Oft, in the Stilly Night by Thomas Moore

 Oft, in the stilly night

by Thomas Moore

Oft, in the stilly night,
Ere slumber’s chain has bound me,
Fond memory brings the light
Of other days around me;
The smiles, the tears,
Of boyhood’s years,
The words of love then spoken;
The eyes that shone,
Now dimm’d and gone,
The cheerful hearts now broken!
Thus, in the stilly night,
Ere slumber’s chain hath bound me,
Sad memory brings the light
Of other days around me.

When I remember all
The friends, so link’d together,
I’ve seen around me fall,
Like leaves in wintry weather;
I feel like one
Who treads alone
Some banquet-hall deserted,
Whose lights are fled,
Whose garlands dead,
And all but he departed!
Thus, in the stilly night,
Ere slumber’s chain has bound me,
Sad memory brings the light
Of other days around me.

Explanation in Odia

Questions and Answers

1.       When do the past memories occur to the poet?

              Ans. The past memories occur to the poet, before he finds himself in deep sleep.

2.       What does “other days” mean?

                    Ans. ‘Other days’ means the days coming nearer and this creates a sensed impending                                      doom.

3.       Are the memories of boyhood sweet or sad?  Quote the line in support of your answer. How does the poet grieve for his dear ones who have passed away?

                    Ans. Memories of boyhood are both sweet and sad. The lines:

                                                “The smiles, the tears”

                                                “The eyes that shone”

                                                “Now dimmed and gone”

                                                “The cheerful hearts now broken!”

                                Bring out sad memories,

                                Besides the lines

                                                “Of boyhood’s years”

                                                “The woods of love then spoken”

                                Describe sweet memories.

                                The poet graves for his dear and near ones who have passed away in his nostalgic vein.

4.       How does he recall his friends?

                                Ans. He sadly recalls his friends who were very close to him. They are now all dead.

5.       Does the poet fell lonely in the absence of his near and dear ones? Quote the line in support of your answer?

                                Ans. Yes, the poet fells lonely in the absence of his dear and near ones. The line “Who                                     trades alone” states this.

6.       Smile is figure of speech used to make comparison between two unlike things using ’as’, ‘like’ … What figure of speech does the poet use to express his loneliness?

                                Ans. The poet used metaphor to express his loneliness.

7.       The figure of speech used to express inanimate beings as animate is called personification. Give the example of personification used in the poem?

                                Ans. The line “slumber’s chain has bound me” is an example of personification.