The Quiet Life or Ode To Solitude by Pope

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Ode on Solitude

-BY ALEXANDER POPE

Happy the man, whose wish and care


A few paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air,
In his own ground.
Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,
Whose flocks supply him with attire,
Whose trees in summer yield him shade,
In winter fire.
Blest, who can unconcernedly find
Hours, days, and years slide soft away,
In health of body, peace of mind,
Quiet by day,
Sound sleep by night; study and ease,
Together mixed; sweet recreation;
And innocence, which most does please,
With meditation.
Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus unlamented let me die;
Steal from the world, and not a stone
Tell where I lie.

SUMMARY:
The Poets deepest desire is that he should have a few
acres of his own land, where he is happy to live and work.
He will be happy to breathe the air of his native land. It
means that he is happy with what he has in his native place
and he does not wish to have more.

In the second paragraph the poet simply means that the


man is self-sufficient. His land, now shown to be a farm,
provides for all of his needs — his herds provide him with
milk, he is able to bake his own bread. In the summer, his
trees provide ample shade, and in the winter the wood from
those same trees can be lit to keep him warm. He has no
need of anything beyond his own land.

The narrator considered this farmer blessed! Time


almost doesn’t have meaning for this man; his world
provides for all of his needs. Hours go by, days go by, years
go by, and everything remains the same. The health the man
is in at the beginning of this cycle is the health he remains in
when it is finished. He has peace of mind which is a blessing
for him.
The poet says that he sleeps a sound sleep. He is
ignorant about the knowledge and competition in the world.
It’s a strange idea and casts the character of the farmer in a
different light. He does not know about the world. And so he
could sleep a sound sleep.

Here the poet wants an unseen life. He wants to live in


solitude until he dies. He wants to die unlamented. Not a
stone should be carved on his grave, so that no one will
know where he lies after death. A perfect life of solitude and
peace.

Reference to context:
1) Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus unlamented let me die.
Context: The above lines are taken from the poem “Ode on
Solitude” composed by Alexander Pope. The poet wants to
lead a quiet and secluded life with minimum responsibility
and minimum assets.
Explanation: Last Paragraph of the Summary.

2) Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,


Whose flocks supply him with attire.
Context: As Above
Explanation: His land provides for all of his needs — his
herds provide him with milk, he is able to bake his own
bread. In the summer, his trees provide ample shade, and in
the winter the wood from those same trees can be lit to keep
him warm. He has no need of anything beyond his own land.
3) Blest, who can unconcernedly find
Hours, days, and years slide soft away,
In health of body, peace of mind, Quiet by day.
Context: As Above
Explanation: 3rd paragraph

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