Grade 12 poetry "Fern Hill" - Dylan Thomas

Poem 11

Themes:
Childhood joy and innocence - this poem is at its core a celebration of childhood. The speaker was a happy and innocent child and part of a harmonious world. Children experience the specialness and harmony of the world through their freedom and, paradoxically, their security. They believe that they are safe to explore and experience joy. There are no severe restrictions and responsibilities on them.
Harmony and the wonder of nature- The speaker's childhood joy is closely connected to playing outside. The poem suggests that real joy comes from a sense of connection with the natural world. To be young and innocent is to be one with nature. Nature is a place filled with wonder, peace and harmony. As the young speaker plays a role in the environment he visits- he is both the hunter and the shepherd. (He is not actually killing animals here). His joy stems from the fact that he is a part of nature and the landscape, rather than apart from it. Adults are incapable of accessing the sense of peace and harmony that comes from being one with nature.
Time- through the poem, time looms like a godlike presence. Time grants the speaker a brief period of childhood happiness. However, time also ensures that nothing lasts forever and that childhood joy comes to an end. Time is ultimately an all- powerful and unstoppable force with ultimate controls over humans.
The end of childhood grace- The poem implies that when children grow up, they lose the 'grace' of childhood and its joys. The Christian concept of Grace is to experience God's love. For the speaker, childhood best represents such an experience, and the end of childhood is thus a painful, yet inevitable, fall from Grace. The references to the Garden of Eden parallels childhood as akin to the Garden of Eden. As people age, they lose their Grace , just like Adam and Eve lost theirs. Just as Adan and Eve were kicked out of Eden, the speaker "wakes to the farm forever fled from the childless land". It is as if one day the speaker woke up, no longer a child, and all the happiness had disappeared from the world.
Nostalgia- The sense of nostalgia is intense in the poem 'Fern Hill'. The longing to return to a state of innocence and security is a common thread throughout the entire work.
Regret associated with growing up.
The joys of childhood.