Every Morning I Wake
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| Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953) |
Introducing the Poet:
· Born in Swansea, Wales in 1914 and died in 1953
· Famous for his acutely lyrical and emotional poetry
· Eminent Welsh poet of time
· Known for his imaginative use of language and vivid imagery
Central Idea
‘Every Morning I Wake’ is an extract from Under the Milk Wood. In this poem, Thomas prays to the magnificent God to have mercy on ordinary inhabitants living under the Milk Wood. It evokes the God’s typical character of being omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. Most importantly, God is the one offers motherly care to all poor creatures.
(Note: Under Milk Wood (1953) is a radio play written by Dylan Thomas. It was written over a long period of time during the last months of his life. it is set in a small Welsh town called Llaggerub and covers one day in the lives of its provincial characters.)
Summary
The poem “Every Morning I Wake” has been composed by the eminent Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. In this poem, the speaker prays to the God to have mercy on inhabitants of Milk Wood. He calls the town dwellers ‘poor creatures’ who are born to die. Making a serious appeal for the safety and comfort of people living under Milk Wood, he is glorifying the Almighty God for his unlimited power to operate this world.
The speaker prays to the almighty God to keep eye on all poor creatures as the loving and caring mother does while taking growing up her children. He asks a blessing every evening for the town dwellers thinking whether they survive the night or not. This evokes his idea about transitory life of humans. Praying to the God, he reveals the truth about the deeds and characters of Milk Wood dwellers by stating that they are not entirely good or wholly bad.
The speaker asks the magnificent God to forgive the Milk Wood dwellers’ mistakes and offer blessing for the appreciative deeds. In the last stanza, he prays to be blessed to see another day by bowing to the setting son. He bows and says good-bye to the sunset saying, ‘but just for now’. He bids farewell to the sun just for that day to show his regular devotion, deep respect, and never-ending hope to the God. Here, the sun symbolizes the Almighty God who gives motherly care to all the creatures. For him, the God is omnipotent who can manipulate humans’ fortune, life span and can maintain natural balance. His prayer reflects his religious conviction that the Almighty God is omnipresent and omniscient.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions
a. When does the speaker pray to the Lord?
The speaker prays to the Lord every morning he wakes up. This prayer is the primary and a regular action of the speaker to show his devotion to and strong belief on God. He addresses God as ‘Dear Lord’. It shows his hope, deep respect, and religious conviction on Almighty God. He also prays to the Lord at the end of the day asking him to bless the inhabitants of Milk Wood all the night.
b. What does the speaker pray for?
The speaker prays for the safety, well-being, and comfort of the inhabitants of Milk Wood. He believes that his prayer will bring peace, prosperity and long life for the people living under Milk Wood. He regards all creatures are born to die. As all of them are mortal, they are poor creatures and need motherly care. According to the speaker, almighty God is the only care taker, so he prays to the magnificent God to have mercy on all the creatures.
c. Who are the ‘poor creatures? why does the speaker call them ‘poor creatures?
Here, the expression ‘poor creatures’ generally refers to all the living beings who are subject to death. To be more specific, poor creatures are the people living under Milk Wood.
He calls the inhabitants of Milk Wood ‘poor creatures’ because they are born to die and need motherly care for their long life. They don’t know what happens when. They are ignorant about death and life. He thinks that Milk Wood dwellers can’t survive without God’s care and blessing.
d. What does Milk Wood sound like? A type of wood or a place? Why?
Milk Wood sounds like a place as the speaker says’, “Who live our lives under Milk Wood’. He is talking about the inhabitants of a place, called Milk Wood. Further he says that people living in Milk Wood are not entirely good nor wholly bad. He prays to God making appeal to see only best side of the dwellers. The speaker asks a blessing for the people living in the town. The town, here, means Milk Wood town. He is praying for the well being of Milk Wood dwellers.
e. Why do the inhabitants of Milk Wood bow to the setting sun ‘but just for now’
The inhabitants of Milk Wood bow to the setting sun ‘but just for now’ because they have hope to be praying the next morning. They bow just for being blessed all night. They can’t stand waiting for the next morning. For the day, they pray to God when they wake up and for the night, they bow to the setting sun. Thus, God is almighty who looks after the poor creatures all day and night. This idea is apparent in the last stanza, where the speaker is speaking from the perspectives all the inhabitants of Milk Wood.
