Literature spot B
Student’s Book, page 86
A Green Cornfield
Christina Rossetti
The earth was green, the sky was blue:
I saw and heard one sunny morn
A skylark hang between the two,
A singing speck above the corn;
A stage below, in gay accord,
White butterflies danced on the wing,
And still the singing skylark soared,
And silent sank and soared to sing.
The cornfield stretched a tender green
To right and left beside my walks;
I knew he had a nest unseen
Somewhere among the million stalks.
And as I paused to hear his song
While swift the sunny moments slid,
Perhaps his mate sat listening long,
And listened longer than I did.
Explanation
The poet is Christina Rossetti
The first stanza
| The earth was green, the sky was blue: (a) I saw and heard one sunny morn (b) A skylark hang between the two, (a) A singing speck above the corn; (b) |
- The underlined word two in the third line refers to the earth and the sky.
- The two colours mentioned in the first stanza are green and blue.
- The underlined word speck in the first stanza indicates something "small".
- The poet saw the bird one sunny morning.
- The bird mentioned in the first stanza is a skylark.
- The thing that the poet saw and heard in one of the mornings is a skylark singing.
- The colour of the Earth as mentioned in the first stanza is green
- The colour of the sky mentioned in the first stanza is blue.
- The bird was singing above the corn.
- The line which shows the skylark flying in the sky is a skylark hang between the two.
- The rhetorical device mentioned in "singing speck" is alliteration.
- The rhyme scheme is abab
The second stanza
| A stage below, in gay accord, White butterflies danced on the wing, And still the singing skylark soared, And silent sank and soared to sing. |
A
- The animal mentioned in the second stanza is a skylark.
- The insects mentioned in the second stanza are butterflies
- The skylark sings when it flies high.
- The skylark doesn't sing when it flies down. It becomes silent.
- The butterflies were dancing.
- The colour of the butterflies is white.
- The word accord means "in harmony" or "in agreement".
- 'Silent sank " and "Singing skylark soared" are two examples of alliteration.
- The butterflies dance in gay accord.
- The words in gay accord mean that the butterflies were dancing happily
- What shows that butterflies did not sit quietly is "White butterflies danced on the wing."
The third stanza
| The cornfield stretched a tender green To right and left beside my walks; I knew he had a nest unseen Somewhere among the million stalks. |
- The word tender suggests something fresh and young.
- The lines which indicate that the skylark's nest is invisible (not visible / hidden) in the cornfield are:
"I knew he had a nest unseen."
"Somewhere among the million stalks"
- The female skylark lays eggs in the nest.
- The stalk is the long, upright part of the plant that supports the leaves.
- The poet doesn't know where the skylark nest is.
- The nest of the skylark is "somewhere among the million stalks"
The fourth stanza
| And as I paused to hear his song While swift the sunny moments slid, Perhaps his mate sat listening long, And listened longer than I did. |
- The poet uses many examples of "alliteration", such as:
listening long
listened longer
- The effect the poet is trying to achieve with the technique of alliteration is adding to the rhythm of the poem.
- Apart from the poet, there is a reference to another listener who is female skylark.
- The lines which indicate that the poet left the cornfields before the skylark stopped singing are :
"Perhaps his mate sat listening long"
"And listened longer than I did"
- The poet stopped in the cornfield to hear the skylark's song.
- The underlined word swift means fast.
- The two listeners to the skylark are the poet and the female skylark (his mate).
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