Quiet Work
By Matthew Arnold
One lesson, Nature, let me learn of thee,
One lesson which in every wind is blown,
One lesson of two duties kept at one
Though the loud world proclaim their enmity–
Of toil unsever’d from tranquility!
Of labor, that in lasting fruit outgrows
Far noisier schemes, accomplish’d in repose,
Too great for haste, too high for rivalry.Yes, while on earth a thousand discords ring,
Man’s fitful uproar mingling with his toil,
Still do thy sleepless ministers move on,
Their glorious tasks in silence perfecting;
Still working, blaming still our vain turmoil,
Laborers that shall not fail, when man is gone.
Summary of Quiet Work
- Popularity of “Quiet Work”: The sonnet “Quiet Work” by Matthew Arnold, is not unique but also matchless in its description. The poem first appeared in 1848. The interesting thing about this poem is that it is a sonnet and yet it uses apostrophe in the beginning, calling Nature capitalizing its initial. Its uniqueness lies in highlighting the great accomplishments that people have achieved in silence and calmness without making much furore in the world.
- “Quiet Work” As a Representative of Hard Work: The poet opens the poem with a bang, seeking Nature’s attention after personifying it. Arnold has used an apostrophe to call Nature to have permission to learn just one lesson and that lesson is that although the world announces loudly how to keep with two duties, the main point is that the great work is never achieved in this way. It is rather done in silence and quietness. There is not much noise, no rivals, no haste, and no announcements. Although there is a great noise on this earth such as “discords ring” yet such ministers do not care about these things. They complete their work in perfect silence while the world blames this or that person for the failure of the laborers and other such excuses. Yet great people continue working in silence.
- Major Themes in “Quiet Work”: Hard work, working in silence, and working without much ado are three major themes of this poem. The poet has highlighted in the very beginning of this sonnet that he has arrived at just one conclusion in terms of lessons. This is that great people always work silently and do their best. This hard work could only be done in silence without much brouhaha and noise. If that happens, then finger pointing starts and noise ensues which does not take care of the work. Great work continues even if the people are going and coming.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “Quiet Work”
literary devices are literary tools essential for poetic or prose writing. The objective is to make the poetic piece beautiful and enchanting. The analysis of these devices in the poem as given below shows this fact.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line such as the sound of /e/ in “One lesson, Nature, let me learn of thee”, /i/ in “Man’s fitful uproar mingling with his toil” and /a/ in “laborers that shall not fail, when man is gone.”
- Anaphora: The poem shows the use of anaphora as the repetition of “One lesson…” in the first two verses.
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line such as the sound of /l/ in and /n/ “One lesson, Nature, let me learn of thee”, /t/ in “Of toil unserver’d from tranquillity!” and the sound of /t/ and /s/ in “Their glorious tasks in silence perfecting.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
One lesson which in every wind is blown,
One lesson of two duties kept at one
Though the loud world proclaim their enmity–
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. The poem shows the use of imagery such as “Of labor, that in lasting fruit outgrows”, “Too great for haste, too high for rivalry” and “Man’s fitful uproar mingling with his toil.”
- Juxtaposition: The poem shows the juxtaposition of opposite ideas such as “Too great for haste, too high for rivalry.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between the objects that are different. The poem shows the use of metaphors such as nature, world, and uproar.
- Parallelism: The poem shows the use of parallelism in several verses such as “Too great for haste, too high for rivalry” and then “Laborers that shall not fail, when man is gone.”
- Personification: The poet has shown the use of Nature and the world as if they have life and emotions of their own.
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from literal meanings. The poem shows the use of the symbols of wind, world, toil, and tasks.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “Quiet Work”
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Diction: The poem shows the use of figurative language with metaphors and personifications at work.
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows ABCAADD in the 1st half of the poem’s rhyme scheme that lasts until the end.
- Sonnet: This poem is a sonnet having sestet as its first part comprising eight verses and an octave second part having six verses.
Quotes to be Used
These lines from “Quiet Work” are relevant to use when something important thing is to be accomplished for the public service.
Still do thy sleepless ministers move on,
Their glorious tasks in silence perfecting;
Still working, blaming still our vain turmoil,
Laborers that shall not fail, when man is gone.
