Williams writes that a reader must “complete” what the poet has begun. To me, that means as if a poem is an open-ended question asked of the reader, that a reader must answer with their interpretation of the poem. I choose to interpret “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” by W. B. Yeats due to its beautiful imagery and the sense of longing it paints. For the narrator is longing for the beautiful sounds and peace of Innisfree, and fantasize about the life that they could have there. They have it all planned out: from the material of which the cabin would be made of (“clay and wattles,” how many bean-rows they would plant (nine), and the hive for which they would care for. It is a poem of longing for the slow, self-sufficient lifestyle where one could look and listen at time passing, instead of rushing through life and missing the sights and sounds. Rather than just a passing fancy, the sound of the “lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore” is something they hear in the “deep heart’s core,” a stark contrast from the static, lifeless grey of the pavement.
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2 thoughts on “Attina Zhao Discussion 12”
I agree with the analysis you made since, in my opinion, that is exactly what authors are looking for, to captivate and attract the attention of their readers through many things, such as what you say, with imagery, with that literary device , an author is able to make the reader feel in the same place or even listen to the poem he is reading. For this reason, when reading a poem, one must be very cautious in order to capture all the messages.
Hello Attina,
I like your interpretation of “The Lake Isle of Innisfree.” The beautiful imagery and level of detail in the cabin and its surroundings do seem to indicate a longing for a slow, self-sufficient lifestyle in the scenic isle of Innisfree. After reading Yeats’s autobiography, I sense that he has a lot of things that would compel him to seek such a life.
“While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart’s core.” (Yeats, lines 11-12)
This line certainly indicates an everpresent longing that he feels deep within him even while he stands on a dreary sidewalk. It makes me think that he would travel there at the earliest opportunity and start his new life there.