Every Morning I Wake [Poem] Summary & Exercise

“Every Morning I Wake” is an extract from Under the Milk Wood. In this poem, Thomas prays to the magnificent God to have mercy on ordinary inhabitants

Every Morning I Wake Summary

Every Morning I Wake Poem - Summary, Analysis and Exercise

Main Summary

Every Morning I Wake is an extract from a radio play named Under Milk Wood of 1954 which was written by Dylan Thomas. In this poem, Thomas prays to the magnificent God to have mercy on ordinary inhabitants living under the Milk Wood. The poem is about the glorification and magnificence of God. God can be presented with different qualities and forms. The speaker prays for the god to keep his loving eyes on the poor creatures of the planet. The speaker seems to be kind to the people. 

Every morning he prays to God to have mercy on all poor people under the wood. The people are fated to be born and die. As long as they are alive, they need help and to be protected. These are possible with the mercy of God. Every evening the speaker asks God for a blessing to protect the town. The speaker is not sure whether they live or die. He is sure that God comes to bless them go. In the third stanza, the speaker says that no one in the town is completely bad or good. 

He prays that God will see and judge them. God can decide which is the best and which is the worst. These traits are judged by God. In the last stanza of the poem, the speaker suggests all the inhabitants of Milk Wood see another day. All the people of that place will bow to the sun because they have good faith in the sun and bid goodbye as they are hoping to see the sunrise the next day. 

According to the poem we human beings are so imperfect to do the activities. We fully depend on the mercy of God. Our lives are directed by the blessing of God. We pray to God because he has great value and can preserve

About the Author 

Born in Swansea, Wales, Dylan Thomas (1914- 1953) is famous for his acutely lyrical and emotional poetry. Thomas can be seen as an extension into the 20th century of the general movement called Romanticism, which flourished in nineteenth-century England, particularly in its emphasis on imagination, emotion, intuition, spontaneity, and organic form. 

Considered to be one of the greatest Welsh poets of all time, Thomas is largely known for his imaginative use of language and vivid imagery in his poems. He started working for BBC in 1945. Under Milk Wood (1953), a radio play, was written over a long period of time during the last months of his life. It is set in a small Welsh town called Llareggub and covers one day in the lives of its provincial characters. 

Every Morning I Wake is an extract from Under the Milk Wood. In this poem, Thomas prays to the magnificent God to have mercy on ordinary inhabitants living under the Milk Wood.

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Detailed Analysis of Every Morning I Wake

Stanza 1  

The speaker is praying to God to love and keep the eyes on all living creatures eternally in this stanza. He prays to God not only for his personal protection but also for the protection of all poor creatures in the world between their birth and death. 

Stanza 2

The speaker discusses the uncertainty of life and death in this stanza. He is unclear whether or not the night is the final night of the city's residents, but he always prays that the almighty would make everything right and protect them from any danger. Before going to sleep, the speaker prays to God, but he is not sure whether he'll see them again in the morning, so he asks God to bless them. 

Stanza 3

In this stanza, the speaker tries to make us clear that none of us is totally good or bad. We may be kind or cruel in the course of our everyday lives, but only God knows our finest selves. In this manner, the speaker prays to God, asking for him to keep them alive till the next day. The speaker, in particular, symbolizes Milk Wood town and ensures that they are neither completely bad nor completely good.

People may judge them in their own way; it all relies on one's point of view on how he judges others. However, the speaker seemed to be confident that God understands the better side of the Milk Wood people. He also asks god to look at the positive side of the people, not the bad side. 

Stanza 4

In the last stanza, the speaker tries to conclude his prayers. The speaker hopes that the night will pass quickly and that the lovely day will return. The imagery in this poem is of the night. It refers to the hardships, stress, and difficult days of him and the town's people.

And he prays for the Almighty's assistance in their difficult times. The final Goodbye symbolizes the conclusion of a prayer. This time, the speaker says his or her goodbye, but he or she is aware that they will be temporary and the next day will be the new beginning by god's grace.

Understanding the Text

Answer the following questions

a. When does the speaker pray to the Lord? 

➜ The speaker prays to God every morning he wakes up and at night before he sleeps. 

b. What does the speaker pray for? 

➜ The speaker prays for the grace and the blessings to the people Living at Milk Wood. 

c. Who are the ‘poor creatures’? Why does the speaker call them ‘poor creatures’? 

➜ The "poor creatures" in particular are the individuals that live beneath Milk Wood, as well as humanity as a whole. The speaker refers to them as poor creatures because they are comprised of bone and flesh and are born to die. 

d. What does Milk Wood sound like? A type of wood or a place? Why? 

➜ As there is no article before this term, Milk Wood sounds like a location. Because it is not a type of wood, a grammatical article such as 'a, ' 'an, ' or 'the' must have been used. Articles are unnecessary before a solitary proper noun referring to a specific location. 

e. Why do the inhabitants of Milk Wood bow to the setting sun ‘but just for now’? 

