UNDERGRADUATE II YEAR SUBJECT: English Language & Literature PAPER II: Poetry TOPIC: The Solitary Reaper by William Wordsworth LESSON MAP: 2.1.C.2 DURATION : 00:26:00 Poem William Wordsworth. 1770–1850 The Solitary Reaper – William Wordswarth Behold her, single in the field, Yon solitary Highland Lass! Reaping and singing by herself; Stop here, or gently pass! Alone she cuts and binds the grain, And sings a melancholy strain; O listen! For the Vale profound Is overflowing with the sound. No Nightingale did ever chaunt More welcome notes to weary bands Of travellers in some shady haunt, Among Arabian sands: A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird, Breaking the silence of the seas Among the farthest Hebrides. Will no one tell me what she sings? Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow For old, unhappy, far-off things, And battles long ago: Or is it some more humble lay, Familiar matter of today? Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain, That has been, and may be again! Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang As if her song could have no ending; I saw her singing at her work And o'er the sickle bending; I listen’d, motionless and still; And, as I mounted up the hill, The music in my heart I bore, Long after it was heard no more. 1. One day the poet chances upon a solitary Highland lass singing soulfully as she reaps the harvest. (Video of a peasant girl and of harvest being gathered, i.e. cutting and binding of grain) 2. The poet invites us to pause there so that we could partake the overflowing melody of her song that fills the deep valleys around. (Video of beautiful farm lands surrounded by scenic valleys resounding with musical notes) 3. If we do not have the patience or the inclination to stop by, we should at least pass gently so that we do not distract the singer who is engrossed in her work and engulfed in her music. (Video of a singer lost in one’s own song and of people walking by quietly) 4. The poet now compares the song of the solitary reaper to the melodious notes chanted by a nightingale that soothe the tired travellers that traverse the sultry, lonely deserts of Arabia. (Video of a peasant girl singing; of deserts and tired travellers; of a nightingale singing) 5. Indeed the song of the solitary reaper is more mellifluous than the soulfilling tunes of the cuckoo that intones so excitedly that the waters of the silent oceans resonate with its thrilling music. (Video of islands of northwest of Scotland; of spring time; of a cuckoo singing in spring time; of oceans) 6. The poet is unable to follow the content of the song of the solitary reaper; all that he can understand is that it is melancholic and wonders what makes it a sad song. Could she be singing about wars waged long ago or about some unhappy past events? Or, could it be that her song mourns the loss and sorrowthat are so characteristic of every day human life? (Video of wars, unhappy events like earthquakes, tsunamis and videos of deaths, accidents, people suffering etc.) 7. Whatever may be the theme, the peasant girl kept singing as if there were no ending to her song; she went on working with the sickle in her hand and the song on her lips while the poet stood spellbound and lost in the melody of her song. The reverberating music of the song stayed with the poet long after he left the place. (Video of a peasant girl with a sickle in her hand and bending to cut the crop and singing; of a person who is lost in the music of her song, video which shows that this music haunts the person)
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