Poem: from The Princess: Sweet and Low (Lullaby)
by Alfred Tennyson.

Sweet and low, sweet and low,
Wind of the western sea,
Low, low, breathe and blow,
Wind of the western sea!
Over the rolling waters go,
Come from the dying moon, and blow,
Blow him again to me;
While my little one, while my pretty one, sleeps.

Sleep and rest, sleep and rest,
Father will come to thee soon;
Rest, rest, on mother’s breast,
Father will come to thee soon;
Father will come to his babe in the nest,
Silver sails all out of the west
Under the silver moon:
Sleep, my little one, sleep, my pretty one, sleep.

It is a Lyric Poem.

Summary:

It is a lyric poem presented as a lullaby. The speaker of the poem is a mother. She sings the poem to her child to make him fall asleep. She asks the sweet wind of the western sea to blow to lull the baby to sleep. She also wants the presence of her husband while the baby sleeps. She invokes the baby to sleep and assures the baby that his father will return to him very soon. Thus, the mother tries to comfort and soothe her child.

Central Theme:

Child consolation is the central theme of the poem. The speaker of the poem asks the sweet wind of the western sea to blow and to lull her baby to sleep. The wind of the western sea reminds her of her husband who is most probably dead. In the poem, the word ‘west’ is repeated to symbolize the death of the husband of the woman or the father of the baby because ‘west’ is the location of sunset. Furthermore, at the end of the poem, the word ‘silver’ refers to the coffins that are made of silver. The mother repeatedly assures the child that his father will return soon. It shows the inner feelings of the mother that the father will never be back. Thus, throughout the poem, the mother lulls the baby to sleep and assures him that his father will come back soon.

Tone:

The tone of the poem is sad or melancholic. Though it is a lullaby, sadness lies in the use of language and symbols. Nature in the poem is used to symbolize death. The mother repeatedly asks the wind of the western sea to blow and to lull the baby to sleep. The repetition of the word ‘west’ hints at the death of the child’s father as ‘west’ is the location of sunset. Similarly, the repetition of the word ‘silver’ at the end of the poem refers to the coffins that are made of silver. Again, the mother’s repeated assurance to her baby that his father will return to him soon, hints that the father will never return. Thus, the tone of the poem is sad and melancholic.

Rhyme Scheme:

The rhyme scheme is the ordered pattern of rhymes at the end of the lines of a poem or verse. A rhyme scheme is used in poetry. It helps us to read a poem with rhythm. It is maybe common or uncommon. It establishes the poem. It is the combination of a number of stanzas. Every stanza has some lines.

The rhyme scheme is easily identified, usually by the accent or sound of the last word of each line of every poem. The “Lullaby” rhyme scheme is given in the poem. The poem consists of 2 stanzas and 16 lines.

Now I am going to mention below rhyme scheme with an explanation.

• low – A
• sea – B
• blow – A
• sea – B
• go – A
• blow – A
• me – B
• sleeps – C

• rest –
• soon –
• breast –
• soon –
• nest –
• west –
• moon –
• sleep –

Here the last word of the 1st line is “low” and the last word of the 3rd line is “blow”. Both words have the same sound. So we can mark it “A”. Then last word of the 2nd line is “sea” and the last word of the 4th line is “sea”. Both words have the same sound. So we can mark it “B”. Then again, the last word of the 5th line is “go” and the last word of the 7th line is “me”. Both words have the same sound. So we can mark it “C”. Further again, the last word of the 6th line is “blow” and the last word of the 8th line is “sleeps”. So we can mark it “C”.

After figuring out the rhyme scheme of the last syllable of each line of this poem, each seven-line stanza is rhymed ABABAABC. And In the second stanza lines follow the same pattern.

Q: What characteristics of a lullaby you find in this poem?

Ans: Lullaby is a kind of children’s song with the view to make the children sleep. In a lullaby, a child is promised something and in this poem, the child is promised that his father will return to him very soon. A lullaby is usually short and this poem contains only two stanzas. There are repetitions in a lullaby. In the present poem we find repetitions such as, “sweet and low”, “sleep and rest”, “blow”, “silver”, etc. The lullaby always rhymes, which keeps the child engaged in the song. This poem also rhymes. Its rhyme scheme is ababaabc. This poem is easy to remember because of its rhyme and short length. This poem is sung by a mother, which is the mother characteristic of a lullaby. The poem also expresses the tenderness and care of the mother. Thus, we find all the characteristics of the lullaby in the poem.

Q: Evaluate the poem as a lyric.

Ans: The poem is a lyric written as a kind of children’s song or lullaby. The speaker of the poem is a mother. It is a song sung by the mother to her baby in order to lull him to sleep. The poem express her personal feelings and emotions. The vocabulary of the poem is very simple so it suits a child’s song. The poet expresses his ideas spontaneously. There are alliterations of “s” and “I” which create soft sounds. It also suits a child’s song.

Q: Find out the figures of speech used in the poem.

Ans: We find several figures of speech in the poem. The poet uses alliteration, repetition, metaphor, symbols and images in the poem. For example, we find alliteration in the lines, “Wind of the western sea/ Low, low, breath and blow”. Alliteration is also found in the line, “Silver sails all out the west”. The poet uses repetition in the poem. For example, “Sweet and low” and “sleep and rest” are repeated in the poem. The poet uses “the dying moon” as a metaphor for the death of the father of the child. In line 7, stanza 2, “silver” is a metaphor for a coffin made of silver. The phrase “silver moon” has been used to represent the coffin in which the father lies. In the poem, the poet also uses symbols. The word “west” is used in the poem several times. It is a symbol of the death of the father of the child, as the west is where the sun sets. The poet uses images in this poem to create a sense of despair in the entire poem. Words that appeal to the sense, such as “sea”, “rolling waters”, “moon”, and “silver” have been thoroughly used. The words “breath” and “blow” appeal to the sense of touch. They reflect the mother’s longing for her husband.

Q: Explain the following:

Come from the dying moon, and blow.
Blow him again to me;
While my little one, while my pretty one, sleeps.

Ans: These lines express the lamentation of a woman whose husband is perhaps dead. This poem is a lullaby sung by a mother to make her baby sleep. She asks the sweet wind of the western sea to blow to lull the baby to sleep. She also wants the presence of her husband while the baby sleeps. So, she invokes the western wind to send her husband to her again from the dying moon, which is a metaphor for the death of her husband. Through these lines, the woman expresses her deep lamentation for her dead husband. She requests the western wind to bring her husband to her while her little baby sleeps in her breast. This is nothing but a kind of consolation to herselft.