Answer in 20-30 words:-
What message does the poem Sympathy convey to you??
Answers
The setting of Sympathy:
His poem is set at a difficult time in the poet’s life. At this time, the poet was injured and lying by the side of the road. In the absence of any human company, he was distressed. He was also in great pain, both physically and mentally. The poet goes on to describe two different resolutions to this setting. Both of these resolutions are contrasts to each other, and his message is conveyed through the device of this very contrast in the scenario.
Summary of Sympathy:
The poem consists of 16 lines in total. These lines are not divided into stanzas. Here they are divided into meaningful segments for the purposes of this summary in order to make the poem easier to follow and understand. This poem is written in the first person, hence we can assume that the speaker of the poem is the poet himself.
Lines 1 – 4:
I lay in sorrow, deep depressed…
My grief a proud man heard…
His looks were cold. He gave me gold.
But not a kindly word.
In these lines, the poet describes an incident where he was lying on the ground. Perhaps he was injured. In any case, it is clear that he was experiencing some kind of suffering. As a result, he was sorrowful and depressed. He needed help. As he was crying out in his grief, a proud man heard the sound of his voice and stopped to help him. The poet could figure out that he prided himself on his wealth because the only way in which that man helped him was to provide him with money to get himself treated. Apart from that, there was no emotion as such on the man’s face. He did not speak to the poet at all and did not try to console him either.
Lines 5 – 8:
My sorrow passed – I paid him back.
The gold he gave me.
Then stood erect and spoke my thanks
And blessed his charity…
In these lines, the poet described what happened to him after he had recovered from the previously described incident. He says that his bad time had come to an end and he was able to repay the man who had helped him in the form of returning the money he had leant the poet. After repaying him, the poet stood upright with his head help high and thanked him. In addition to this, the poet offered the man what he had not offered the poet – a kind word. The poet tells the man that God will certainly reward him for his charity.
Lines 9 – 12:
I lay in want, in grief and pain.
A poor man passed my way.
He bound my head. He gave me bread.
He watched me night and day.
In these lines, the poet describes an incident that is very similar to the one he had described at the beginning of the poem. He says that he had been lying on the ground, injured as before. He was as sad as he had been back then. He was also in a lot of pain. He desperately wanted some help. A poor man was walking by that place, and he stopped to help the poet. Instead of giving the poet money as the proud man had, he bandaged the poet’s injured head and gave him some food and drink to restore his health. He stayed by the poet’s bedside in the daytime as well as the night-time till he had recovered fully.
Lines 13 – 16:
How shall I pay him back again
For all he did to me?
Oh! Gold is great. But greater far
Is heavenly sympathy!
In these lines, the poet wonders how he will pay back the poor man who had taken such good care of him. He owes the man something much more complex than a pile of notes or coins. What he owes the man isn’t even anything that has a physical manifestation. Therefore, it will be rather difficult to repay the man. This is when the poet comes to a great realization. He understands that the value of sympathy is much more than that of money. Money can certainly help you out in your time of need, but sympathy from a fellow being can lift your spirits and give you the strength to fight against extenuating circumstances. No one can put a price tag on sympathy for it is invaluable