1. Poem – Leisure
By: William Henry Davies

2. William Henry Davies
• Born in Wales in 1871
• A poor man
• Wrote poems based on
his experience as a
tramp.
• Died in 1940

3. What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare. Couplet 1
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows. Couplet 2
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass. Couplet 3
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like stars at night. Couplet 4
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance. Couplet 5
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began. Couplet 6
A poor life this is if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare Couplet 7

4. What is the poem about?
• Reminds us to take time to appreciate the
beauty of nature & be thankful to God for all
His creations.
• HOWEVER, if we are too busy with our daily
life & worry too much, WE FORGET to watch
& admire nature’s beauty.
• It is a sad life if we can’t find time to relax and
appreciate the nature around us.

5. BUSY LIFE

6. The meaning of the poem

7. Couplet 1
What is this life if,
What is the purpose of life if
full of care,
full of worry (because too busy with work &
problems)
We have no time to stand and stare.
We do not have time to pause and admire
the nature around us.

8. ..stand and stare

9. Couplet 2
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
Busy people do not have time to stand under
the trees
And stare as long as sheep or cows
Just like sheep and cows which graze in the
fields. They just stand and stare at their
surrounding.

10. ..stand
beneath the
boughs

11. ..stare as long as sheep or cows

12. Couplet 3
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
Busy people do not see squirrels hide their
nuts in grass when they pass through the
forests.

13. ..woods we pass

14. ..squirrels hide their nuts in grass

15. Couplet 4
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like stars at night.
Rivers sparkle in the sunlight. In the day, the
rivers look like stars at night. But, busy
people do not have time to see this.

16. Streams full of stars Like stars at night

17. Couplet 5
No time to turn at
Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how
they can dance.
Nature is personified as a
beautiful woman who is
glancing and dancing.
When a woman glance or
dance, she will move parts
of her body. When nature
changes, it is like a
beautiful dancer. Busy
people do not have time to
admire the changes
(movement) of nature.

18. Couplet 6
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
Busy people do not have time to watch the
changes in nature. When nature changes, it is
like a smile that starts from the eyes and
spreads slowly to the mouth.

19. When nature changes, it is like a woman’s
smile. The smile starts from the eyes and
spreads slowly to the mouth.

20. Couplet 7
A poor life this if,
full of care,
We have no time to
stand and stare.
It is a sad life if we
do not have leisure
time.

21. POETIC DEVICES

22. 1. Rhyme
• The repetition of the same sound at the end
of a line in poem.

23. 2. Imagery
• The mental picture that attracts the senses
IMAGERY
..streams… ..they can dance ….smile her
eyes..

24. IMAGERY
Streams full of stars
– the use of imagery
creates a picture of
stream sparkling in
the sunlight.

25. IMAGERY
And watch her
feet, how they can
dance – a life-like
image of a graceful
woman dancing

26. IMAGERY
Enrich that smile
her eyes began
– we can image
someone giving a
bright smile that
begins with the
eyes and progress
to the mouth.

27. 3. Alliteration
• The repetition of consonant sounds in the first
syllables of a series of words
stand and stare
beneath the boughs
when wood we pass
Streams full of stars

28. LANGUAGE AND STYLE
The poem is written in a straightforward
manner and is easy to understand. The
poem starts with a rhetorical question
and the whole poem is the answer to
that question.

29. MOOD AND TONE
Generally
the mood and tone
of the poem
are serious and thoughtful.
The persona is very sincere as he reflects
on our busy lives which prevents us from
enjoying the beauty of nature and life.

30. 4. Rhetorical question
• A question which is asked, but not expected to
get an answer.

31. 5. Repetition
• The repetition of words or lines in a poem
1
This phrase is repeated seven times
to show what a busy and frantic
life man leads nowadays.

32. 5. Repetition
• The repetition of words or lines in a poem
2
Emphasises how our lives are
burdened with worries

33. 5. Repetition
• The repetition of words or lines in a poem
3
This stresses that we are so busy
that we do not have any time for
leisure

34. 6. Metaphor
• A comparison between 2 different things
without using ‘like’ or ‘as’

35. 7. Simile
• A comparison between 2 different things
which uses ‘like’ or ‘as’
‘Stare as long as sheep or cows’
people who stand underneath the trees to stare at
their surrounding are like the sheep or cows that
stand and graze the whole day in the fields

36. 7. Simile
• A comparison between 2 different things
which uses ‘like’ or ‘as’

37. 8. Personification
• Non-living things are given human qualities.
‘Beauty’s glance , / And watch her feet,
how they can dance’
Nature is personified as a
beautiful woman who can dance
and has a mesmerising smile

38. Can you get the personification?
Let’s watch this video