explanation of the poem childhood
Answers
Summarization:
Stanza 1: The poet is curious to know when he lost his childhood. He tries to find out the answer of his own question. He feels it was perhaps that day when he discovered the theories of Heaven and Hell and that Geography did not provide him any information about the existence of such place. Education has made the poet look at the world differently with more reason and logic. The poet feels that he had probably lost his childhood when he had acquired a rational thinking towards his surroundings.
Stanza 2: In this stanza, the poet figures out that the adults around him did not practice what they usually preached. They taught others to be loving and caring when they themselves were violent and mean. This is when the child lost his trust and faith in the adults. The poet realizes that probably the loss of faith and trust might have been the major steps towards losing his childhood.
Stanza 3: The poet while growing up realizes that his mind is powerful and it takes its own decisions. His own opinions and thoughts have earned him individuality free from the biased notions of others. This is when he thinks that his individuality and experiences have taken away the childhood from him.
Stanza 4: Finally, in the ending stanza of the poem, “Childhood”, the poet changes his question from ‘when’ to ‘where’ he has lost his childhood. The answer is an easy one. Markus Natten says that his childhood has gone hiding into some forgotten place. It can found in an infant’s face. The last lines can be interpreted as that the childhood is a lost memory. We recall the fantasies and the moments associated with it but at the same time, the innocence and the childhood are irrevocably lost.
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Answer:
Stanza wise explanation of the poem CHILDHOOD.
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!
Word Meanings:
go – end
ceased to be – stopped being
realised – understood
Explanation: The poet wonders when he lost his childhood. He reflects that perhaps it was the day when he crossed the age of eleven. Maybe it was the stage when he realised that the concepts of Hell and Heaven, about which he had been taught since “his childhood, did not exist in reality. Geography textbooks did not give the location of any such places. The poet realises that he might have lost his childhood when he gained his rational outlook due to getting educated.
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!
Word Meanings:
seemed – appeared
preached – taught
act – behave
lovingly – with compassion or love for others
Explanation in this Stanza, the poet reflects that maybe the loss of childhood occurred when he was able to see through the hypocrisy of adults. These people followed double standards, actually following and preaching different standards of behaviour. They told the poet to be loving and caring; however they themselves were argumentative, violent and discourteous. Their behaviour was a far cry from the love they sermonised about and advocated so reverently to the child. Perhaps, says the poet, recognising broken trust was a major step towards adulthood.
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!
Word Meanings:
really mine – when not influenced by others’ opinions
whichever – any
producing – creating
thoughts – views, opinions coming from the poet’s mind
Explanation: The poet asks the same question again and again but with different options. He is trying to guess when he actually lost his childhood. Perhaps, it was the day when he realised that his mind could think independently, forming his own opinions and being able to take his own decisions.
He gained a sense of individuality, which set him free from the preconceived opinions of others. His own individual opinions and experiences shape his thoughts now and he realised that this might have been the time when he lost his childhood innocence completely.
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.
Word Meanings:
forgotten – unremembered
hidden – concealed, kept out of sight
infant – small child
Explanation: In this Stanza the poet changes his question. The poet now wonders where his childhood has gone. He reflects that may be his childhood has gone to an unremembered place.
The poet also says that childhood can be found in the innocent face of a child who does not have any pretensions and rationality and who trusts others unconditionally. In other words, a small child is full of innocence and there one can find one’s own childhood.
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