The poem
He. Where thou dwellest, in what grove, Tell me Fair One, tell me Love; Where thou thy charming nest dost build, O thou pride of every field! She. Yonder stands a lonely tree, There I live and mourn for thee; Morning drinks my silent tear, And evening winds my sorrow bear.
He. O thou summer's harmony, I have liv'd and mourn'd for thee; Each day I mourn along the wood, And night hath heard my sorrows loud.
She. Dost thou truly long for me? And am I thus sweet to thee? Sorrow now is at an end, O my Lover and my Friend!
He. Come, on wings of joy we'll fly To where my bower hangs on high; Come, and make thy calm retreat Among green leaves and blossoms sweet.
I like birds!
I imagine this being a Dr. Doolittle poem. Imagine living in a world where animals can be understood. If we could be privy to the mating ritual of the birds, perhaps their converstations would follow along the "script" written by Blake. "He", the male bird, calls out to the "she" being wooed. He notices that she is the "pride of every field" and brings with her "calm retreat". He seeks her, not sure where she lives,…
Read the whole commentI imagine this being a Dr. Doolittle poem. Imagine living in a world where animals can be understood. If we could be privy to the mating ritual of the birds, perhaps their converstations would follow along the "script" written by Blake. "He", the male bird, calls out to the "she" being wooed. He notices that she is the "pride of every field" and brings with her "calm retreat". He seeks her, not sure where she lives, thus "I live & mourn for thee/Each day I mourn along the wood". Meantime, she wonders about his intentions. She, too, is seeking companionship and thinks that "sorrow now is at an end/O my lover & my friend."
This is a fun poem to groupthe he parts together, then the she parts. He has three stanzas, while she has two.What also makes this a fun poem is that apart, the birds are not complete. Blake seems to make a point that even in nature, completeness comes when the soulmate has been found.