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Difficulty: MediumThematic Argumentation in Poetry

Read the following poem by W. B. Yeats (1865–1939), published in 1890:

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

In the final stanza, how does the transition in setting from the idealized island of Innisfree to the "roadway" and "pavements grey" contribute to the thematic argument of the poem?

  1. A
    It indicates that the speaker's peaceful contemplation has turned to complete despair, suggesting that the city's presence has permanently destroyed the speaker's memory of nature.
  2. B
    It serves to document W. B. Yeats's own biographical movement from his youth in County Sligo to his later professional life in London.
  3. It develops the argument that the desire for spiritual tranquility is an enduring internal state that sustains the speaker even when physically surrounded by an urban landscape.Answer
  4. D
    It highlights the use of alliteration in 'lake water lapping' and 'low sounds' to draw attention to the formal musical techniques employed by the poet.
  5. E
    It suggests that the line break after 'pavements grey' represents a literal physical barrier that permanently separates the speaker from the natural world.

Answer

The option stating that the transition develops the argument that the desire for spiritual tranquility is an enduring internal state that sustains the speaker even when physically surrounded by an urban landscape.
The correct answer is correct because the final stanza moves from the imagined retreat of Innisfree to the reality of the urban roadway and pavements grey. This transition argues that the speaker’s connection to nature is not merely a desire for physical escape but an internalized spiritual state that persists and provides solace even within an industrial or urban environment.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the setting transition in the final stanza, comparing the pastoral description of Innisfree in the first two stanzas with the urban roadway and pavements grey in the third stanza.
The speaker is physically located in a grey, urban environment but internally hears the sounds of the natural lake isle.
This establishes a contrast between the speaker's physical location and their internal, imaginative state.
2
Evaluate the function of the final line, 'I hear it in the deep heart's core,' in relation to this contrast.
The line shows that the memory of Innisfree is a permanent, internalized source of peace that remains active despite the city environment.
To understand the resolution of the thematic argument, which asserts that spiritual connection to nature is an enduring internal reality rather than just a physical destination.

Key Concept

Analyzing how structural transitions and contrasts in setting develop a poem's central thematic argument.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Thematic Argumentation in Poetry

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