A Lake and a Fairy Boat
By Thomas Hood
A Lake and a Fairy Boat
To sail in the moonlight clear,
And merrily we would float
From the dragons that watch us here!
Thy gown should be snow-white silk
And strings of oriental pearls,
Like gossamers dipped in milk,
Should twine with thy raven curls!
Red rubies should deck thy hands,
And diamonds should be thy dower –
But fairies have broke their wands,
And wishing has lost its power!
Summary of A Lake and a Fairy Boat
- Popularity of “A Lake and a Fairy Boat”: This beautiful but short poem by Thomas Hood first appeared in 1827 in his collection The Plea of the Midsummer Fairies. The poem presents not only the wonders of childhood imagination but also the beauty of images to describe appearances and dresses. Although the poem does not contain a single fairy-like story, the descriptive style and the use of images have made this poem highly popular among children.
- “A Lake and a Fairy Boat” As a Representative of Childhood Imagination: The poet presents a beautiful scene of a lake with a fairy boat on a moonlit night. It shows the children moving away from someplace where dragons live, and the dragons watch them fleeing. Later there is the description of the dress, perhaps, of the fairies. Interestingly, it is suggestive rather than real as the speaker says, addressing the person that her dress should be snow white and made of silk with string pearls like white gossamer and curls twined on it.
The third stanza widens these childhood imaginations to include the appearance decorated with jewelry, showing that her hands should have rubies and the dowry should comprise diamonds. The last two verses show the turn of the magic that all has been lost. The fairies do not have those magic wands as they have broken them, and desires have also lost their powers to come into existence immediately. This shows how childhood has turned into adulthood, losing childhood imaginative power. - Major Themes in “A Lake and a Fairy Boat”: Childhood imagination, the richness of fantasies, and reality are three major themes of “A Lake and a Fairy Boat.” The beauty of the childhood imagination is clear from the very first stanza, which shows a lake, a fairy boat, a moonlit night, and dragons watching the fleeing boat. The second and third stanzas also present pure richness as found in fantasies pointing to the richness of childhood imagination. However, this suddenly turns out to be bitter when it clears that the fairies do not have those magical wands with them and that now desires are not fulfilled with that magic trick. This is the dawn of reality that brings the poet back into the world, having no fairies and no magic wands.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in A Lake and a Fairy Boat
Thomas Hood uses various literary devices to enhance the intended impact of his poem. Some of the major literary devices have been analyzed below.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /a/ in “A lake and a fairy boat” and the sound of /o/ in “Thy gown should be snow-white silk.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick successions, such as the sound of /w/ in “we would” and /s/ in “snow-white silk.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /t / in “And wishing has lost its power” and the sound of /s/ in “Thy gown should be snow-white silk.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Thomas Hood uses imagery in this poem, such as “And merrily we would float”, “From the dragons that watch us here!” and “And strings of oriental pearls.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects that are different in nature. The poet used desire as a powerful person who has lost his power, such as “And wishing has lost its power.”
- Simile: It is a figure of speech that shows a direct comparison of things for meanings. Thomas Hood used a simile comparing oriental pearls with gossamers dipped in milk.
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols, such as a lake, boat, moon, and dragons to show the power of childhood imagination.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in A Lake and a Fairy Boat
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Diction: It means the type of language. The poem shows formal, poetic, and imaginative diction.
- End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Thomas Hood has used end rhyme in this poem, such as boat/float and clear/here.
- Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-lined stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Here each stanza is quatrain.
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows an ABAB rhyme scheme, and this pattern continues until the end.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are three stanzas in this poem, with each comprising four verses.
- Tone: It means the voice of the text. The poem shows a happy and fantastic tone in the beginning, suggestive in the middle, and realistic at the end.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful to quote when talking about imagination and reality.
Thy gown should be snow-white silk
And strings of oriental pearls,
Like gossamers dipped in milk,
Should twine with thy raven curls!
