The poem “The Listeners” by Walter de La Mare is analysed here line by line, with vocabulary notes accompanying each stanza. The analysis delves into the deeper meanings conveyed by the lines of the poem “The Listeners”.
Also see…
The Listeners Poem Notes (Summary, Poetic Devices etc.)
The Listeners Poem Question & Answers for English Book Lavender Class 8
The Listeners Poem Summary, Meanings, Q&A (Wind Chimes, Voices, Treasure Island)
Explanation of “The Listeners” by Walter de La Mare
The poem “The Listeners” is analyzed stanza by stanza with word meanings provided alongside each stanza.
Stanza 1:
‘Is there anybody there?’ said the Traveller,
Knocking on the moonlit door;
And his horse in the silence champed the grasses
Of the forest’s ferny floor:
And a bird flew up out of the turret,
Above the Traveller’s head:
And he smote upon the door again a second time;
‘Is there anybody there?’ he said.
Vocabulary:
Traveller – A person who is on a journey. Moonlit – Lit by the moon. Champed – Chewed or bit noisily. Ferny – Covered with ferns (plants with delicate leaves). Turret – A small tower on a building. Smote – Hit or knocked.
Explanation:
एक यात्री आधी रात को एक घर में आता है, जो चंद्रमा से रोशन होता है। वह दरवाजा खटखटाता है और पूछता है कि क्या कोई अंदर है। उसका घोड़ा खामोश, अंधेरे जंगल में घास खाता है। घर के ऊपर मीनार से एक पक्षी उड़ता है। यात्री फिर से दस्तक देता है और अपना प्रश्न दोहराता है: “क्या वहां कोई है?”
The traveller seems desperate to get a response, but the silence suggests the house is either abandoned or occupied by someone who won’t answer. This creates a mysterious atmosphere, hinting at the presence of something unseen.
Stanza 2:
But no one descended to the Traveller;
No head from the leaf-fringed sill
Leaned over and looked into his grey eyes,
Where he stood perplexed and still.
Vocabulary:
Descended – Came down. Sill – A window ledge. Perplexed – Confused.
Explanation:
No one comes down to answer the traveller. No one looks out from the window, which is surrounded by leaves. The traveller is confused and stands still, wondering why no one is responding.
This suggests isolation and abandonment. The traveller might feel alone, and there is a sense of mystery—why is no one answering?
Stanza 3:
But only a host of phantom listeners
That dwelt in the lone house then
Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight
To that voice from the world of men:
Vocabulary:
Phantom – Ghost. Dwelt – Lived. Lone – Lonely, isolated. Host – A large group.
Explanation:
Only ghosts (phantom listeners) live in the house. These silent spirits listen quietly to the traveller’s voice, which comes from the world of the living.
The “phantom listeners” represent the unknown and the connection between the living and the dead. It suggests that although the traveller cannot see them, he is being watched by these mysterious beings.
Stanza 4:
Stood thronging the faint moonbeams on the dark stair,
That goes down to the empty hall,
Hearkening in an air stirred and shaken
By the lonely Traveller’s call.
Vocabulary:
Thronging – Gathering in a crowd. Moonbeams – Rays of moonlight. Hearkening – Listening carefully. Stirred and shaken – Disturbed or moved.
Explanation:
The ghosts crowd around the faint moonlight on a dark staircase that leads down to an empty hall. They listen closely to the traveller’s voice as it fills the quiet night air.
The spirits seem to gather around the light, symbolizing their connection to the past. The traveller’s presence disturbs the calm, yet the spirits do not respond.
Stanza 5:
And he felt in his heart their strangeness,
Their stillness answering his cry,
While his horse moved, cropping the dark turf,
’Neath the starred and leafy sky;
Vocabulary:
Strangeness – Something unusual or mysterious. Stillness – Silence, no movement. Cropping – Eating. Turf – Grass. Neath – Short form of “beneath” (under).
Explanation:
The traveller feels the strange presence of the ghosts, but they remain silent in response to his calls. Meanwhile, his horse quietly eats the grass under the starry sky filled with leaves.
The traveller can sense the oddness and mystery around him, but there is no direct response. This emphasizes the theme of loneliness and the unknown, as he feels separated from the spirits.
Stanza 6:
For he suddenly smote on the door, even
Louder, and lifted his head:—
‘Tell them I came, and no one answered,
That I kept my word,’ he said.
Vocabulary:
Smote – Hit or knocked. Kept my word – Kept a promise.
Explanation:
The traveller knocks on the door even louder and lifts his head, declaring that he came as promised, even though no one answered him.
The traveller feels a need to prove that he kept his word. His message might be for the ghosts, or perhaps for someone he promised to visit. This reinforces the theme of responsibility and commitment, even in the face of silence.
Stanza 7:
Never the least stir made the listeners,
Though every word he spake
Fell echoing through the shadowiness of the still house
From the one man left awake:
Vocabulary:
Stir – Movement. Spake – Old form of “spoke.” Shadowiness – Dark, unclear spaces.
Explanation:
The ghosts (listeners) don’t move or respond, even though the traveller’s words echo through the dark, quiet house.
This shows that the traveller’s efforts are in vain. The listeners don’t interact with him, symbolizing the gap between life and death, or the living and the unknown.
Stanza 8:
Ay, they heard his foot upon the stirrup,
And the sound of iron on stone,
And how the silence surged softly backward,
When the plunging hoofs were gone.
Vocabulary:
Stirrup – The loop for the rider’s foot on a horse. Iron on stone – The sound of the horse’s metal horseshoes on the ground. Surged – Moved or returned quickly. Plunging hoofs – The fast-moving feet of the horse.
Explanation:
The ghosts hear the traveller’s footsteps as he mounts his horse. They hear the sound of the horse’s hooves as it moves on the stone path. When the traveller leaves, the silence returns to the house.
The poem ends with the traveller leaving, and the mysterious quietness of the house returning. It suggests that the mystery remains unsolved, and the spirits are still uncommunicative, adding to the eerie atmosphere.
