Understanding the text :
Answer the following questions :
a. Who can be the speaker of this poem ?
The person who is speaking is an adult, recalling his childhood in this poem. It's possible that the person speaking is the poet, who wrote the poem in the first place.
b. What is "little'' I doing ?
At the end of the day, the "little I'' is staring out a window to enjoy the pleasing view of the setting sun.
c. What can be the relationship between the "little I'' and the speaker of the poem ?
The "little I” represents the speaker's own childhood, and the speaker is the grown-up child represented by the "little i." As a result, the "little I represents the childhood version of the speaker.
d. What is the speaker remembering from his childhood days in the poem ?
Speaking of natural scenes at sunset, the speaker recalls how much he used to enjoy them. It was sights like these that he relished in the past.
e. What attitude does the speaker seem to have toward the child in the poem ?
The speaker appears to have fond memories of the child. He still perceives a youthful presence within himself, which motivates him to look out the window and take in the scenery.
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Reference to the text
a. Why do you think Cummings has placed a semicolon between the words window and at ?
The poet has used a semicolon (;) to separate the two words in the long sentence while still allowing the ideas to flow smoothly through the poem. When a semicolon is used instead of a comma, the sentence is stronger.
b. If the speaker is the grown up child, why does he ask, "who are you" ?
The speaker is a grown-up child. However, he continues to pose the question “who are you?”. It's possible he's having a hard time recalling the wonder he felt as a kid. Maybe it's his fondness to enjoy the childhood days and that he's still a kid at heart.
c. In this poem, an adult reflects on the childhood experience. Based on that, what might be the theme of the lines.
'Death' is a recurring theme in these lines. A difficult journey from a joyful childhood to the end of one's life is shown with compassion.
D. What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
The rhyme scheme of this poem is ABAB.
e. Explain the pun in "little I that is related to what he is doing ?
Pun can have multiple interpretations depending on how it's used. The poet's writing style calls for the first-person pronoun 'I' to be lowercase. By including the word 'little' in the phrase 'little I’ he implies that the boy is extremely small. It could imply that the boy is still a child compared to his current adulthood. Another interpretation is that he downplays the significance of his own experience in comparison to others.
f. How does Cumming's use of lower case letters affect your understanding of the poem? Explain.
His usage of lowercase characters gives the sense that he is smaller. Self-importance is minimized while time is elevated in significance using lowercase letters in this poem.
