GOD MADE THE COUNTRY
— William Couper
The Poet : William Cowper an English poet was born in the year 1731. It is said that Cowper’s Poems give the reader a taste of William words worth’s poverty. Wordsworth had a liking for the , natural beauty, common man, quite Landscape and Cowper also Follow his foot steps through his poetry. But both Wordsworth and Cowper are alive to the situation and issue of their time.
The Simplicity of the common villagers , the abundance of natural life in the flora and the fauna around villages and their simple living have always inspired poets to write on the life in the countryside.
Comper’s poem is a classic example of this kind of writing. As villages are natural creation , they possess a a natural perfection which towns and cities lack. The everlasting pleasure of villages are always preferable than the artificial luxury and so called comfortable life of the towns.
Summary In English : Through this poem the poet has tried to draw a comprison between a village life with that of a life in big towns and cities. The poet says that actually God made only a country or a village. The nature abounds in the countryside, in the fields and groves. One can enjoy the virtues of life only in villages. One can feel the pleasure of fast flowing wind around and can listen to the birds.
The poet says that the person who live in towns and who normally travel in a car, chariots or sedans do not feel fatigue or tridness but they become idle and are deprived of enjoining the nature’s beauty which is spread over in abundance in the countryside.
The poet says that the groves are planted to give releif to the travellers from the sorcling sun during noon In the evening, the soothing light to the moon slides between the sleeping leaves of the trees. The birds on the trees sing in resounding rythmic musical notes. One can discards the shining lamps lighted in the town Against this soothing effect of the moonlight night. The poet again depicts a situation when the thrush [ a singing bird ] departs after listening to the harse music in the town and the nightingale also gets offended and stops singing.
कविता का सारांश
इस कविता के माध्यम से कवि ग्रामीण जीवन तथा शहरी जीवन का एक तुलनात्मक अध्ययन प्रस्तुत करता है । कवि कहता है कि ईश्वर ने तो केवल गांव बनाये। मनुष्य ने शहरों का निर्माण किया । गांवों में प्राकृतिक छटा चारों ओर बिखरी पड़ी है । इस प्राकृतिक सुषमा को हम खेतों खलिहानों और चारों ओर फैले वृक्षों के झुरमुटों [उपवनों ] में देख सकते हैं ।
जीवन की अच्छाइयों का आनंद हम केवल गांवों में ही प्राप्त कर सकते हैं ।तेज बहती हवा का आनंद तथा मीठे स्वर में गाते पक्षियों के मधुर संगीत का रसास्वादन केवल हम गांव में ही कर सकते हैं ।
कवि कहता है कि शहरी जीवन जीने वाले लोग गाड़ी ,रथ या डोली पर चलते हैं वे थकावट महसूस नहीं करते और आलसी हो जाते हैं पर वे धुमंतु लोगों की तरह चारों दिशाओं में फैले प्रकृति के सौंदर्य का आनंद नहीं ले पाते ।यह आनंद केवल ग्राम्यांचल में ही मिल सकता है । गांवों में वृक्ष इसलिए लगाये जाते हैं ताकि दोपहर की धूप की जलन उनको ना सताये । ये यात्री इन वृक्षों के नीचे शीतल हवा के झोंकों के साथ आनंद प्राप्त कर सकते हैं । रात्रि के समय चांद की मद्धिम रोशनी इन पत्तों के बीच में छनकर पृथ्वी पर एक रोमांचक प्रकाश बिगड़ती है और तब जंगल के बीच पक्षियों का कलरव ,मधुर संगीत बनकर उभरता है। शहरों में जलती बत्तियाँ एक चकाचौंध पैदा करती हैं जो मन को आघात पहुँचाती हैं।
कवि कल्पना करता है कि पक्षियों का तीव्र और शहरों में बजता तीव्र संगीत कलरव सुन सुरीले स्वर में गाने वाला था ‘ थस्रट ‘ पक्षी पलायन कर जाता है और बुलबुल के मन को भी आघात लगता है और वह गाना छोड़ देती है।
GLOSSARY AND NOTES
Abound (verb intransitive ): बहुतायत में होना । Threaten (verb): धमकाना। Sedan (noun): डोली। Fatigue (noun): थकावट । Pensive (Adj): ध्यानमग्न। Thrush (noun): तूती पक्षी , सारिका। Nightingale (noun): बुलबुल। Warbling (verb): सुरीला संगीत , गायन। Chariot (noun): रथ । Groves (noun): बागीचा, उपवन। Draught (noun): वायु का झोंका।
EXERCISE
A. Answer the following questions briefly :
Q.1. Do you belong to a village ? Which natural seene and objects there attract you must ?
Ans. Yes, I do belong to a village, My village is situated on the bank of river. The setting of the sun in the west and its colourful rays falling on the river bed affects me the most.
2. Do you belong to a town? What things cause annoyance to you there ?
Ans. We are presently living ina town with our family. The moving crowd and the sound of vehicle running on the road causes a lot of
annoyance to me. I get disturbed, when I walk on the road .
B. Answer the following questions briefly :
Q.1. Where do you find health and virtue ?
Ans. Health and virtue can be found only in the country.
Q.2. Where do you find field and groves ?
Ans. We find fields and groves towards the countryside.
Q.3. What is the source of light in villages in the evening.
Ans. The main source of light in villages in the evening is through the moonbeam which comes sliding saftly between the silent, sleeping leaves of the trees
Q.4. Why is the nightingale mute in a town ?
Ans. The shining lights of big lamps in the town eclipses the softer light of the villages and the harsh songs emanating in the town confuses the nightingale in the town. I make her mute and soundless .
C.1. Long Answer Questions :
Q.1. Why does the poet believe that God made the Country ?
Ans. The poet believes that God made the country because all the natural creations of God are available in abundance in the country like the shining sun, the bearm of the moonlight, the blowing wind, the groves and fields and the sweet music of the birds,.If you have to find virtue and health, that can be found only in the cool and calm atmosphere of a village.
Q.2. Why does the poet believe that man made the town ?
Ans. The poet believes that it is only the man who has made the town because of the town because of the artificiality of the town and it’s environment. The light are un natural, the sound of music are jarring to the ears. The birds stop singing and one cannot find groves and fields where one can walk freely and can enjoy good health.
Q .3. Why is life bitter ?
Ans. Life is bitter for some because they discard the nature and maintain an unnatural life in unnatural surrounding with every thing artificial. They are away from the sun, the moon, the natural air the nature’s gift in the from of trees, vegetarian and lovely songs of the birds.
Q.4. What can make our life sweet?
Ans. Nature makes our life satisfying and sweet through its gifts given to man. The natural sunlight of the sun, the soothing rays of the moon, the flowing wind around, the groves and flids spread over, the singing of birds with harmonious notes all make us happy and give life s sweet feeling .
Q.5. What function so groves perform in a village ?
Ans. The groves give relief to a Wanderer from the scorcling sun during midday sunlight of the sun, the soothing rays of the moon, provides soothing light at night coming through the leaves of the trees in the groves and it allows birds to sit on their branches to sing sweet songs.
Q.6. The birds are scared of sounds. Why ?
Ans. The situation prevails in the town where music creat loud sound and this depends the initiative of the birds. They stop singing as they can’t complete with those louder sound.