Spring and Fall Poem Questions and Answers
Very Short Answer Questions
Who is the poem addressed to?
The poem is addressed to a young girl named Margaret.
What season is depicted in the poem?
The poem depicts autumn.
What does Margaret grieve over in the poem?
She grieves over the falling leaves in Goldengrove.
What does “unleaving” mean in the poem?
“Unleaving” refers to trees losing their leaves.
What do the falling leaves symbolize?
The falling leaves symbolize the transience of life and mortality.
What does the speaker say happens to the heart as it grows older?
The heart grows colder and less sensitive to sorrow.
What literary device is used in “leaves like the things of man”?
A simile is used to compare leaves to human life.
What does “Sorrow’s springs are the same” mean?
It means all sorrow, whether for small or great losses, comes from the same emotional source.
What is the deeper cause of Margaret’s sorrow, according to the speaker?
She is unconsciously mourning her own mortality.
What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
The rhyme scheme is AABBCCDDDEEFFGG.
What does “wanwood leafmeal lie” refer to?
It refers to dead, pale leaves lying in heaps on the ground.
What poetic form does the poem use?
The poem uses rhymed couplets, with one tercet.
Who wrote “Spring and Fall”?
Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote the poem.
What is the tone of the poem?
The tone is reflective and melancholic.
What does “blight” refer to in the line “It is the blight man was born for”?
“Blight” refers to the inevitable suffering and mortality humans are born to face.
What poetic device is used in “heart heard of, ghost guessed”?
Personification is used to give human attributes to the heart and ghost.
What is the final realization Margaret will have as she grows older?
She will realize that she mourns for her own mortality, not just for the leaves.
What is Goldengrove a symbol of?
Goldengrove symbolizes childhood innocence and natural beauty.
What type of rhythm is used in the poem?
The poem uses sprung rhythm.
When was “Spring and Fall” written?
It was written in 1880.
Short Answer Questions
What is the significance of Margaret’s grief in the poem?
Margaret’s grief over the falling leaves in Goldengrove represents the innocence of childhood, where even small changes in nature evoke deep emotion. However, her sorrow is symbolic of a much larger truth: the inevitability of human mortality. As the poem progresses, Hopkins reveals that Margaret’s grief is not just for the leaves, but for the larger experience of loss that she will one day face in life.
How does the speaker contrast childhood and adulthood in the poem?
The speaker contrasts childhood with adulthood by showing that Margaret, as a child, still cares deeply about the loss of leaves. As people grow older, they become less sensitive to such things, facing life’s sorrows with emotional detachment. The speaker suggests that while children grieve for small things, adults learn that all grief stems from the awareness of human mortality.
Explain the significance of the line “Sorrow’s springs are the same.”
This line reflects the idea that all forms of grief, whether over the death of a person or the falling of leaves, come from the same emotional source. Hopkins suggests that sorrow is universal and constant throughout life, and its origin lies in our awareness of impermanence and mortality. No matter the specific cause, the feeling of sorrow is rooted in the same deep understanding of loss.
What role does nature play in the poem?
Nature in “Spring and Fall” is symbolic of the cycles of life, death, and renewal. The falling leaves represent the impermanence of life, echoing the inevitable decay all living things face. Margaret’s reaction to this natural process of change highlights her innocence, while the speaker uses nature as a metaphor to explore broader themes of human mortality.
How does the speaker predict Margaret’s response to sorrow as she grows older?
The speaker predicts that as Margaret grows older, she will no longer react as emotionally to things like falling leaves. Her heart will become “colder,” and she will learn to face sorrow with detachment. However, even as she becomes less sensitive to small losses, she will still experience grief, though it will be more connected to her understanding of life’s impermanence.
What is the meaning of the phrase “blight man was born for”?
The “blight man was born for” refers to the inevitable suffering and mortality that all humans must face. Hopkins suggests that sorrow and loss are inherent to human existence. From the moment of birth, humans are destined to encounter decay, death, and the emotional toll that accompanies these realities, which is the “blight” we cannot escape.
What is the structure and rhyme scheme of the poem?
The poem has a unique structure with three rhymed couplets, followed by a tercet, and then three more couplets, giving it a rhyme scheme of AABBCCDDDEEFFGG. This structure helps guide the reflective tone, moving from a child’s innocent grief toward a deeper philosophical exploration of sorrow and mortality. The consistent rhyme pairs create a flowing, musical quality that enhances the emotional depth of the poem.
How does Hopkins use imagery in the poem?
Hopkins uses vivid imagery, particularly in lines like “worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie,” to evoke the decay of leaves in autumn. The imagery of falling leaves and pale wood symbolizes the process of death and decay, mirroring the transience of human life. This imagery helps convey the poem’s themes of loss, mortality, and the fleeting nature of both the natural world and human existence.
What is the tone of the poem, and how does it evolve?
The tone of “Spring and Fall” begins gently and tenderly, as the speaker addresses Margaret’s innocent grief. As the poem progresses, the tone becomes more reflective and philosophical, exploring deeper themes of human sorrow and mortality. By the end, the tone turns somewhat melancholic and resigned, as the speaker reveals that all sorrow, even Margaret’s, is rooted in the awareness of human mortality.
What is the central message of “Spring and Fall”?
The central message of “Spring and Fall” is that sorrow is an inherent part of the human condition, rooted in our awareness of mortality and the impermanence of life. Margaret’s innocent grief over the falling leaves reflects this universal truth: even small, seemingly insignificant losses evoke the deeper sorrow we all feel as we confront life’s inevitable decay and death. Ultimately, the poem highlights the inescapable nature of human suffering and the emotional impact of understanding our own mortality.
