A Slumber Did My Spirit Seal
Class 9 CBSE English | Notes, Summary, and Study Material
📑 Table of Contents
📖 Summary
“A Slumber Did My Spirit Seal” by William Wordsworth reflects on the death of a loved one. The poet experiences a deep sense of calm and acceptance rather than intense grief. He describes his loved one as being free from human fears and earthly suffering. After death, she becomes part of nature, moving with the earth’s cycles and blending with rocks, stones, and trees. The poem emphasizes the peaceful union of life with nature after death.
🌟 Themes
- Acceptance of death and the peaceful passing of life.
- The connection between humans and nature.
- Transience of life and inevitability of mortality.
- Inner peace and emotional closure after loss.
🎯 Moral / Message
The poem teaches that death is a natural part of life and can be met with peace rather than fear or sorrow. It reminds us that humans ultimately return to nature, blending with the earth in an eternal cycle.
📌 Important Question-Answers
Q1. What does “A slumber did my spirit seal” mean?
👉 It means the poet’s mind was in a state of calm or sleep-like peace, unaffected by fear or anxiety.
Q2. How does the poet react to his loved one’s death?
👉 The poet feels peace and acceptance rather than bitter grief. Death does not trouble him emotionally.
Q3. How does the poet imagine the loved one after death?
👉 He imagines her as part of nature, without motion or force, blending with rocks, stones, and trees, unaffected by earthly time.
Q4. Which lines show that the passing of time will no longer affect her?
👉 “No motion has she now, no force— She neither hears nor sees, Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course / With rocks and stones and trees.”
✨ Quick Revision Points
- Poem: A Slumber Did My Spirit Seal
- Author: William Wordsworth
- Theme: Peaceful acceptance of death and connection with nature
- Key Idea: Death transforms humans into a part of nature
- Message: Accept mortality with peace; life continues in harmony with the earth