2.6 Money (Appreciation)

 

English Poem Appreciations 12th HSC Board
Section Two (Poetry)

Unit 2.6

Money

Money

                                       - William H. Davies

When I had money, money, O!

I knew no joy till I went poor;

For many false man as a friend

Came knocking all day at my door.

Then felt I like a child that holds 

A trumpet that he must not blow

Because a man is dead; I dared

Not speak to let this false world know.

Much have I thought of life, and seen

How poor men's hearts are ever light;

And how their wives do hum like bees

About their work from morn till night.

So, when I hear these poor ones laugh,

And see the rich ones coldly frown

Poor men, think I, need not go up

So much as rich men should come down.

When I had money, money, O!

My many friends proved all untrue;

But now I have no money, O!

My friends are real, though very few.

                                            - William H. Davies

Q.  With the help of the following points, write a poetic appreciation of the poem      'Money.'

• About the poem/poet and the title

• The theme

• Poetic style

• The language/ poetic devices used in the poem    

• Special features

• Message, values, morals in the poem

• Your opinion about the poem

 

Appreciation of the poem :-

Money

The title of the poem 'Money' is very suggestive and reflective. It is written by a Welsh poet and writer William H. Davies. In this narrative poem poet depicted his own real life experience as the rich man and a poor man in the context of the money. 

The poem tells us about a rich man who wants to be a poor man to find the real happiness. It is when we do not have money or have lost our money, we realize how important the money.  The theme of the poem is that money cannot give you eternal happiness. The poem consists of five stanzas of four line sonnets. It is written in narrative form which is a biographical. The poem is written in a simple language which is easy to read and understand. The rhyme scheme used is 'abcb'. The poetic devices used in the poem are Exclamation, Repetition, Simile, Imagery, Euphemism, Antithesis, Inversion, Transferred Epithet. The special feature of the poem is a very simple subject but has deep bitter truth of human relationships. It relates the experiences and observations of human life. The poem gives us a strong message that money and richness is not essential for happiness. Money invites many false and selfish people in our life. 

I like the poem because it teaches that money may attract temporary happiness but for real and eternal happiness true people are important in our life.

__xx__