Please login to post your comments.
The Fountain
James Russell Lowell
About James Russell Lowell
James Russell Lowell was an American Romantic poet. He was known to be one of the most versatile poets of his time. Lowell brings forth the magical qualities of the fountain in the poem. The fountain he describes is forever moving and forever changing. It inspires us to aspire for more and work towards it. As he describes the fountains. Lowell also brings together the two contrasting elements−change and permanency, which can be seen in the fountain and also in our lives.
Into the sunshine,
Full of the light,
Leaping and flashing
From morn till night!
Into the moonlight,
Whiter than snow,
Waving so flower-like
When the winds blow!
Into the starlight,
Rushing in spray,
Happy at midnight
Happy by day!
Ever in motion,
Blithesome and cheery,
Still climbing heavenward,
Never aweary; −
Glad of all weathers,
Still seeming best,
Upward or downward,
Motion thy rest; −
Full of a nature
Nothing can tame,
Changed every moment,
Ever the same; −
Ceaseless aspiring,
Ceaseless content,
Darkness or sunshine
Thy element; −
Glorious fountain!
Let my heart be
Fresh, changeful, constant,
Upward, like thee!
Available Answers
- 1.How does the fountain look during the day and at night? What does it do? (stanzas 1 and 2)
- 2.In what mood do you find the fountain throughout the day? (stanza 3)
- 3.In the fourth stanza, what sort of nature does the speaker say the fountain has?
- 4.
What does 'ceaseless aspiring' mean? How does the fountain aspire? (stanza 7)
- 5.What, according to the speaker, are the inherent qualities of the fountain? (stanza 7)
- 6.What does the speaker wish for in the last stanza?
7 more answer(s) available.