“I Remember, I Remember” Summary

“I Remember, I Remember” Themes

• 

  Nostalgia for the Joy of Childhood

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  Children's Connection to Nature

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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “I Remember, I Remember”

• Lines 1-8

  I remember, I remember,
  The house where I was born,
  The little window where the sun
  Came peeping in at morn;
  He never came a wink too soon,
  Nor brought too long a day,
  But now, I often wish the night
  Had borne my breath away!

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 9-16

  I remember, I remember,
  The roses, red and white,
  The vi'lets, and the lily-cups,
  Those flowers made of light!
  The lilacs where the robin built,
  And where my brother set
  The laburnum on his birthday,—
  The tree is living yet!

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 17-24

  I remember, I remember,
  Where I was used to swing,
  And thought the air must rush as fresh
  To swallows on the wing;
  My spirit flew in feathers then,
  That is so heavy now,
  And summer pools could hardly cool
  The fever on my brow!

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 25-32

  I remember, I remember,
  The fir trees dark and high;
  I used to think their slender tops
  Were close against the sky:
  It was a childish ignorance,
  But now 'tis little joy
  To know I'm farther off from heav'n
  Than when I was a boy.

  

  

  

  

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“I Remember, I Remember” Symbols

• 

  Summer

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• 

  The Fir Trees

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“I Remember, I Remember” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Repetition

  

  

  

  

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• Metaphor

  

  

  

  

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• Juxtaposition

  

  

  

  

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• Alliteration

  

  

  

  

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“I Remember, I Remember” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• At morn
• Borne
• Vi'lets
• Lily-cups
• Set
• Laburnum
• Where I was used to swing
• 'Tis

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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “I Remember, I Remember”

• Form

• Meter

• Rhyme Scheme

“I Remember, I Remember” Speaker

“I Remember, I Remember” Setting

Literary and Historical Context of “I Remember, I Remember”

More “I Remember, I Remember” Resources

• External Resources

  • A Contemporary's Memory of Hood — Read a reflection on Hood by his acquaintance S. C. Hall.

  • The Comic Annual — Take a look at the text of an edition of Hood's Comic Annual for a glimpse of the poet's influential role as a humorist and editor.

  • A Brief Biography — Read an overview of Hood's life and work.

  • The Poem Aloud — Listen to a reading of the poem.

  • Portraits of Hood — See some portraits of Hood made not long before his untimely death.

• LitCharts on Other Poems by Thomas Hood

  • The Song of the Shirt