Maun Sadhu Head & Assistant Professor Department of English C.U. Shah Institute of Computer Application C.U. Shah Institute of Science maunsadhu@gmail.com

1. LIFE
Charlotte Brontë
by
Maun Sadhu
Head & Assistant
Professor

2. CHARLOTTE BRONTE
• She was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of
the three Brontë sisters who survived into
adulthood and whose novels became classics of
English literature.
• The poem Life by Charlotte Bronte is about the
optimism of the poet. Bronte wrote the poem
under her pseudonym Currer Bell. The Rhyme
scheme of the poem is ABAB (except rain &
dream). The poem is divided into three stanzas
consisting of 8, 4 and 12 lines respectively.
20XX Pitch Deck 2
1816-1855

3. Life, believe, is not a dream,
So dark as sages say;
Oft a little morning rain
Foretells a pleasant day :
Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,
But these are transient all;
If the shower will make the roses bloom,
Oh, why lament its fall ?
Rapidly, merrily,
Life’s sunny hours flit by,
Gratefully, cheerily,
Enjoy them as they fly.
What though death at times steps in,
And calls our Best away ?
What though Sorrow seems to win,
O’er hope a heavy sway?
Yet Hope again elastic springs,
Unconquered, though she fell,
Still buoyant are her golden wings,
Still strong to bear us well.
Manfully, fearlessly,
The day of trial bear,
For gloriously, victoriously,
Can courage quell despair!
Central Idea:
The poem encourages us to look at life with
a positive attitude. It tells us to be optimistic
and have the courage to persevere and we
will overcome our difficulties and be
victorious.
LIFE
Charlotte Brontë

4. Life, believe, is not a dream,
So dark as sages say;
The poet Charlotte Bronte begins the poem by telling us that we must not believe what the sages (learned men) have
said that life is a dark dream. She advises us not to fear or dread life.
Oft a little morning rain
Foretells a pleasant day :
Taking the metaphor of the morning rain which symbolizes sorry and despair, the poet tells us that even if there is a
little morning rain, the rest of the day is a pleasant one. So also even if there are problems and worries in our life, our
life is going to be lovely and pleasant.

5. Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,
But these are transient all;
If the shower will make the roses bloom,
Oh, why lament its fall?
In these lines, the poet takes the metaphor of the clouds of gloom which symbolizes sorrow and grief that are present in
everyone’s’ lives. These showers are transient, they are temporary, they come for a short while, yet they make the roses
bloom. So also in our life even if we have sorrow and grief, it will lead to joy and happiness. The poet then asks us a
rhetorical question, ‘Why lament its fall?’ which means that if the showers make the roses bloom then we shouldn’t
complain about the rainfall. So also if we have sadness and grief in our lives don’t worry as these will bring cheer and
delight.

6. Rapidly, merrily,
Life’s sunny hours flit by,
Gratefully, cheerily,
Enjoy them as they fly.
Here the poet says that the happy moments in our life move very quickly and cheerfully. She
advises us to enjoy these fast flying moments before they are lost forever.
What though death at times steps in,
And calls our Best away ?
What though Sorrow seems to win,
O’er hope a heavy sway?
The poet rhetorically says that even though death has taken away our loved one and our house
is engulfed in sorrow, we should not be swayed away by grief and loose hope.

7. Yet Hope again elastic springs,
Unconquered, though she fell,
Still buoyant are her golden wings,
Still strong to bear us well.
The poet has personified Hope and says that Hope has elastic springs. It means that, just like elastic can stretch itself and
just like when a spring is released it will jump all around, so also Hope stretches itself and jumps all around so that
people can catch it. But alas! It was not conquered by anyone and so it fell. Its golden wings are still buoyant and strong.
Though Hope has fallen, its golden wings that are buoyant and strong will help it bounce back. So we should never feel
despair for Hope is there to guide and lift us up.
Manfully, fearlessly,
The day of trial bear,
For gloriously, victoriously,
Can courage quell despair!
In the final stanza the poet encourages us to be strong and fearless, for on the day of trial i.e. day of judgement ( in
Christianity and Islam, it is the day of judgement when God will make His judgement about humanity) we all will be
glorious and victorious and our courage will quell despair. We all will triumph!

8. THANK YOU
MAUN SADHU