Class 7 :: English Literature :: Home and Love by Robert William Service
Home and Love
by Robert William Service
The Poem:
"Just Home and Love! the words are small
Four little letters unto each;
And yet you will not find in all
The wide and gracious range of speech
Two more so tenderly complete:
When angels talk in Heaven above,
I'm sure they have no words more sweet
Than Home and Love.
Just Home and Love! it's hard to guess
Which of the two were best in gain;
Home without Love is bitterness;
Love without home is often pain.
No! each alone will seldom do;
Somehow they travel hand and glove:
If you win one you must have two,
Both Home and Love.
And if you've both, well then I'm sure
You ought to sing the whole day long;
It doesn't matter if you're poor
With these two make divine your song.
And so I praisefully repeat,
When angels talk in Heaven above,
There are no words more simply sweet
Than Home and Love."
The Summary of the Poem:
Both 'Home' and 'Love' are small four-letter words. There is no such tender and gracious words like them. Angels in the Heaven talk about none but these two words.
It is hard to tell whether 'Home' or 'Love' is best to gain. They are substitute of each other. One is incomplete without the other. 'Love' is bitterness without 'Home'. 'Home' is often pain without 'Love'. One of them alone is not sufficient. They are in close cooperation like hand and glove. One makes the other complete.
If we have both the 'Home' and 'Love', we must be too happy to sing all day long. These two make our song divine if we are poor or not. Finally the poet again emphasises on the fact that the angels in the Heaven talk about these two sweet words 'Love' and 'Home'.
COMPREHENSION
1. Answer the following questions.
a. What are the words the poet wants to bring to our attention?
= The words the poet wants to bring to our attention are - 'Home' and 'Love'.
b. What information does he give us about the words? Mention at least three points found in the first verse.
= Both 'Home' and 'Love' are small four-letter words. There is no such tender and gracious words like them. Angels in the Heaven talk about none but these two words.
c. What argument does the poet give, in the second verse, to show that love is no use without home and home is no use without love?
= It is hard to tell whether 'Home' or 'Love' is best to gain. They are substitute of each other. One is incomplete without the other. 'Love' is bitterness without 'Home'. 'Home' is often pain without 'Love'. One of them alone is not sufficient. They are in close cooperation like hand and glove. One makes the other complete.
d. Which common phrase does the poet use to show that love and home work together?
= The common phrase the poet uses to show that love and home work together is 'hand and glove'.
e. What message does the poet have for those who have both home and love?
= The poet says that if we have both the 'Home' and 'Love', we must be too happy to sing all day long. These two make our song divine if we are poor or not.
f. Find words in the poem which have the same meaning as the following:
i. a divine being.
= gracious;
ii. abode.
= home;
iii. needy.
= poor;
iv. obtain.
= gain/win;
v. affection.
= love;
These questions are more difficult. Discuss them first.
g. What, to your mind, does 'home' mean? When does a house become a home?
= I think 'home' mean a shelter with all terrestrial and emotional comfort and security.
A house becomes a home while there is love, compassion, sympathy and cooperation among the members of the house.
h. In your view, can home exist without love?
= I think, home can not exist without love. Home and love are substitute of each other. One is incomplete without the other. 'Love' is bitterness without 'Home'. 'Home' is often pain without 'Love'. One of them alone is not sufficient.
2. Answer the following with reference to context.
a. "When angels talk in Heaven above"
What do they talk about?
= They talk about the two sweet words 'Home' and 'Love'.
b. "Somehow they travel hand and glove"
i. What does this mean?
= This means in close cooperation.
ii. What travels in this way?
= 'Home' and 'Love' travel in this way.
c. "And if you've both ..."
i. What does the 'both' refer to?
= The 'both' refers to 'Home' and 'Love'.
ii. What should you do if you have both?
= If we have both the 'Home' and 'Love', we must be too happy to sing all day long. These two make our song divine whether we are poor or not.
RHYME AND METRE
3. What is the rhyming scheme of the poem?
= The rhyming scheme of the poem is abab cdcd.
4. Do all the lines have same number of syllables or beats? How many are there in each line?
= All the lines do not have same number of syllables or beats.
Every stanza has eight lines each. Except the last line of each stanza, all the other lines above have eight syllables each. The last line of each stanza has four syllables.
About the Poet:
Robert William Service (1874-1958) was born in Preston, England. His father was a banker, and Robert became a banker too, at the age of 15! In 1896 he emigrated to Calcutta and then moved to California. Some years later, while living in the Yukon, he was inspired to write poems. He wrote and wrote, and found a publisher who liked his poetry. His first book of poems, Songs of a Sourdough, was published in 1908. The poem 'Home and Love' is from a collection called Rhymes of a Rolling Stone. The title summed up Service's life; he loved travelling. Robert Service died in 1958. He was honoured in 1976 on a Canadian postage stamp.