Poem: The River by Valerie Bloom

The rivers a wanderer,

A nomad, a tramp.
He doesn't choose any one place
To set up his camp.

The rivers a winder,
Through valley and hill
He twists and he turns,
He just cannot be still.

The rivers a hoarder,
And he buries down deep
Those little treasures
That he wants to keep.

The rivers a baby,
He gurgles and hums,
And sounds like hes happily
Sucking his thumbs.

The rivers a singer,
As he dances along,
The countryside echoes
The notes of his song.

The rivers a monster,
Hungry and vexed,
Hes gobbled up trees
And hell swallow you next.


Vocabulary Checkpoint:
1. Wanderer: A person who moves from one place to
another place without without any special purpose.
2. Nomad: A member of a group that moves from place
to place and does not has permanent home.
3. Tramp: A homeless or jobless person who moves from
place to place and begs for money. (A beggar)
4. Winder: Thing that turns or rolls something.
5. Valley: The gap between hills.
6. Still: Not moving.
7. Hoarder: A person who collects and stores things.
8. Bury: Hide.
9. Gurgle: A baby makes a noise in his throat when he is
happy.
10. Hums: Sings a tune with lips closed.
11. Echoes: A sound that heard comes back to be heard
for the second times.
12. Monster: An evil creature.
13. Vexed: Angry.
14. Gobbled: Ate something up quickly and noisily.

Stanza 1
The river is portrayed as a living thing. The river is like a homeless man, who wanders
from place to place aimlessly. He wanders around and does not have a permanent home.
Stanza 2
The river is not straight and it is able to twist and turn through obstacles like valleys
and hills. It does not stop flowing. Life is filled with twists and turns. However, no
obstacles can prevent a man from moving on.
Stanza 3
The river is personified as a hoarder who collects things as it moves along in the river
bed. Man keeps the things he like and calls them little treasures.
Stanza 4
The river is like a baby who gurgles and hums when he is happy. He also sucks his
thumbs. Like the river, man can be childlike when he is happy.
Stanza 5
The river is again personified as a singer who sings and dances. As he moves gracefully
along, he makes music and this can be heard in the countryside.
Stanza 6
This stanza shows the change of mood and tone of the poet. The river is personified as a
hungry creature that greedily swallows up or destroys the trees and drowns people.
Man can cause a lot of destruction to things in his way when he cannot control his anger.








Themes
The beauty of the river.
The river is beautiful but capable of causing destruction.
Man can choose to lead a stable life or move around in search of his dream.
Taking risks and challenges.
There are good and bad times in life.

Moral Values/ Messages
Take care of the environment by not cutting down trees and polluting the river.
Appreciate nature.
Be wary of the dangers of nature.
Be responsible for our action.

Language

The poem has a rhyme scheme of a, b, c, b' and it consists of 6 stanzas.
The style is simple and direct.
The language is simple and easy to understand.


Poetic Devices

Personification: The River is personified as a man as he travels through life. The use
of capital letter in 'River' emphasizes this.
Imagery: The main image that is that of the river and its movements.
Metaphor: The River is said to be a wanderer, a winder, a collector, a baby, a dancer
and singer and a destroyer.
Repetition: The word, The River is repeated and this gives emphasis to the subject.

Tone and mood

The poem is written in the voice of the poet.
The general tone is light-hearted and cheerful.
There is a change in tone in the last stanza It is more serious and cautious as the
poet shares with us a very intense feeling when she mentions the actions of the river
when it is annoyed or upset.
All six stanzas describe the different moods and facts of the river.