The English poet William Wordsworth wrote and published “We Are Seven” in 1798. This poem first appeared in Lyrical Ballads, a poetry collection that contains works by both Wordsworth and his friend and collaborator Samuel Taylor Coleridge. While it was originally published anonymously, Lyrical Ballads was highly influential and is now widely considered the springboard for British Romanticism. Indeed, the speaker of “We Are Seven” debates a young girl who believes that her two deceased siblings should be counted among her family members, staging a battle between and emotion and logic that is typical of Romantic concerns. The speaker and the child never reach an agreement, leaving behind additional questions about the nature of death and the power of familial bonds.
|
Get
LitCharts
|
|
The Full Text of “We Are Seven”
1———A simple Child,
2That lightly draws its breath,
3And feels its life in every limb,
4What should it know of death?
5I met a little cottage Girl:
6She was eight years old, she said;
7Her hair was thick with many a curl
8That clustered round her head.
9She had a rustic, woodland air,
10And she was wildly clad:
11Her eyes were fair, and very fair;
12—Her beauty made me glad.
13“Sisters and brothers, little Maid,
14How many may you be?”
15“How many? Seven in all,” she said,
16And wondering looked at me.
17“And where are they? I pray you tell.”
18She answered, “Seven are we;
19And two of us at Conway dwell,
20And two are gone to sea.
21“Two of us in the church-yard lie,
22My sister and my brother;
23And, in the church-yard cottage, I
24Dwell near them with my mother.”
25“You say that two at Conway dwell,
26And two are gone to sea,
27Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,
28Sweet Maid, how this may be.”
29Then did the little Maid reply,
30“Seven boys and girls are we;
31Two of us in the church-yard lie,
32Beneath the church-yard tree.”
33“You run about, my little Maid,
34Your limbs they are alive;
35If two are in the church-yard laid,
36Then ye are only five.”
37“Their graves are green, they may be seen,”
38The little Maid replied,
39“Twelve steps or more from my mother’s door,
40And they are side by side.
41“My stockings there I often knit,
42My kerchief there I hem;
43And there upon the ground I sit,
44And sing a song to them.
45“And often after sun-set, Sir,
46When it is light and fair,
47I take my little porringer,
48And eat my supper there.
49“The first that died was sister Jane;
50In bed she moaning lay,
51Till God released her of her pain;
52And then she went away.
53“So in the church-yard she was laid;
54And, when the grass was dry,
55Together round her grave we played,
56My brother John and I.
57“And when the ground was white with snow,
58And I could run and slide,
59My brother John was forced to go,
60And he lies by her side.”
61“How many are you, then,” said I,
62“If they two are in heaven?”
63Quick was the little Maid’s reply,
64“O Master! we are seven.”
65“But they are dead; those two are dead!
66Their spirits are in heaven!”
67’Twas throwing words away; for still
68The little Maid would have her will,
69And said, “Nay, we are seven!”
The Full Text of “We Are Seven”
1———A simple Child,
2That lightly draws its breath,
3And feels its life in every limb,
4What should it know of death?
5I met a little cottage Girl:
6She was eight years old, she said;
7Her hair was thick with many a curl
8That clustered round her head.
9She had a rustic, woodland air,
10And she was wildly clad:
11Her eyes were fair, and very fair;
12—Her beauty made me glad.
13“Sisters and brothers, little Maid,
14How many may you be?”
15“How many? Seven in all,” she said,
16And wondering looked at me.
17“And where are they? I pray you tell.”
18She answered, “Seven are we;
19And two of us at Conway dwell,
20And two are gone to sea.
21“Two of us in the church-yard lie,
22My sister and my brother;
23And, in the church-yard cottage, I
24Dwell near them with my mother.”
25“You say that two at Conway dwell,
26And two are gone to sea,
27Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,
28Sweet Maid, how this may be.”
29Then did the little Maid reply,
30“Seven boys and girls are we;
31Two of us in the church-yard lie,
32Beneath the church-yard tree.”
33“You run about, my little Maid,
34Your limbs they are alive;
35If two are in the church-yard laid,
36Then ye are only five.”
37“Their graves are green, they may be seen,”
38The little Maid replied,
39“Twelve steps or more from my mother’s door,
40And they are side by side.
41“My stockings there I often knit,
42My kerchief there I hem;
43And there upon the ground I sit,
44And sing a song to them.
45“And often after sun-set, Sir,
46When it is light and fair,
47I take my little porringer,
48And eat my supper there.
49“The first that died was sister Jane;
50In bed she moaning lay,
51Till God released her of her pain;
52And then she went away.
53“So in the church-yard she was laid;
54And, when the grass was dry,
55Together round her grave we played,
56My brother John and I.
57“And when the ground was white with snow,
58And I could run and slide,
59My brother John was forced to go,
60And he lies by her side.”
