Leisure

William Henry Davis

Stanza one
What is this life if full of care
We have no time to stand and stare
No time to stand beneath the bows
And stare as long as sheep or cows
Paraphrase the above stanza
The poet wonders at our modern life which full of hardships and worry.
He says that we don't have enough time to appreciate and enjoy
nature.Animals are better than man as they are free to enjoy everything
around them.
Vocabulary
Beneath: under
Boughs : branches on trees
Stare : to look for a long time Care: worry
Literary terms
Alliteration: " We have no time to stand and stare"
The consonant sound 's' is repeated in 'stand ' and 'stare'
Stanza two
No time to see when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass
No time to see,in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars like stars at night.
Vocabulary
Woods : forests
Streams : small rivers
Squirrels : small animals that live among trees
Paraphrase the above lines
The poet adds that we have no time to enjoy watching squirrels playing
and hiding their nuts in grass. We don't even bother to look at beautiful
streams.
Literary terms
A) Alliteration: 'No time to see,in broad daylight'
The consonant sound 't' is repeated in 'time' and 'to'
2- The consonant sound 'w' is repeated in 'when','woods' and 'we'
Alliteration gives music and attracts the readers' ears

B) Simile
"Streams full of stars,like skies at night"
The poet compares the sparkling streams to the shining skies using
(like)
Stanza three
No time to turn at beauty's glance
And watch her feet how they can dance
No time to wait tell her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began
A poor life this if , full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare
Vocabulary
Turn at : observe,answer
Enrich : make rich, make something more enjoyable
Paraphrase the above lines
Then the poet repeats that we don't have time to appreciate and enjoy
nature. Finally,the poet comes to the conclusion that our modern life is
poor and dull.
Literary terms
A) personification.
And watch her feet how they can dance
No time to wait tell her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began
The poet regards nature like a beautiful girl dancing and smiling.
B) Alliteration :
1-"No time to wait tell her mouth can"
The poet repeats the sound 't' in "time" and "turn"
2- "No time to wait tell her mouth can"
The poet repeats the sound 't' in " time","to" and "till"
3- "We have no time to stand and stare"
The poet repeats the sound 's' in "stand" and "stare"
Alliteration gives music and attracts the readers' ears.
Rhyme scheme : aa bb cc dd ee ff aa

The main theme of the poem

Our modern life is poor and dull as we have no time to appreciate
and enjoy nature
Questions with model answer
1- Why does the poet repeat the words "no time" ?
To emphasise the idea of having no time to enjoy and appreciate
nature.
2- How does the poet end his poem? why?
He came to the conclusion that our modern life is poor and dull as we
have no time to enjoy or appreciate nature.
3- The poet thinks that animals are better than man. Explain
The poet thinks that animals are better than man as they are free to
enjoy everything around them.
4- How does the poet describe nature?
He describes nature as a beautiful girl dancing and smiling.
5- What is the name of the poet and what do you know about him?
The poet's name is William Henry Davis who was born in 1871. He
didn't have much education . He wrote verse and died in 1940.
6-What is the main theme of the poem?
The main theme of the poem is that our modern life if poor and dull
as we have no time to appreciate and enjoy nature.