Reference to the context
a. Discuss “Every Morning When I Wake” as a prayer to the God.
“Every Morning When I Wake” is a prayer to the God as it evokes God’s grandeur for taking constant care of humans. It seems to be a serious appeal to the God; without whose mercy the poor creatures do not survive. Poor creatures stand for town dwellers of Milk Wood. The God’s blessing and his loving eye are the basics of humans, especially inhabitants of Milk Wood and also of common living beings’ others than humans. The speaker appeals for letting them to see another day, so they will again pray to the almighty God and bow to the setting sun. He further appeals for forgiving the things they have done worst and blessings for the ones they have done best.
The speaker in the poem is aware of the weak and bad sides of human beings. He discloses the general secret of humans while he states that the inhabitants of Milk Wood are not wholly good or bad. He believes that God is the only care taker of humans who sees only the good sides of human life. This means that God is so kind that he can excuse all the weaknesses of humans as the mother does in case of her own son and daughter. To conclude, this poem is a serious prayer to the God for the peace and comfort of the people living under Milk Wood.
b. Why does the speaker make a prayer to the God
The speaker makes prayer to the God to have mercy particularly on the inhabitants of Milk Wood, generally on all human beings including all other living beings. For him all those beings are poor creatures because all of them are born to die. Thus, he prays for the peace, safety, comfort, and long life of Milk Wood dwellers and all the creatures who need motherly care of the Almighty God.
The speaker offers a serious prayer to the God for the wellbeing of people living under Milk Wood. His prayer reveals the weaknesses and innocence of people who are born to die. Everyone knows that death is guaranteed but they never know what happens when. But he assures that the God can save them from every evil and uncertainty. He addresses the God as if he is standing in front of the God. This shows the deep belief and constant hope on God. He prays to be blessed to see the next day. To see the next day means to extend the life of town dwellers.
c. How does the poet highlight the magnificence of the God?
The poet highlights the magnificence of the God by glorifying his kindness and power to bless for the safety and long life of all poor creatures. His prayer evokes the God’s typical character to be omni-present, omniscient, and omnipotent. He prays as if the God is present in front of him, the way as if the Almighty can manipulate living beings’ life cycle and also the natural processes.
The God is so magnificent that he can extend the life of people and can excuse every mistake and weaknesses of them. God’s kindness is highlighted when he says God is the only person who sees the only virtue and best side of humans. God’s grandeur is reflected also in the last stanza while the speaker offers prayer to bless the inhabitants of Milk wood. God can bless the town dwellers for experiencing the next day by giving them motherly care for the whole night.
d. How does the rhyme scheme of the poem reinforce its message?
The rhyme scheme of the poem basically gives the message of interdependence between inhabitants of Milk Wood. This is true in the case of all human beings. People seek good company (pleasant to be with) in need of emergency and also in blissful situations. This is evident in the rhyming pattern of the poem.
The poem’s rhyme scheme is AABB, CCDD, EEFF and GGHH. In other words, the first line of every quatrain rhyme with that of the second line and the third with the fourth. The rhyme scheme reinforces its message of prayer by making the poem more lyrical and sonorous. It gives typical musical quality while reciting by the readers so as to capture the intention of the speaker. It evokes emotions and feelings on the part of the readers by breaking monotony and ambiguity.
The rhyme scheme also gives the message of togetherness. This means that the speaker in the poem is praying to ensure brotherhood and to call for unity between the inhabitants of Milk Wood. People’s safety and comfort largely depends on fraternity and harmony. The rhyming pattern suggests the harmonious relation between the people. It emphasizes the truth that no one can survive and enjoy life alone. One must accompany the other to live a meaningful life.
