Ode on solitude

 

Ode on Solitude is written by Alexander Pope. He was an English poet, translator and satirist. He is considered to be one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18^th century. Pope was born on 21 May 1688 in London and died on 30 May 1744.

       In the poem the poet Alexander Pope talks about a man who wishes to live a happy and satisfied life close to nature. The man wishes to live unknown and die unnoticed.

       In the poem ‘Ode on Solitude’ the poet draws a beautiful picture of a happy man. Who wants to live a simple life close to nature in his own land without being connected with the society.

      In the first stanza poet says, that the man is happy who has inherited an acre of paternal land and can breathe peacefully on his native place and can take care of it. The poet praises him as he is happy and satisfied with what he has and he wants to live close to nature. He wants to live alone. 

      He gets all his essentials from his own land like milk from his own cattle, food from his fields, his sheep provides wool for clothes. He sells milk of his cattle and earn some money. In summer his trees give him shade and in winter wood to get warmth from burning wood.

      The poet says that the man is blessed who is free from the worries of worldly affairs as he spend hours, days, months, and years stress free; with a healthy body and peaceful mind.

      The man does hard work all the day and sleep peacefully at night and also meditate.

      He even wishes to live unknown and unseen (without being noticed), without any recognition and identity. Basically he wants to avoid impressing the people or worry about what they think of him. He wants no one to cry when he will die. He don’t want his tombstone to reveal his name so that people would not know where he lie or which is his tomb.

      In the final stanza it is revealed that the narrator is the man in the poem, and he wishes to be left alone, unknown from the world.

     He only wants to enjoy the simple pleasures of the world. He wants to avoid the hustle bustle of the world.

WORD DICTIONARY:

Ode – odes are elaborately structured poems praising or glorifying an event or individual, describing nature intellectually as well as emotionally

Solitude – the state of being alone, especially when you find this pleasant

Herds – cattle

Blest – blessed

Unconcernedly – free of worry

Unlamented – not mourned or regretted