My Heart Leaves up When I Behold

Grade 11 Compulsory English

My Heart Leaves up When I Behold

Summary

This poem is composed by William Wordsworth, a famous English poet. This poem is about the pleasure felt by the poet when he sees a rainbow. This pleasure and happiness has been the same for the whole of the poet’s like. The poet hopes he will still feel the same when he sees the rainbow when he is an old man. When this feeling stops it is better to die. The child is father of the man is a paradox in this poem. It means the things we do as children and feels as children affect and control our feeling when we are old. It also tells about life cycle. The poet remembers his past days when he sees the rainbow. The poet hopes that love of god and love of nature will be with him everyday.

1) Explain the paradox “the child is the father of the man”.

-It is a paradox. He means that man is the outcome of the child. Present is the outcome of past and future is the outcome of present yesterday’s man. The child grows up and becomes father. The poet wants to say that human life begins from childhood.

2) What is the main theme of the poem?

- The poet tells about the continuation of nature and life saying the child is the father of man. It means man would begin from childhood and present is the outcome of past. The poem is also about the childhood memory of the poet’s past.