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1) To Trouble The Living Stream

1) The document discusses William Butler Yeats' poem "Easter, 1916" through analyzing several of its lines and themes. It explores symbols like the stone and stream, references to Irish history and the desire for independence. 2) It examines Yeats' portrayal of apathy in Ireland before the 1916 Easter Rebellion, which sparked new interest in nationalism. Imagery of changing nature is contrasted with the unchanging "stone" of Ireland's past stagnation. 3) The rebellion transformed Irish society from lighthearted "casual comedy" to serious consideration of independence. While bloody, it awakened a "terrible beauty" of renewed patriotism. Wherever the color green is worn, Ireland and

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Rifa Kader Disha
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163 views6 pages

1) To Trouble The Living Stream

1) The document discusses William Butler Yeats' poem "Easter, 1916" through analyzing several of its lines and themes. It explores symbols like the stone and stream, references to Irish history and the desire for independence. 2) It examines Yeats' portrayal of apathy in Ireland before the 1916 Easter Rebellion, which sparked new interest in nationalism. Imagery of changing nature is contrasted with the unchanging "stone" of Ireland's past stagnation. 3) The rebellion transformed Irish society from lighthearted "casual comedy" to serious consideration of independence. While bloody, it awakened a "terrible beauty" of renewed patriotism. Wherever the color green is worn, Ireland and

Uploaded by

Rifa Kader Disha
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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1) To Trouble the Living Stream

As a human being we prefer a life of ease. We do not want any difficulties. If the
Irish People do not change their mindset of being careless, they would accept all
the injustice. That’s their living steam. But the whole nation is moved to the
rebellion-because of a trouble. That trouble is their strong desire of independence.
Relation of The Stone and The Stream
The use of "stone" in lines 43 and 56 is symbolic to the poem.  A stone represents
an inanimate object that stays the same.  To go along with the theme of change,
Yeats includes the idea that clouds change minute by minute. The stone will block
the normal flow in the stream; the Irish people will no longer allow the British to
govern their way of life. The state of constancy is the important aspect of this
word.  Everything that has happened previously in the poem cannot be changed. 
The stone will forever be a stone, as will the deaths of those mentioned earlier. 
The stone, whose purpose is "to trouble the living stream," hinders the flowing of
the water.  
Yeats illustrates the inevitability of change through natural imagery in stanza
four.  Yeats portrays the stone as a symbol of permanence and immobility and the
stream as a symbol of change.  Yeats maintains that the people of Ireland have
been-
"Enchanted to a stone
To trouble the living stream"
The Irish being Habituated to Stream
They remain stagnant and afraid of change. Yeats implies that throughout history
English colonies have fallen and declared their independence while Ireland has
remained apathetic and unchanged. In order to achieve a sense of Irish identity and
come of age, Yeats affirms that Ireland must abandon the conformity of the stone
and pursue change. This constant stone represents the Nationalist rebels’
steadfastness and determined purpose amidst the rapid change of life. Yet this
stone might also conceivably represent the British state too, and hearts that have
been turned to stone and “trouble the living stream” of Irish life. However, this
stone could also be taken as a broader symbol of determined purpose amidst
change.
2) The Winged Horse
In Greek mythology the winged horse refers to beast Pegasus- which represents
knowledge and more specifically poets and writers. Yeats is saying English
soldiers killed the poets and writers who are the light bearer of knowledge like
Pegasus.

3) Minute by Minute
In the third stanza Yeats use the phrase “Minute by Minute” again and again. He
wants to emphasis on the changes happening from time to time. Someone riding a
horse along the road always changes, the bird that fly above us and the floating
clouds keep on changing minute by minute. Then he says a shadow of cloud on the
stream keeps on changing minute by minute and a horsy sliding on the water and
splashing around. Then the poet uses an image of moor-hen who dive into the
water and call out her boyfriend the moor-cock and they live minute by minute
becoming unaware of past and future.
Apathetic Ireland
He uses these images just to depict that everything in this world is kept on constant
change but the purpose of their sacrifice cannot be changed and later on it became
a cause of their freedom. The passion of these martyrs cannot be changes because
they are died now with a constant thought of free Ireland which would stay the
same and constant. The animals live in present and take change as it comes but the
people who died in this uprising, they are not such type of.
Minute by minute they live:
The stone's in the midst of all.

They are like a stone that continues to exist in the change that is going on. So, by
the usage of all these images of nature Yeats wants to point out that how
everything changes but the hearts of the rebels are the same. Yeats implies that
throughout history English colonies have fallen and declared their independence
while Ireland has remained apathetic and unchanged.  In order to achieve a sense
of Irish identity and come of age, Yeats affirms that Ireland must abandon the
conformity of the stone and pursue change.
4) Casual Comedy
Before the Easter rebellion of 1916, Irish people tend to be like motley when they
were in groups. There was a lack of seriousness in their talks. They used to enjoy
their time by doing light comedy. But when the rebellion began, it inspired many
Irish people to change. They were like Bohemians but when the trouble began,
they started to be serious.
He goes into the clubs and tells the people the mocking stories and a gibe for the
entertainment. This all again shows how the things were normal as it happens in a
common society. The people gather around a fire place and the poet entertains
them by telling different mocking stories. He says that the place where he talked to
the people is a world where motley was worn. Motley refers to a traditional
colorful dress which was worn by jesters and old comedians. That is the image
used by Yeats to make us aware that how silly and pointless life they were
spending. Here Yeats uses Metonymy by comparing this silly life with this dress
motely. And now, something has happened which changed all the things. Yeats
now refers back to the title of the poem “Easter, 1916” that was a bloody uprising.
And in the result of this utter change, a terrible beauty is born.
By saying casual comedy, he is remarking on the fact that no lasting difference was
caused by the deaths of the men and women in the rising.
“In the casual comedy;
He, too, has been changed in his turn,
Transformed utterly:
A terrible beauty is born.”

