Table of Contents
Introduction:
The poem “The Wind” was written by Robert Louis Stevenson.This poem was published in his children’s poetry collection called “A Child’s Garden of Verses.” A child is the speaker of the poem and the child is addressing the wind. He is observing and admiring the presence of wind throughout the poem.
About the Poet:
Robert Louis Stevenson was a Scottish poet, novelist, essayist and travel writer. He loved the writings of William Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott, John Bunyan. Some of his best known works are Treasure Island, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Kidnapped and A Child’s Garden of Verses
Form:
The poem “The Wind” by Robert Louis Stevenson is a three stanza poem. Each stanza consists of six lines. These lines are known as sestets.
Speaker of the poem:
By the end of the poem, the readers get to know that a child is the speaker of the poem. He is addressing the wind.
Are you a beast of field and tree,
Or just a stronger child than me?
Poem Analysis:
Stanza 1:
Lines 1-6:
I saw you toss the kites on high And blow the birds about the sky; And all around I heard you pass, Like ladies' skirts across the grass— O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!
In the first stanza of the poem, the speaker is talking to the wind. The speaker describes how the wind is moving things around the speaker. He says that the wind is tossing the kites to the sky and making the birds fly high in the sky. Though the speaker couldn’t see the wind, he said he could hear the sound of the wind when it passed.The speaker says that he could hear the sound of the wind in dancing grass and moving women’s skirts.The speaker says that the wind moves all day and sings loud songs.
Stanza 2:
Lines 7-12:
I saw the different things you did, But always you yourself you hid. I felt you push, I heard you call, I could not see yourself at all— O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!
In the second stanza, the speaker is addressing the wind. He says, even though the wind hides itself , the speaker could observe all the things the wind had done. The speaker could feel the push of the wind and could even hear the voice. But the speaker cannot see the wind. Again the speaker has repeated the same refrain lines,
wind, a-blowing all day long,
O wind, that sings so loud a song!
Stanza 3:
Lines 13-18:
O you that are so strong and cold, O blower, are you young or old? Are you a beast of field and tree, Or just a stronger child than me? O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!
In the third stanza the speaker addresses the wind again. The speaker asks various questions to the wind. He admires the wind’s nature of being both strong and cold.He asks whether the wind is old or young like him. Here, the readers get to know that the speaker is a child.He questions wind, “Are you a beast of field and tree,”. The speaker after admiring all the qualities of the wind ends the poem using the same two lines.
O wind, a-blowing all day long,
O wind, that sings so loud a song!
