Back to: Jammu and Kashmir Board Class 6th English Guide and Notes
Table of Contents
Introduction
This is a poem that talks about what the colour green is. The poet asks us in the title what the colour green is, and then goes on to describe the various objects, feelings and scenes associated with the colour green.
About the Poet
Mary Devenport O’Neill (1879 – 1967) was an Irish poet and dramatist. She was a friend and colleague of famous Irish writers such as W. B. Yeats, George Russell, and Austin Clarke.
Theme
The theme of this poem is the colour green and everything it stands for.
Stanza 1- 4
Green is the grass And the leaves of trees Green is the smell Of a country breeze . . . Green is a coolness You get in the shade Of the tall old woods Where the moss is made. Green is a flutter That comes in Spring When frost melts out Of everything. Green is a grasshopper Green is jade Green is hiding In the shade.
The poet says that the grass and the leaves of trees are green. She also thinks that green is the smell of a country breeze. Although green is a colour, she uses it to describe a smell here. She says green is a coolness that one gets in the mossy shade of tall old woods. Green is a flutter that comes in spring when frost melts out of everything.
Grasshoppers and jade are also green. Green feels like hiding out in the shade. Therefore, green is more than a colour. It is also a feeling. The poet tells us about all the things and scenes that evoke this feeling.
Stanza 5- 6
Green is an olive And a pickle. The sound of green Is a water-trickle. Green is the world After the rain Bathed and beautiful Again . . . Green is the meadow, Green is the fuzz That covers up Where winter was. Green is ivy and Honeysuckle vine. Green is yours Green is mine . . .
Olives and pickles are green. The poet says that the sound of green is a water-trickle. Green is the world after the rain when it is bathed and beautiful again. The meadow is green, as is the fuzz that covers up the land after winter is over. Ivy and honeysuckle vine are green. Green is the poet’s as well as ours. It is a colour that belongs to everyone.
