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    Childhood

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    ramya MBA
    The poem reflects on when the poet lost his childhood innocence. He wonders if it was when he realized hell and heaven don't exist, or when he saw the hypocrisy of adults. The poet also ponders if it was when he gained an understanding of his own individuality and ability to think for himself. In the end, the poet concludes that childhood has gone to a forgotten place that can now only be seen in an infant's innocent face.

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    Childhood

    Uploaded by

    ramya MBA
    396 views6 pages
    The poem reflects on when the poet lost his childhood innocence. He wonders if it was when he realized hell and heaven don't exist, or when he saw the hypocrisy of adults. The poet also ponders if it was when he gained an understanding of his own individuality and ability to think for himself. In the end, the poet concludes that childhood has gone to a forgotten place that can now only be seen in an infant's innocent face.

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    The poem reflects on when the poet lost his childhood innocence. He wonders if it was when he realized hell and heaven don't exist, or when he saw the hypocrisy of adults. The poet also ponders if it was when he gained an understanding of his own individuality and ability to think for himself. In the end, the poet concludes that childhood has gone to a forgotten place that can now only be seen in an infant's innocent face.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    396 views6 pages

    Childhood

    Uploaded by

    ramya MBA
    The poem reflects on when the poet lost his childhood innocence. He wonders if it was when he realized hell and heaven don't exist, or when he saw the hypocrisy of adults. The poet also ponders if it was when he gained an understanding of his own individuality and ability to think for himself. In the end, the poet concludes that childhood has gone to a forgotten place that can now only be seen in an infant's innocent face.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 6

    Childhood

    By Markus Natten
    Introduction
    Childhood is written by Marcus Natten. In this poem, the poet
    thinks over his lost childhood. He wonders about the moment
    where he lost his innocence and realized that the world is not
    what he seemed it to be. He recalls when his thoughts changed
    and he realized the hypocrisy of the people around him. He
    finally settled down to the idea that his childhood went to some
    forgotten place and is hidden in the face of an innocent infant.
    Poem

    When did my childhood go?


    Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
    Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
    Could not be found in Geography,
    And therefore could not be,
    Was that the day!

    When did my childhood go?


    Was it the time I realised that adults were not
    all they seemed to be,
    They talked of love and preached of love,
    But did not act so lovingly,
    Was that the day!

    When did my childhood go?


    Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
    To use whichever way I choose,
    Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
    But my own, and mine alone
    Was that the day!
    Where did my childhood go?
    It went to some forgotten place,
    That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
    That’s all I know.
    Poem Explanation

    Stanza 1
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
    Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
    Could not be found in Geography,
    And therefore could not be,
    Was that the day!
    Meaning
    Ceased – come to an end
    Explanation
    In the above lines, the poet wonders about when his childhood
    came to an end. He asked himself was it the day he was no
    longer eleven years old? Was it the day when he realized that
    Hell and Heaven existed and yet could not be found in
    geography or on the map. He realized they are imaginary
    places that actually do not exist in this world.

    Stanza 2
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it the time I realised that adults were not
    all they seemed to be,
    They talked of love and preached of love,
    But did not act so lovingly,
    Was that the day!
    Meaning
    Preached – talked or spoken
    Explanation
    In the above stanza, the poet again repeats the same question
    about when did his childhood go? He wonders about the day
    when he started seeing the world with a new perception that
    adults are hypocrites and are not how they seemed to be. The
    adults who talked of love and preached of love and yet never
    behaved so lovingly. They are double-faced in reality. Was that
    the day when his childhood go?

    Stanza 3
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
    To use whichever way I choose,
    Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
    But my own, and mine alone
    Was that the day!
    Explanation
    In the third stanza, the poet deliberates on the same question
    about when he lost his childhood. He asked himself about
    possibilities. He wonders about the day he realized that his
    mind was his own and could use it the way he wants. When he
    realized that he could produce his own thoughts which were not
    bound by anyone. When he sensed his own individuality and a
    separate personality. Was that the day he lost his childhood?

