Across the Border

Across the Border
by Sophie Jewett

I have read somewhere that the birds of fairyland are white as snow.—W. B. Yeats

Where all the trees bear golden flowers,
And all the birds are white;
Where fairy folk in dancing hours
Burn stars for candlelight;

Where every wind and leaf can talk,
But no man understand
Save one whose child-feet chanced to walk
Green paths of fairyland;

I followed two swift silver wings;
I stalked a roving song;
I startled shining, silent things;
I wandered all day long.

But when it seemed the shadowy hours
Whispered of soft-foot night,
I crept home to sweet common flowers,
Brown birds, and candlelight.

http://poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=176145


In this poem there exists two worlds and both are separated at the border. (hence the title: Across the Border) It begins with an epigraph:a quote from W.B. Yeats which introduces one of the places related to the border. The epigraph was purposely put there in order to prepare us for the opening of a new place we have never heard of before. This epigraph functions almost as the key we need to open up the doors to this imaginary world. (Indeed also, the poem is seen to be rhyming every other line. )It starts with the word “where”; it already introduced words such as “border, fairyland, somewhere” thus obviously she wants us to focus on a location. A place where “all the trees bear golden flowers” is a vision needed in order to now the “fairyland” of the speaker. The first stanza mainly reminded of the childhood stories I used to read. But also, the first stanza gives the reader a perspective of the place building up in her mind as she writes. I also wonder why she chose the color gold for flowers and white for birds? Why not any other color? But perhaps those colors are always closely related to wealth,happiness, purity, and thus, maybe this fairyland is a world of cleanliness(white bird =dove) and riches (gold= wealth=happiness). The second stanza introduces the communication system of this new world; it is almost surreal that the objects of nature are the ones in charge of the language and not man. Man should be able to interpret any language by his intelligence but rather in this world, nature has a different position and perhaps superior than man because it has a special language that even man cannot decipher . However, there was an exception for the “child-feet [that] chanced to walk ..paths of fairyland” The poet gives a perfect visionary aid of the feet walking down green paths and you can almost hear the pitter-patter of feet. I also noticed that she hyphenated child-feet; this especially makes it stand out and thus, it seems as if children are appreciated in this world and not ignored but rather stand out. The third stanza starts with first person. The words “followed, stalked, startled, wandered” demonstrate to me as if this place is a vast place ..almost infinite in a way because she never mentions a dead-end in this stanza. Thus, the reader finds himself wandering also losing track of time and the reality. Magical imaginary images such as “swift silver wings, roving song, shining, silent things,” give us a perspective of the entries in this fairyland. However, the fourth stanza snaps us back to reality finally. The word “but” always ruins everything I believe. It ruined my concentration in the fairyland. The speaker goes back to her reality and home where “sweet common flowers, brown birds, and candlelight” exist only. A feeling of reluctance and regret is felt here and the tone has changed from a sense of peacefulness to awareness.