisfree. The poem's
reference to the place is as real as the description given by the poet.

The memories of this place have filled his heart with delight and he longs to be there and get away
from the hectic city life of London. Even when he is in London, he recalls the time spent in Innisfree
and cherishes the memories. His thoughts about Innisfree are so overpowering that even in broad
daylight, he dreams about it. Thus, Innisfree isn't just a place but an epitome/symbol of peaceful
existence.