61“How many are you, then,” said I,
62“If they two are in heaven?”
63Quick was the little Maid’s reply,
64“O Master! we are seven.”
65“But they are dead; those two are dead!
66Their spirits are in heaven!”
67’Twas throwing words away; for still
68The little Maid would have her will,
69And said, “Nay, we are seven!”
-
“We Are Seven” Summary
-
-
“We Are Seven” Themes
-
Childhood Innocence vs. Adult Understanding
- See where this theme is active in the poem.
-
The Nature of Death
- See where this theme is active in the poem.
-
Family Bonds
- See where this theme is active in the poem.
-
-
Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “We Are Seven”
-
Lines 1-4
———A simple Child,
That lightly draws its breath,
And feels its life in every limb,
What should it know of death? -
Lines 5-12
I met a little cottage Girl:
She was eight years old, she said;
Her hair was thick with many a curl
That clustered round her head.
She had a rustic, woodland air,
And she was wildly clad:
Her eyes were fair, and very fair;
—Her beauty made me glad. -
Lines 13-16
“Sisters and brothers, little Maid,
How many may you be?”
“How many? Seven in all,” she said,
And wondering looked at me. -
Lines 17-24
“And where are they? I pray you tell.”
She answered, “Seven are we;
And two of us at Conway dwell,
And two are gone to sea.
“Two of us in the church-yard lie,
My sister and my brother;
And, in the church-yard cottage, I
Dwell near them with my mother.” -
Lines 25-32
“You say that two at Conway dwell,
And two are gone to sea,
Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,
Sweet Maid, how this may be.”
Then did the little Maid reply,
“Seven boys and girls are we;
Two of us in the church-yard lie,
Beneath the church-yard tree.” -
Lines 33-40
“You run about, my little Maid,
Your limbs they are alive;
If two are in the church-yard laid,
Then ye are only five.”
“Their graves are green, they may be seen,”
The little Maid replied,
“Twelve steps or more from my mother’s door,
And they are side by side. -
Lines 41-48
“My stockings there I often knit,
My kerchief there I hem;
And there upon the ground I sit,
And sing a song to them.
“And often after sun-set, Sir,
When it is light and fair,
I take my little porringer,
And eat my supper there. -
Lines 49-56
“The first that died was sister Jane;
In bed she moaning lay,
Till God released her of her pain;
And then she went away.
“So in the church-yard she was laid;
And, when the grass was dry,
Together round her grave we played,
My brother John and I. -
Lines 57-64
“And when the ground was white with snow,
And I could run and slide,
My brother John was forced to go,
And he lies by her side.”
“How many are you, then,” said I,
“If they two are in heaven?”
Quick was the little Maid’s reply,
“O Master! we are seven.” -
Lines 65-69
“But they are dead; those two are dead!
Their spirits are in heaven!”
’Twas throwing words away; for still
The little Maid would have her will,
And said, “Nay, we are seven!”
-
-
“We Are Seven” Symbols
-
Seasons
- See where this symbol appears in the poem.
-
-
“We Are Seven” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
-
Anaphora
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Aporia
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Assonance
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Consonance
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Diacope
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
End-Stopped Line
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Repetition
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
-
“We Are Seven” 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.
- Rustic
- Woodland
- Clad
- Fair
- Maid
- Conway
- Dwell
- Ye
- Kerchief
- Porringer
- 'Twas
- Nay
-
- See where this vocabulary word appears in the poem.
-
Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “We Are Seven”
-
Form
-
Meter
-
Rhyme Scheme
-
-
“We Are Seven” Speaker
-
-
“We Are Seven” Setting
-
-
Literary and Historical Context of “We Are Seven”
-
-
More “We Are Seven” Resources
-
External Resources
-
The Poem Out Loud — Listen to a live recitation of the poem.
-
Preface to Lyrical Ballads — A full text of the Preface to the third edition of Lyrical Ballads, the collection in which "We Are Seven" appears. This 1802 essay is considered a key text and manifesto of sorts for the Romantic movement in British literature.
-
The Romantics and Nature — One installment of a three-part documentary on the Romantic Era from the BBC and Peter Ackroyd. This episode addresses nature and related subjects such as industrialization and childhood mortality.
-
Biography of the Author — A detailed overview of Wordsworth's life and works from the Poetry Foundation.
-
First Edition of Lyrical Ballads — Scanned images of a first edition copy of Lyrical Ballads (1798), the collection in which "We Are Seven" appears. Coauthored by Wordsworth and fellow English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, this collection in many ways precipitated British Romanticism.
-
The Romantic Period — An overview of the Romantic Period, with links to information on related historical events (e.g., the Industrial Revolution).
-
-
LitCharts on Other Poems by William Wordsworth
-
Ask LitCharts AI:
The answer to your questions
Powered by LitCharts content and AI.
