The Lake Isle of Innisfree

Very Short Answer Questions:

1. Where had the poet, W.B. Yeats, spent his childhood?

Answer: The poet had spent his childhood at Innisfree Island.

2. Where does W.B. Yeats wish to go?

Answer: He wishes to go to Innisfree Island.

3. What sort of a house will Yeats build at Innisfree?

Answer: He will build a house of clay and wood.

4. What will Yeats do for the honeybee?

Answer: He will make a hive for them.

5. Which trees will the poet grow at Innisfree?

Answer: He will grow bean trees at Innisfree.

6. Who else will live at Innisfree with the poet?

Answer: He will live there all alone

7. What happens to the Innisfree Island at midnight?

Answer: The whole island glimmers at midnight.

8. What do the crickets do?

Answer: They sing at midnight.

9. What preview does the noon of Innisfree Island present?

Answer: The noon of Innisfree Island presents a purple glow preview.

10. What does the poet hear at Innisfree?

Answer: He hears the pleasing noise of the bees in the orchard of Innisfree Island.

11. What does the poet see in the evening at Innisfree?

Answer: He sees that the sky of Innisfree Island is filled with small singing birds.

12. Who is the poet of the poem ‘The Lake Isle of Innisfree’?

Answer: W.B. Yeats.

Short Answer Type Questions

1. Where does the poet want to go and why?

Answer: The poet wants to go to the solitary and silent Isle of Innisfree in the Lake Lough Gill
of his native country, Ireland. He wants to go there because he is fed up with the restless,
noisy world of cities and feels strongly nostalgic about life on the island which, by contrast,
will be a life of quietness and pleasure.
2. What kind of life does the poet want to lead on Lake Isle?

Or

What three things does the poet want to do when he goes back to Innisfree?

Answer: The poet wants to lead a life of serenity and contentment, away from the bustle and
loudness of urban life. He longs for living in a simple cabin made of clay and sticks. A small
piece of land with a few bean-rows and some honey fresh from the bee-hive will be enough to
satisfy his needs.

3. What kind of music will the poet enjoy on the Lake Isle of Innisfree?

Answer: On the Isle of Innisfree, the poet will enjoy the loud music of the bees and the mild
music of the waves striking against the shore.

4. How does the poet describe the mornings on the lonely island?

Answer: The poet describes the mornings on the lonely island to be very peaceful and quiet.
The atmosphere of the morning is hazy with fog or mist. Out of the hazy heavens, peace
comes on the land falling softly and noiselessly.

5. What does the poet imply by “….from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings.

Answer: By this expression, the poet implies that the span of time from morning to evening is
full of peace on the Lake Isle of Innisfree. Here, quietness reigns supreme. The singing of the
cricket adds to the music of nature and can be enjoyed on this island.

6. How does the poet describe the midnight and noon on the island?

Answer: Both midnight and noon on the island are visualized by the poet to be very bright
with only different hues of brilliance – the twinkling light of the moon and the stars in the
midnight and the bright purple shine in the noon.

7. What does the poet dream of enjoying in the evenings?

Answer: The poet dreams of enjoying the songs of the linnets and the sound of the flapping of
their wings as they fly back to their nests. He also hopes to enjoy the song of the cricket in
the peaceful surroundings.

8. What is it that fascinates the poet day and night?

Answer: Day and night the poet is fascinated by the gentle and pleasant sound of the waves
lapping against the shore. He hears this delightful music in his imagination.

9. Why does the poet hear the music of the waves standing on the roadway?

Answer: The poet hears the music of the waves standing on the roadway because their gentle
and soothing sound is recalled involuntarily by his mind as a defence against the deafening,
unpleasant and jarring sounds of the traffic that have a sickening impact on him.

10. What are the roadways and the pavements a symbol of?

Answer: The roadways and the pavements are a symbol of the urban, noisy, and crowded
places like London where the poet lived. They stand in contrast to the peaceful, soothing and
colourful nature found back home on the Lake Isle of Innisfree.

11. Why is the music on the island made by the waves in the lake low?
Answer: The music made by the waves of the lake is low and gentle because it is a peaceful
lake and the waves are not very high. These waves hit against the shore very lightly
producing a piece of mild music.

12. Why does the poet repeat “I will arise and go now”?

Answer: The repetition of “I will arise and go now” emphasizes that the poet is extremely
keen on abandoning the city and leave for the quiet, idyllic atmosphere of the Lake Isle. The
use of ‘arise’ and ‘go’ reveal the intensity of his longing to escape from the restlessness and
noise of the cities and reach the harmony and serenity of the world of nature available on the
Lake Isle of Innisfree.

13. What does the poet hear in the deep “heart’s core”? What is his reaction to it?

Answer: The poet hears the sweet and gentle music made by the placid waves of the lake
striking softly against the shore of the island. This music is so soft and powerful that the poet
hears it in the core of his heart. It triggers in him a keen desire to go to the island of Innisfree
and enjoy this melody amidst a harmonious environment.

14. How will the poet enjoy the night and day in Innisfree?

Answer: In the morning, the poet will hear the song of the cricket. He will have the
opportunity to enjoy the purple glow of the noon. He will also watch and enjoy the glimmer of
midnights.

15. How will the poet have calmness and tranquillity in Innisfree?

Answer: In Innisfree, the poet will live in a cabin made of clay and wattles. He will also have
nine bean-rows and a beehive. He will get the opportunity to live in the glade with the sound
of bees. He will certainly live in peace because it will drop from the veils of the morning where
he can hear the songs of cricket.

Long Answer Type Questions

1. Why is the poet deeply attached with the Lake Isle of Innisfree? Explain.

Answer: Innisfree is a simple island in the lake where the poet has spent his childhood days.
The poet is in search of peace and calmness which the Lake Isle of Innisfree can provide him.
The environment is natural and peaceful and the poet desires to visit this island. According to
the poet, on this island, peace comes down slowly in the small drops. Moreover, he is very
much attracted by the melodious sounds made by cricket. In fact, that sound has a deep
impact on the poet. The poet believes the lake’s waves hit the shore and crease at the low
sound which gives aesthetic pleasure. Really, he wants to live on this island. Thus, it can be
said that he is deeply attached to the Lake Isle of Innisfree.

2. What moral lessons do you take from the poem, ‘The Lake Isle Innisfree’?

Answer: ‘Go back to nature’ is the message of this poem. This poem teaches us that we
should build a cabin in a solitary place and enjoy nature. Nature has magical power.
Obviously, nature unfolds itself in a solitary place and allows us to enjoy its music. We must
take this immortal lesson from this poem.

3. Why is the Lake Isle of Innisfree so attractive to the poet? Describe.

Answer: The poet is very fond of nature. The Lake Isle of Innisfree is the abode of peace. He
wants to live in a place which may afford a sense of contentment and relaxation far from busy
modern life. The poet with his power of imagination beautifully empresses this dreamy land.
The vivid description of the colours and beauties of this place and soothing stir of nature is
quite different from the strident noise of the city.