Sonwdrop

 Snowdrop

By

Edward James Hughes or Ted Hughes

(1930 - 1998)

Image Credit: Plantlife

Snowdrop

Now is the globe shrunk tight
Round the mouse's dulled wintering heart
Weasel and crow, as if moulded in brass
Move through an outer darkness
Not in their right minds, 
With the other deaths, She, too pursues her ends,
Brutal as the stars of this month,
Her pale head heavy as metal.

******

Image Credit: The Independent 

About the Poet: Edward James Hudges or Ted Hughes (Hudges is prouncenced as "Hues") was born in The West Riding Region, Yorkshire in northern England on 17 August 1930. William James, father of Ted Hughes had participated in World War I and had recorded the accounts of fight in war. These accounts made a permanent impression on the memory of Ted Hughes. The reflection of cruelty of war, death and nature in his poems is due to these accounts.

Hudges' collected workes include The Hawk in The Rain, Lupercal, Wodwo, Crow and Moor Towns. The Book For Children of Ted Hughes include poems and Plays for children. He died at the age of 68 years in London on 28 October 1998.

About the Poem: Snowdrop" is a brief yet powerful poem that explores the harshness of winter and the resilience required to survive it. The poem uses vivid imagery to depict a bleak, frozen landscape where animals and plants struggle against the cold.

Main Themes covered in the poem:

Harshness of Nature: Winter is portrayed as brutal and unforgiving. Animals like the mouse, weasel, and crow appear lifeless, stiffened by the cold, emphasizing the severity of their environment.

Survival and Resilience: Amidst this bleakness, the snowdrop flower stands out. Though delicate, it pushes through the hard ground, symbolizing endurance and the persistence of life even in adversity.

Juxtaposition: Hughes contrasts the frozen, almost metallic animals with the snowdrop, whose "pale head heavy as metal" suggests both fragility and strength.

Poetic Devices

Imagery and Personification: The snowdrop is personified as a determined survivor, its head described as "heavy as metal," aligning it with the toughness of winter rather than delicate beauty.

Structure: The poem consists of eight unrhymed lines, using consonance and pararhyme to create a stark, cold atmosphere.

Message

Hughes’s poem ultimately highlights the struggle for survival in nature, showing that even the smallest, most fragile forms of life can endure and thrive against the odds

The snowdrop, though small, becomes a symbol of resilience and the relentless drive to survive, even when the world is at its coldest and most hostile.

Glossary:

Word	Explanation	Explanation in Urdu
Globe	Snowdrop is metaphorically called globe	شاعر نے گلِ چاندی کو استعارہ کے طور استعمال کیا ہے۔ اور اُس کو گلوب کہا ہے کیونکہ دونوں گول ہیں۔
Dulled wintered heart	Severe winter has reduced the functioning of mouse's heart	شدید سردی کی وجہ سے چوہے کا دل رُک گیا ہے۔
Weasel	A small wild animal with reddish-brown fur, a long thin body and short legs. Weasels eat smaller animals	نیولا
Moulded in brass	The creatures are frozen dead seeming as if moulded in brass.	شاعر نے یہاں بھی استعارہ استعمال کیا ہے کہتے ہیں کہ جانوار شدید سردی کی وجہ سے ایسے جم گئے ہیں گویا وہ پیتل کے بنے ہوں
Other deaths	Severe winter cold which is the cause of death.	شدید سردی کو کہا گیا ہے جو موت کی وجہ ہے۔
She too pursues her endz	The nature is on it's mission to achieve its goals	قدرت بھی اپنے کام پر لگی ہیں۔ وہ بھی اپنا مقصد حاصل کرنے کی کوشش میں ہی

Thinking about the Poem:

1. How has nature shrunk the globe?

Answer: Nature has shrunk the globe very tight. Every creature is reduced to the tiniest due to the severe winter.

2. What has dulled the mouse's heart?

Answer: The harsh cold of winter has dulled or reduced the functioning of mouse's heart.

3. What sufferings do the animals undergo in the winter as portrayed in the poem?

Answer: Most the animals are on the verge of their death. Mouse one of the quickest animal is reduced to a single place as her heart has reduced functioning. Weasel and crow the cruel creatures that eat the flesh of other animals and who could survive even in coldest winter are too stationary as if made of metal they even have lost their mind.

4. Write a short note on 50 - 100 words on Hughes' view of nature

Answer: Ted Hughes viewed nature as a powerful, primal force, both beautiful and brutal, emphasizing its intrinsic value and interconnectedness with humanity. He explored the deep connection between humans and animals, often portraying nature's wildness and sometimes destructive aspects, highlighting the need for humans to respect and coexist with it. He creates an atmosphere of a hard winter and uses images from nature to potray the toughness brutality that a severe winter brings.

5. 'Her pale head heavy as metal'. Explain

Answer: The phrase "Her pale head heavy as metal", describes the snowdrop flower's drooping bloom, which appears weighed down despite its delicate form. 

Literal Meaning: The snowdrop's white, bell-shaped flower hangs downward, giving the visual impression of heaviness, as if made of dense metal. This contrasts with its actual fragility.

Symbolic Weight: The "metal" metaphor suggests resilience - The Snowdrop withstand harsh winter conditions (implied by "brutal stars"). Hughes' poem portrays nature as merciless, and the snowdrop's struggle symbolizes life's inherent heaviness in hostile environments.

Learning about the Literary Devices:

I. Pick out the images from the poem.

Answer:

(a) Nature	Mouse	Weasel	Crow	Winter Landscape
(b) Universe	Globe	Stars	Darkness	-
(c) Metal	Brass	Heavy metal	-

II. 'Weasel and crow, as if moulded in brass. Explain the simile used by the poet.

Answer: The poet uses the simile "as if moulded in brass" to compare the weasel and crow to statues made of brass. This suggests that, in the harsh winter, these animals appear stiff, rigid, and lifeless—almost frozen in place by the cold. Brass, being a hard, cold metal, emphasizes their lack of movement and vitality, highlighting how winter has made them seem unfeeling and immobile, like metal figures rather than living creatures.

III. Assonance is the similarity in vowel sound between two syllables that are close together, created either by the same consonants but different vowels ( e g. 'hit' and 'heart') or by the same vowels but different consonants (e.g 'back' and 'hat'). 

Trace two lines in which 'ou' sound is used. Also write down the words with 'ou' sound.

Answer: The two lines in which 'ou' sound is used are:.

"Now is the globe shrunk tight"

"Move through an outer darkness"

The words with 'ou' sound are:- globe, shrunk, move, through, outer.

IV. Alliteration is used especially in poetry, of the same sound/s, especially consonants, at the beginning of several words that are close together.

e.g. ‘Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascal ran’ uses alliteration.

(or) She sells sea shells on the seashore.

Pick out two examples of alliteration from the poem.

Answer:

• (a). “Globe shrunk tight”
• (b). “Pale head heavy”