"April Rise" by Laurence Edward Alan "Laurie" Lee, MBE

 

Laurence Edward Alan "Laurie" Lee, MBE born on June 26, 1914 was an English poet, novelist and screenwriter, who was brought up in the small village of Slad in Gloucestershire, England. His most notable work is the autobiographical trilogy Cider with Rosie, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning, and A Moment of War. He died on May 13, 1997, Slad, United Kingdom

April Rise – Laurie Lee 

“April Rise” contains 5 quatrains rhyming abcd eeee (slant rhyme) agea cchc iccc. The title “April Rise” refers to the beginning of the warm season of the year - the beginning of the cycle of life.

Looking at the first stanza rhyming abcd:

If ever I saw blessing in the air
I see it now in this still early day
Where lemon-green the vaporous [M1] morning drips
Wet sunlight [M2] on the powder of my eye.

The poetic persona presents himself as “I” in the poem and presents several personal opinions about a summer day. Of course, the description of the different parts of the day could be read as a metaphor for the different stages of human life itself.  Looking at the early morning world, the poetic persona pronounces that the very air carries blessings. In those early morning hours, the lemon-green  misty morning is dripping wet sunlight that washes away the grittiness/powderiness of the poetic persona’s eyes- so, he can see better. There are both visual and tactile images in the stanza.

 
Blown bubble-film of blue, the sky wraps round
Weeds of warm light whose every root and rod
Splutters with soapy green, and all the world
Sweats with the bead of summer in its bud.

With his newly restored clear vision the poetic persona sees the blue summer sky over his head in the 2^nd stanza. The sky is a blue bubble-film (metaphor/alliteration) that covers/protects the rays of sunlight that comes down from the sun on that summer day. The bubble film sky is there to keep the world warm. The season being summer, sunlight is more plentiful unlike in the winter, hence the warm light is compared to weeds. Every part of the light plant (extended metaphor) is charged with so much energy that they are spluttering soapy green. In that early morning, the entire world was a in its bud – an unopened flower – which is covered with the dew of the summer. Stanza 2 was primarily, visual. The idea of energy is suggested by the onomatopoeic term “Splutters”.

If ever I heard blessing it is there
Where birds in trees that shoals and shadows are
Splash with their hidden wings and drops of sound
Break on my ears their crests of throbbing air.

The 3^rd stanza is primarily auditory. The poet begins with parallel structure. He hears birds sheltering in the unseen parts of a tree. He uses a metaphor of a watery place to describe the tree. The birds in that imagined space become fish among the shoals and shadows. The birds are making all kinds of noises. The sound waves generated by the birds break against the poet’s ear. The poetic person considers his ears to be blessed to hear such marvelous sounds.

Pure in the haze the emerald sun dilates,
The lips of sparrows milk the mossy stones,
While white as water by the lake a girl
Swims her green hand among the gathered swans.

Little by little the sun is becoming hotter – the sun is dilating. The sun can be read as a woman about to give birth or an eye focusing on something. Still the primary colour is green. Sparrows are birds associated with the Goddess of Love – Venus/ Aphrodite. Sparrows feeding on moss growing on stones are compared to calves sucking milk from cows – metaphor. There is a very fair girl sitting by the lake and she is moving one of her hands through the green water of the lake which is currently occupied by the swans. Swans are a symbol of constancy and devotion – symbols of togetherness. The stanza ends with the entire world busy with gathering food, enjoying the warmth and procreating.

 

Now, as the almond burns its smoking wick,
Dropping small flames to light the candled grass;
Now, as my low blood scales its second chance,
If ever world were blessed, now it is.

 

With that the poem moves towards the end of the day – the poet compares the day to lighted candle and now the entire candle is burnt out, even the wick is smoking. Burning almond creates pleasant gustatory and olfactory images. At the same time there is something sinister about the smell of almond as it is associated with cyanide – the day is dying. The golden light of the setting sun falls on the grass. The poet sees this as the sun rays trying to light “the candled grass”. The sight is so beautiful, the poet’s “low blood” -  - is sired up. The beautiful scenery he saw early in the morning was the first “chance”, this is the “second chance”. As a result his low blood scales – climbs. He may be feeling more energetic. “[S]cales” can also refer to musical scales – the sight makes his low blood sing with joy. Considering all that he had experienced, the conclusion he had arrived at was that it was the most perfect day he had ever experienced.]

 

Exercise

If ever I saw blessing in the air
I see it now in this still early day
Where lemon-green the vaporous morning drips [pathetic fallacy]
Wet sunlight on the powder of my eye.

1.     What does the air contain?

2.     What time of the day is it?

3.     What are the modifiers used to describe the morning?

4.     What makes the morning vaporous?

5.     What does the morning drips on the narrative persona’s eye?

6.     Why do you think the poetic persona’s eye is powdery?    

Blown bubble-film of blue, the sky wraps round
Weeds of warm light whose every root and rod
Splutters with soapy green, and all the world
Sweats with the bead of summer in its bud.

1.     What does the poetic persona compare the sky to?

2.     Do you think it is appropriate to compare the sky to that?

3.     What is the technique used in the first line?

4.     Why do you think the writer calls the warm light to weeds?

5.     What do you think the writer means by the phrase “soapy green”?

6.     What does the poet compare the world to?

7.     What makes the world sweat?

 

If ever I heard blessing it is there
Where birds in trees that shoals and shadows are
Splash with their hidden wings and drops of sound
Break on my ears their crests of throbbing air.

1.     Where are the birds?

2.     Where are the birds according to the poet? Is the metaphor appropriate?

3.     What does poet compare the sounds made by the birds to?  

 

Pure in the haze the emerald sun dilates,
The lips of sparrows milk the mossy stones,
While white as water by the lake a girl
Swims her green hand among the gathered swans.

 

1.     What is happening to the sun? Use your own words.

2.     What does the poet compare the feeding sparrows to?

3.     Who is by the lake? What is that person doing?

4.     What do you think the poet is trying to convey through the reference to the swans?

 

Now, as the almond burns its smoking wick,
Dropping small flames to light the candled grass;
Now, as my low blood scales its second chance,
If ever world were blessed, now it is.

 

1.     What is the time of the day being described in the last stanza?

2.     What does the poet compare the day to? What had happen to the thing the day was compared to?

3.     Why do you think the poet calls the grass “candled grass”?

4.     What can be the two meanings of the term “scales”?

5.     Why is the poetic persona’s low blood scaling?

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 [M1]misty

 [M2]paradox