    Stanza 4
    Where did my childhood go?
    It went to some forgotten place,
    That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
    That’s all I know.
    Meaning
    Infant – newborn baby
    Explanation
    In the last stanza, the poet remorses about his lost childhood.
    He concludes that his childhood had gone to some forgotten
    place which will never come back. He cherished his innocence
    which vanished now and could be only seen in a baby’s face.
    He only has sweet memories of his childhood which would
    soon fade away. He also conveyed a message that the
    innocence of childhood stays till the time one is an infant and
    that is all he knows.
    Literary Devices
    Rationalism – the poet rationalizes the lost childhood when he was eleven and
    when he found out that hell and heaven don’t exist and are not found in geography.
    Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
    Was it the time I realized that Hell and Heaven,
    Could not be found in Geography,
    Rhyme Scheme – the rhyme scheme used in the poem ‘Childhood’ is
    ABBCCD.
    Refrain – a group of phrase which is repeated in the poem
    When did my childhood go?
    Was that the day!
    Individuality – In stanza 3, the poet realized that he can use his own mind and
    can produce his own thoughts. He discovered a sense of individuality in himself.
    Antithesis – where two opposite words are used together in a sentence in a
    poem
    Hell and Heaven
    Alliteration – The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of
    closely connected words
    The time
    My mind
    Whichever way
    Thoughts that
    Inversion – when the subject-verb order is reversed
    To use whichever way I choose

    Summary
    In the poem, the poet wonders when he lost his childhood and
    the innocence he had. He became conscious that he no longer
    sees the world as he did earlier and he can sense the hypocrisy
    in people. He recalled many instances in his life when he could
    have lost his childhood. He wondered if it was the day he
    ceased to be eleven or he realized that Hell and Heaven didn’t
    exist in this world and no one could find them in the geography.
    Next, he talks about the possibility when he realized that adults
    are not what they seemed to be and they are hypocrites. They
    talk and preach of love but their actions don’t say so. Was it the
    day when he realized that his mind was his own and capable of
    producing his own thoughts? No one could own that and he is
    an individual with his particular personality. In the last stanza,
    he talks about the whereabouts of his childhood. He concludes
    that it had gone to some forgotten place and it can only be
    found in the innocent face of an infant.

    Question Answers
    Think it out
    1. Identify the stanza that talks of each of the following.
    Individuality, Rationalism, Hypocrisy
    Ans:
    Individuality – Third stanza
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
    To use whichever way I choose,
    Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
    But my own, and mine alone
    Was that the day!
    Rationalism – First stanza
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
    Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
    Could not be found in Geography,
    And therefore could not be,
    Was that the day!
    Hypocrisy – Second stanza
    When did my childhood go?
    Was it the time I realised that adults were not
    all they seemed to be,
    They talked of love and preached of love,
    But did not act so lovingly,
    Was that the day!

    2. What according to the poem is involved in the process


    of growing up?
    Ans: According to the poem, the process of growing up involves
    attaining maturity and becoming a rational and logical thinker.
    When the poet became an adult, he was able to see the
    hypocrisy in other people. He could distinguish in the behaviour
    of double-standard preach and talk of love. A grown-up can tell
    a difference between reality and fantasy. A mature person
    stresses on his thoughts and is capable of having his own
    opinion.

    3. What is the poet’s feeling towards childhood?


    Ans: The poet is disappointed and puzzled by the loss of his
    childhood. He wanted to know when was the moment he
    became a grown-up and loss the innocence of an infant. He
    expresses his confusion by asking that when and where did his
    childhood go.

    4. Which do you think are the most poetic lines? Why?


    Ans: The lines in the last stanza are the most poetic lines in the
    poem.
    It went to some forgotten place,
    That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
    That’s all I know.
    The poet beautifully describes the disappearance of his
    childhood. He talks about how one can find innocence in an
    infant’s face. It is a process of life that an individual grows up
    and slowly starts understanding the concept of the world and
    people around them. During childhood, a person believes in
    things that aren’t true or has a different set of reality. When the
    child grows up and is able to process his own thoughts, he
    realizes that many things don’t exist the way he thought them to
    be.

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