English IX - Chapter No.9 - Words / Meaning and Summary

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CHILDREN

Words Meaning

S.NO.	Words	Meanings
1.	Autumn	Fall, Season before winter when leaves turn yellow and falls.
2.	Ballad	Simple songs with a story, Poems containing old stories.
3.	Brook	Small stream
4.	Brooklet	A small brook
5.	Caress	Hug, Love or affection, Kiss, Embrace
6.	Climate	Weather
7.	Contriving	Inventions, Devices
8.	Desert	Arid
9.	Dread	Fear
10.	Eastern	Oriental
11.	Ere	Before
12.	Forest	Jungle
13.	Gladness	Happiness
14.	Glow	Shine
15.	Harden	Become hard
16.	Perplex	Confuse, Complicated, Puzzle
17.	Swallow	A kind of small bird
18.	Sunny	Happy
19.	Tender	Gentle, Delicate
20.	Trunk	Main stem or part (of a tree), The thick bark of a tree.
21.	Whisper	To speak slowly
22.	Wisdom	Prudence, Quality of being wise
23.	Vanish	Disappear
24.	Ye	You. 'Ye' is sometimes used in poetry for 'you'.

About The Poet 

         This lovely poem about children is written by the American poet Henry Longfellow. He was born in 1807 and died in 1882. He was a Professor at the Harvard University, which is considered to be one of the best American universities. He was very interested in the culture of other countries and had traveled widely. His poems deal with not only the American scene but also much of what he saw during his travels.

Short Note Or Summary Of  "Children"

     Henry Longfellow appreciates children in his poem "Children". He sees them with different angles. The poet says that he was anxious and worried about the future. He was perplexed by the thought of his old age and ultimate death. Then the poet thought that children are the sign of life.  Man  replaces man. The old people depart from the world and the children replace them. So the children are the hope and future of men. If there would be no children, we would feel sad and fearful because without children the life cycle of man would come to an end. So the children are a source of life, joy , brightness and hope. He understands the life cycle of man and the universal fact set by nature, and is satisfied now.   
            The poet says the sun lights the world when it rises in the east, like the sun the children make our life brilliant and shining. The children's thought are like the singing birds which flow like the fresh and clean water of the stream that runs in the morning.
         The children are innocent so their hearts are pure and shining, and their thoughts are young, fresh, brilliant, bold and excited. As the green leaves make the jungle beautiful, green and charming like them the children make the world beautiful. He says that there are poems books and so many things in the world but the children are the best among all.