There’s an irony to it. And this man too is “transformed, utterly” and the same
terrible beauty is born. Through this portrayal of Markievicz, Yeats suggests that
the dream of Irish independence has not yet become reality because people talked
of rebellion and politics, but before Easter 1916, they obediently conformed to
England's rule rather than actively pursuing change.  
Yeats includes this man in the "casual comedy," which was what life was like in
Ireland before the Easter Rebellion of 1916. It was a bloody rebellion that was put
down harshly, but it marked a turning point— inspiring many Irish people to
support Irish nationalism and Irish independence. Yeats was always certain that the
social world where he talked to these people is a world "where motley is worn".
Motley refers to the patchwork of colors that would traditionally be worn by a
jester or old-timey comedian.

5) A Stone of the Heart


Among all the changing things only one thing is constant like stone and that is the
desire of liberation of Irish people. But if the people have to do that much sacrifice,
their hearts will become stone fully.

6) Wherever Green is Worn


Because of the bloodshed of the Irish Martyrs, the landscape of Ireland is now all
red. Yeats says-
“Wherever green is worn,
Are changed, changed utterly.”
There are two aspects of using this word “Green”. These are-
 When the land will become independent, it will be green again and
wherever one will see green, it will remind them of independence.
 The poet concludes the poem by naming the people who fought for the
country very bravely. He says that all of these people changed utterly and
their named would be remembered for centuries especially wherever
green is worn. Here he uses this metonymy of green which is the national
color of Ireland.
Tributing the Martyrs
He believes that he has a responsibility to remember the names of the people who
lost their lives, to immortalize them in verse. And then he wonders whether or not
the deaths were meaningless. Because as he goes on to say, the people who died
became martyrs for the cause. Their deaths changed what it meant to be Irish. It’s
an excess of love that caused all of this, love of each other, and love of country. So
that wearing green is forever changed, and the names McDonagh, MacBride,
Connolly and Pearse – all leaders in the rising and in the movement for a free
Ireland, will always be associated with what it is to be Irish, with Irish nationalism,
and in that is the terrible beauty. 
Patriotism
The color ‘green’ in Yeats poem symbolizes Ireland through long association.
Green is mentioned in the last stanza where Yeats talk about those who were killed
during the event of the ‘Easter Uprising’ of 1916. And Yeats mentions that
‘whenever green is worn’, the things that has been changed will be remembered,
the heroes will be remembered and thus the ‘terrible beauty born’ will be
cherished. After the heroes were executed, ‘green’ has been associated with the
representation of the nation of Ireland. So whenever green be worn, it would
symbolize Ireland’s victory over the British in the fight for independence. Green as
such is normally related to nature but the historical context of the poem helps in
gaining a full understanding of its association with the names of the dead people
mentioned in the last stanza. This evokes the feeling of patriotism because it
reminds that now ‘green’ is the color of Ireland where ‘motley was worn’, and that
liberty was now endowed to those living by those who sacrificed themselves in the
quest of freedom.

7) The Terrible Beauty


The transformation of Irish people is referred to as terrible beauty. It is not the
same Irish people the poet has known. They are ready to sacrifice themselves as
John McBride. He sacrificed his own life but before that he was also the follower
of casual comedy. The way he transformed gives the idea of terrible beauty.
Before the Easter 1916
The poem opens with the daily routines of the people before this event of Easter
Uprising. The narrator describes his meetings with people in the streets and
between the Eighteen century gray houses while returning home. He passed by
them saying polite meaningless words. Then, he made fun of them in the bars by
telling mocking stories or a gibe for entertainment. Everything was okay but after
this failed uprising, everything was changed and a terrible beauty was born.
Metonymy of Motley with Terrible Beauty
He says that the place where he talked to the people is a world where motley was
worn. Motley refers to a traditional colorful dress which was worn by jesters and
old comedians. That is the image used by Yeats to make us aware that how silly
and pointless life they were spending. Here Yeats uses Metonymy by comparing
this silly life with this dress motely. And now, something has happened which
changed all the things. Yeats now refers back to the title of the poem “Easter,
1916” that was a bloody uprising. And in the result of this utter change, a terrible
beauty is born. That stanza ends with the refrain which is found in all of the
stanzas, the oxymoron: “A terrible beauty is born.” These two terrible and beauty
are two contrary sentiments which is used simultaneously. This means that that
uprising was terrible due to bloodbath and loss of lives but it became the cause of a
change which later led them to independence.
Then the poet concludes the poem by naming the people who fought for the
country very bravely. In Irish political ballad, mentioning the names of martyrs
was a tradition. Yeats also follows the tradition by naming Padraic Pearse, Thomas
McDonagh, and John MacBride. He also includes James Connolly who was the
labor leader. He says that all of these people changed utterly and their named
would be remembered for centuries especially wherever green is worn. Here he
uses this metonymy of green which is the national color of Ireland. Then he closes
the poem by repeating the refrain at the end “A terrible beauty is born”.

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