2. THE LAKE ISLE OF
INNISFREE
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.
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 evening full of the linnet's wings.
3. I will arise and go now, for always night and day,
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the
shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements
grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
4. OVERVIEW
The poem is about a person’s desire and imagination to
leave the city and go to a peaceful place in the country.
He wants to escape the harshness of modern living.
The persona wants to go to a small island in the middle
of a lake. It is called the Lake Isle of Innisfree.
The persona wants to live by himself in a peaceful place
and he wishes to be close to nature.
The poem is about enjoying the beauty of nature and
enjoying the peace the countryside can give us.
5. THE PARAPHRASE
STANZA 1
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
The persona will get up and go to Innisfree.
And a small cabin build there,
There will be a small house build near the lake on the
island.
of clay and wattles made,
The house is made of clay and wattles.
6. Nine bean-rows will I have there,
There are nine rows of bean plants near the house.
a hive for the honey-bee;
And a home for honey bees in the persona’s garden.
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.
He wants to live alone in the small house which is located
in an open area where he can only hear the sound of
the bees buzzing.
7. STANZA 2
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes
dropping slow,
The persona will have some peace in Innisfree. The
persona can feel the peacefulness relaxingly.
Dropping from the veils of the morning
The peacefulness starts when the morning is filled with
mist.
to where the cricket sings;
And the persona can hear the crickets chirping in the
morning.
8. There midnight's all a glimmer,
At midnight, the sky shines from the moonlight and the
stars. The persona can see a glimmer of light on the far
shore.
and noon a purple glow,
The persona can feel the peacefulness in the afternoon
when the sun shines brightly. The shines from the sun
looks purple.
And evening full of the linnet's wings.
The persona can also feel the peacefulness in the
evening where he can hear the sound of birds.
9. STANZA 3
I will arise and go now, for always night and day
The persona will get up and go to Innisfree. He will stay
there for days and nights.
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
The persona hears the sound of the lake water lapping
by the shore.
10. While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
Whenever the persona stands on the road in the city
where he lives.
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
The persona will think strongly about Innisfree.
11. SUBJECT
The subject of the poem is the beautiful Lake Isle of
Innisfree.
The place is a sanctuary where one can escape from
the hustle and bustle of city life.
Ev: ‘And I shall have some peace there, for peace
comes dropping slow,’ (Line 4)
12. THEMES
Nature brings peace and harmony to Man.
Nature provides Man with lovely sights and sounds
which pleases him and enables him to live a peaceful,
stress-free life.
Man should live close to nature.
The poet himself wants to escape to this peaceful and
beautiful place and build his dream home there.
13. TONE
Calm and relaxing tone.
The reader may picture a person physically arising and
leaving to this place, Innisfree.
However, instead of physically going to this place, the
narrator is going there with his mind.
The place is completely imagined in his head.
It helps him to relax and escape the rush of modern
living.
14. MORAL VALUES
We must appreciate nature as it has many benefits to
offer us.
We must learn to be close to nature and enjoy its
beauty.
We must take time to be in places where we are able
to find peace and quiet to make our lives less stressful,
harmonious and very meaningful.
We should be proud of the natural heritage and
preserve nature.
15. FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Imagery of sight
Ev: a small cabin, bean-rows, cricket, purple, linnet's
wings, lake water, shore, roadway, pavements
Imagery of hearing
Ev: bee-loud glade, cricket sings, linnet's wings,
water lapping, hear it in the deep heart's core
16. Imagery of taste
Ev: honey
Imagery of touch
Ev: clay, wattles, veils of the morning
Repetition / Anaphora
Ev: I will arise and go now…
17. Symbol
Ev: ‘Innisfree’ symbolizes inner peace and freedom.
Metaphor
Ev: And evening full of the linnet's wings
This not implying that the sky is exactly full of linnet's
wings, but there were many bird's flying around.
Synecdoche (simultaneous understanding)
Ev: I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
He is not physically getting up and going, but going in
his mind.
18. Alliteration
Ev: And live alone in the bee-loud glade
Internal rhyme
Ev: dropping, morning, and sings (line 6)
19. STRUCTURE & STYLE
The poem is written in three stanzas.
Each stanza has four lines.
The rhyme scheme in this poem is ABAB.
This rhyme scheme creates a sense of harmony. It
reflects the peace that the poet sees in the Lake Isle of
Innisfree.
20. WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS
(1865 – 1939 )
Fell in love with Maud Gonne, an Irish Nationalist. His
love was not returned. He remained heartbroken till he
was 52 years old when he finally got married.
Even though he was of English origin, he loved Ireland
very much and thought of himself as an Irishman. His
father was also an artist and encouraged him to write
poetry. Apart from that he wrote many poems to Maud
Gonne, hoping for her love in return.
Accomplishments :-
1) Won the Nobel Prize for Literature (1923)
2) Member of Irish Senate (1922 – 1928)
3) Referred to as the greatest Irish poet
