English IX - Chapter No.16 - Reference To Context (Poem Section)

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The Miller and the Dee

Text Book Name: Secondary Stage English Book One For Class IX

Explain With Reference To Context (Poem)

Stanza No.1

There dwelt a miller, hale and bold,
Beside the river Dee;
He worked and sang from morn till night -
No lark more blithe than he;
And this the burden of his song
Forever used to be:
'I envy nobody - no, not I -
And nobody envies me!'
(i) Name the poem and the poet / poetess.
(ii) Give the Central idea of the poem.
(iii) What was he singing about?
Ans:
(i) This stanza has been taken from the poem " The Miller Of The Dee", which is written by a Scottish poet Charles Mackay.
(ii) The central idea of the poem is that "A man who earns his own bread and does not borrow money from others and cares for his family, leads a happy life. He is also healthy, bold and without worries. Such a person envies nobody."
(iii) He was singing a song about his simple and happy life.

Words / meanings:
1.Dwelt: lived
2.Hale: healthy & strong
3.Lark: a bird that sings
4.Blithe: very happy, showing you are not anxious about anything,
5. Beside: near, by the side of
6. Miller: the person who owns a flour mill
7. The burden of the song: the theme of the song

Explanation: There lived a miller near a river called Dee. He was very happy and had no worry about anything. He remained busy from morning to night in his work of grinding grains for making flour. While working, he was habitual of singing songs for his own amusement. He sang that he was not envious of anyone and the people were also not envious of him. The poet also says that his song was more soothing even than that of the sweet-singing bird lark.

Stanza No.2

'Thou'rt wrong, my friend,' said good King Hal,
'As wrong as wrong can be;
For could my heart be light as thine,
I'd gladly change with thee.
And tell me now, what makes thee sing,
With voice so loud and free,
While I am sad, though I am king,
Beside the river Dee?'
(i) Name the poem and the poet / poetess.
(ii)
(iii)
Ans:
(i) This stanza has been taken from the poem " The Miller Of The Dee", which is written by a Scottish poet Charles Mackay.
(ii)
(iii)

Words / meanings:
1. Gladly: happily
Explanation: Once a king named Hal happened to reach there. He told the miller that he was absolutely wrong in what he sang about. The king was envious of the miller's happiness. So he wished to exchange his own heart with that of the miller. He wished to make his own heart free from tensions. The king’s heart has the load of worries while the miller’s heart was light and free from worries of life. After that the king asked to tell him the reason as to what made him sing so loudly and as to how he could manage to feel free from worries of life. The king also admitted that he was very much sad although he was a king.

Stanza No.3

The miller smiled and doffed his cap,
'I earn my bread,' quoth he;
'I love my wife, I love my friend,
I love my children three;
I owe no penny I can not pay,
I thank the river Dee,
That turns the mill that grinds the corn
That feeds my babes and me.'
(i) Name the poem and the poet / poetess.
(ii) 
(iii)
Ans:
(i) This stanza has been taken from the poem " The Miller Of The Dee", which is written by a Scottish poet Charles Mackay.
(ii)
(iii)

Words / meanings:
1. Doffed: took off the hat
2. Quoth: said
3.Grinds: makes flour out of the corn/grain
Explanation: The miller took off his cap from his head smilingly. He said that he worked to earn his livelihood. He loved his wife and three children He also loved his friends. He did not have any loan to pay. He further told the king that he was very thankful to the river Dee that ran his floor-mill by the current of its water and made flour by crushing the grains. Thus he fed his family.

Stanza No.4

'Good friend,' said Hall, and sighed the while,
'Farewell, and happy be;
But say no more, if thou'dst be true,
That no one envies thee;
Thy mealy cap is worth my crown,
Thy mill my kingdom's fee;
Such men as thou are England's boast,
O miller of the Dee!
(i) Name the poem and the poet / poetess.
(ii) Give the Central idea of the poem.

(iii) Who are speakers and what are they talking about?
(iv) Explain 6^th line of the stanza?

Ans:
(i) This stanza has been taken from the poem " The Miller Of The Dee", which is written by a Scottish poet Charles Mackay.
(ii) The Central idea or the message of this poem is that we should live a simple life and should keep our needs limited.
(iii) The Miller and the King Hal are the two speakers in this poem /stanza. The King good bye the miller and gave him blessings. He advised miller never to say that no one was envious of him. He also added that miller's dirty cap was more valuable than his crown and his floor-mill was more precious than his kingdom. England was proud of such men like the miller, who were the backbones of a country.
(iv) In that line King Hall told Miller that his mill is so precious that it is equal to the price of King's whole kingdom.

Words / meanings:
1. Mealy: Covered with flour.
Explanation: In the end, the king took a long breath and bade the miller good bye giving him blessings. He also advised him never to say that no one was envious of him. He also added that his cap covered with flour was more valuable than his crown. Similarly his floor-mill was more precious than his kingdom and England was proud of such men like the miller, who were the backbones of a country.