Q:Analysis of the poem when autumn came by Faiz Ahmed Faiz Answer The first 3 lines of the poem tell us the intensity of the oppression...with trees probably representing the poor people. Autumn represents a period of hopelessness, a time when the upper classes tormented and humiliated the lower classes( stripped them down to the skin). The yellow leaves which were once green represent the underdog or the poor class,the working class. The upper class humiliated them so mercilessly that they didnt even have the courage to protest! Even if they protest they are not heard. So the poet basically talks about social cruelty,violence,injustice,economic inequality on the part of the upper class and lack of revolutionary fervor. Birds .....dreams - Birds here refer to poets,writers ,reformers and revolutionaries. They are the messengers who bring in new thoughts and ideas in the minds of people. However in the time of oppression and cencorship (act of throttling) even they lose their voices. They can not express themselves because the society does not allow them to do so! Even before they literally die, they give in. The last stanza is a prayer to the God of Spring to have mercy on the tress and to bless them with a new life. The poet prays to the God of May to revive the revolutionaries and to rekindle their dead bodies. Give some tree.....sing- The poet ends the poem on a hopeful note. By using the word green he refers to life,regeneration,happiness and a shared prosperity. The poet feels that a classless society is the need of the hour. Even if one bird is allowd to sing i.e. even if one revolutionary is allowed to expess his ideas...that would suffice!!! THis poem is a progression ... an evolution from hopelessness to hope, from autumn to spring and from a class-based society to regenerated one!
Posted on: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 05:07:54 +0000