Skip to main content

What is the hyperbole in "The Lake Isle of Innisfree?"

Hyperbole is not usually the first word one associates with "The Lake Isle of Innisfree," but if we understand hyperbole to mean not only exaggeration, but "claims [that are] not meant to be taken literally," as Google defines it, we can begin develop a context for understanding the poem through this lens. 


The poem does use hyperbole in the sense of "claims not meant to be taken literally." Yeats was inspired to write this poem...

Hyperbole is not usually the first word one associates with "The Lake Isle of Innisfree," but if we understand hyperbole to mean not only exaggeration, but "claims [that are] not meant to be taken literally," as Google defines it, we can begin develop a context for understanding the poem through this lens. 


The poem does use hyperbole in the sense of "claims not meant to be taken literally." Yeats was inspired to write this poem while living in London by memories of childhood visits to the Isle of Innisfree in County Sligo, Ireland. What emerged in the poem was an idealized vision of a place of peace and harmony, a pastoral setting far from the rush and bustle of urban life. In it, Yeats dreams of building a small cabin of "clay and wattles," where he will cultivate "nine bean rows" and a beehive and enjoy being alone in the "bee-loud glade."


The simplicity of the life he envisions is exaggerated for effect. He would probably, in reality, want more than a cottage, nine bean rows and a bee-hive, but the very starkness of these images comes to symbolize the simplicity he seeks. Likewise, he probably wouldn't want to always be alone, but the image of the poet in solitude with his cottage, beans and beehive conveys a deep sense of peace. 


In the second stanza, Yeats offers the heightened image of a bright night sky: "the midnight's all aglimmer" and a parallel heightened mellowness in the "purple glow" of noon, purple being a color we more often associate with dusk than midday. Again, rather than literal, these images imply a gentle mellowness heightened for effect: the night is not too dark, nor the day too bright. 


In the third and final stanza, Yeats writes that "always night and day/I hear lake water lapping." Again, we are not meant to take literally that Yeats "always" hears the water. It means instead that he has internalized the feeling of peace that his images of the isle bring and will try to carry this peace with him in his soul.


The starkness of the images functions on a level that is not literal but which uses exaggerated simplicity meant to inspire the reader to strip away what is unnecessary and, like the poet, find life's core essentials. 

Popular posts from this blog

In chapter one of The Great Gatsby, what advice does Nick's father give him? How does this make him a good person to tell this story?

Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches... Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches into a discussion of how pe...

How did the United States become an imperial power?

"Imperial power" is a bit of a vague label. It tends to mean several things at once, so let's unpack it. In the sense of "this country was built on conquest by force," the "imperial power" part of America actually predates the United States proper. The territories that would become the United States were imperial colonies, established by the great European empires of the 17th and 18th centuries. Much of the US Constitution and American governance generally goes back to England, history's largest and most successful imperial power, but vital aspects of American culture come from other imperial powers, such as France and Spain. Much of American culture comes from sources other than the old empires, but they were key influences on what the United States became. In the sense of "this country treats conquest by force as a fundamental component of its culture, economy and politics," the United States has always been an imperial power. Even earl...

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...