What is the theme of the poem 'the village school master' by Oliver goldsmith?
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Answer:
"The Village Schoolmaster" is a poem by Oliver Goldsmith that reflects an earlier period in British life before the start of the Industrial Revolution. Its main theme is one of nostalgia for villages, which were slowly being displaced as economic centers.
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Explanation:
"The Village Schoolmaster" is a poem by Oliver Goldsmith that reflects an earlier period in British life before the start of the Industrial Revolution. Its main theme is one of nostalgia for villages, which were slowly being displaced as economic centers. The lands previously held as commons were being enclosed to support large scale agriculture and Goldsmith objected to the concentration of wealth and displacement of the peasantry.
The Schoolmaster himself was an extremely important figure in the village. Normally, the schoolmaster, vicar, and possibly a lord of the local manor were the only people in the village with advanced literacy and numeracy skills. The schoolmaster and the vicar would normally help the villagers in any tasks that required literacy and numeracy (thus the abilities to "write and cipher") such as letter-writing, contracts, surveying, etc. Although Goldsmith is gently satirizing the rustics' overestimation of the village schoolmaster, there is a certain nostalgia and affection for him. Even though the village has disappeared, the basic knowledge the schoolmaster imparted remains in the memories of the children he once taught.