➜ The inhabitants of Milk Wood bow to the setting sun 'but just for now' only to say good-bye for the evening. They are hoping to see the sunshine the next morning. They wish to live another day with God's grace and the warmth of the Sun. 

Reference to the Context 

a. Discuss “Every Morning When I Wake” as a prayer to God. 

➜ Dylan Thomas's "Every Morning When I Wake" is a prayer poem. "Dear Lord, a little prayer I make, O please do keep Thy loving eye On all poor creatures born to die, " the speaker prays to God. The speaker is pleading with God to keep his loving eyes on all needy creatures and to shower them with blessings. In a prayer poem, the speaker asks God for blessings and guidance throughout his life, as well as the lives of all humans and animals. 

b. Why does the speaker make a prayer to God, but not to a king, a billionaire or a scientist? 

➜ Because God is the supreme deity, the creator, and the primary object of faith, the speaker prays to Him. He is all-powerful, all knowing, and all-present. Kings, billionaires, and scientists are all composed of bone and flesh and born to die. They are never compared to God, no matter how much authority they have, how wealthy they are, or how much knowledge they have. They, too, are under God's control. He is a holy being who created us, saves us, loves us, trusts us, and leads us on the proper path. That is why we worship Him to receive His mercy and blessings.

A monarch, a rich, or a scientist are all transient beings. They cannot safeguard us in the same way that God does. A king obtains his position as a result of God, a scientist obtains knowledge as a result of Him, and a billionaire obtains a large sum of money as a result of Him. 

c. How does the poet highlight the magnificence of the God? 

➜ The poet highlights the magnificence of God via the speaker's daily prayers in the morning and at night. God knows the entire essence of the creature, hence it is god's blessings that see us through another day. 

d. How does the rhyme scheme of the poem reinforce its message? 

➜ A rhyme scheme is the ordered pattern of rhyming words that appears at the end of each line of a poem. This poem employs linked rhyme, which means that every two lines of each stanza rhyme together. Line 1 rhymes with line 2, while line 3 rhymes with line 4 in the AABB rhyming scheme. The rhyme system for the entire poem is AABB, CCDD, EEFF, GGHH. These rhymes sound like catchy music. It portrays the innocence of nature due to its simplicity. In the eyes of God, the speaker is a helpless being. The majority of prayer poems use this rhyme structure to express an innocent appeal to God. 

Reference Beyond the Text 

a. Does God exist? Give your opinion. 

➜ "Does God exist?" is the most important topic that has been debated since the dawn of civilisation. There are two categories of people on the earth who believe in the existence of God. Some people, referred to as "atheists, " do not think that God exists, whereas "theists" believe that God exists. Regardless of whether some individuals dispute the presence of God, God exists in my opinion. Some say that God does not exist because no one has seen Him physically or because our sensory perceptions do not feel and experience God's presence. However, this does not imply that objects do not exist if we do not feel or see them with our sense organs. 

Aside from our five sensory organs, we have a sixth sense that allows us to reach God. Unlike our five senses, it is a perceptual power. We are accustomed to the feeling and experiencing the physical world through our five senses. Humans, on the other hand, have a sixth sense, which we do not use. People that use their sixth sense believe in God's existence. It is our religious sensibility. God's existence is analogous to the existence of radiation. We only witness the results of it. We don't see God, but we notice his presence in our lives. Unexpected and miraculous events are evidence of God's existence. b. In his Epistle to the author of the book, The Three Impostors (1768), Voltaire says, “Even if the God didn’t exist, it would be necessary to invent him.”

b. Write an essay highlighting the importance of God in society

➜ Importance of God in the Society "Even if God didn’t exist, it would be necessary to invent him." Voltaire, a French philosopher of the 18th century, conveyed this concept in his work "The Three Imposters (1768)." He highlights the need of mankind to believe in a divine being God. He is a supreme intelligence with enormous power, as well as the creator or rule of nature. Without God, the world is a shambles. If there is no God, there are fatalities, damages, and destruction. The greatest creator has maintained the beauty of this planet. Every individual in every culture must have faith in Him. 

A civilised society must be well-functioning. God represents all of our society's great aspects, while evil represents all of our society's negative aspects. God leads us down the righteous path. It teaches us moral qualities like humanity, kindness, love, and compassion, among other things. He teaches us to let go of vengeance, greed, passion, and wants, among other things. People with good qualities contribute to the civilization of any culture. People continue to live in peace and harmony. There is a sense of law and order. Before committing any crime, people have a fear of God. 

People do not conduct sinful acts because they are afraid of God. As a result, even if God does not exist, it is vital to create an ideal existence for Him. The majority of those who believe in the presence of our souls after death believe in God. If they do not repent of the sins they do here, their souls will suffer in purgatory. After death, the souls of those who follow the path of upright and moral principles rest happily in heaven. This idea, people continue, stems from a sense of God's existence. The beliefs and ideals of the individuals who live in any community contribute to society's civilization. So, God is required for the betterment and health of civilization; else, He must be invented.

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