The Hunchback in the Park
Key facts
- Poet: Dylan Thomas.
- Written: Around 1938.
- Published: 1946, in the collection Deaths and Entrances.
- Form: Lyric poem written in free verse (no regular rhyme or rhythm).
- Tone: Sad, reflective, and sympathetic.
- Genre: Modern lyric / Character sketch poem.
- Setting: A public park in Swansea (Wales), based on the poet’s childhood memories.
- Main Character: A lonely, deformed man — “the hunchback” — who spends his days in the park.
- Subject: The poem describes the life of a poor, lonely hunchback who lives apart from society and children who tease him.
- Theme: Loneliness, isolation, imagination, childhood cruelty, and sympathy for the outcast.
- Imagery: Strong visual and natural images — birds, trees, benches, fountain, and chained dog — create a real park scene.
- Symbolism: The park represents the world; the hunchback stands for all people rejected by society.
- Message: The poet shows sympathy for the poor and lonely man and reminds us to treat every person with kindness and humanity.
আরো পড়ুনঃ In My Craft or Sullen Art Bangla Summary (বাংলায়)
Characters
1. The Hunchback: He is the main character of the poem. He is a lonely and deformed man who lives in the park. He eats bread from a newspaper, drinks from a chained cup, and sleeps in a dog kennel. People ignore him, and children laugh at him. He represents loneliness, poverty, and the silent suffering of rejected people.
2. The Truant Boys: They are the boys who skip school and play in the park. They tease the hunchback and call him “Mister.” They laugh at his shape and run away when he reacts. They represent the cruelty and thoughtlessness of childhood.
3. The Park Keeper: He works in the park and carries a stick to collect leaves. The hunchback tries to avoid him. He represents society’s authority — strict, watchful, but without real sympathy or care.
4. The Imaginary Woman: She is the dream figure created in the hunchback’s mind — “a woman figure without fault, straight as a young elm.” She represents beauty, love, and perfection — everything the hunchback desires but cannot have.
5. The Poet / Narrator: The poet remembers seeing the hunchback as a child. Now, he feels pity and understanding for him. Through the poet’s eyes, we see both the cruelty of children and the deep sadness of the lonely man.
English Summary
Dylan Thomas’s poem “The Hunchback in the Park” tells the story of a lonely, deformed man who spends his days and nights in a public park. The poem is based on the poet’s childhood memories of seeing a real hunchback in Swansea Park.
In the first stanza, the poet describes the hunchback as a “solitary mister,” a lonely man sitting between trees and water from morning until evening. He lives quietly, away from everyone.
In the second stanza, we see his poor life. He eats bread wrapped in newspaper and drinks water from a chained cup near a fountain where the poet, as a child, once played. At night, he sleeps in a dog kennel — showing how lonely and neglected he is.
In the third and fourth stanzas, the truant boys from town tease him. They call him “Mister” and mock him for his hunchback. He tries to escape them, hiding from both the cruel boys and the park keeper.
In the fifth stanza, he is shown alone again, sitting quietly among nurses, swans, and children. The boys imagine wild tigers in the park, but the hunchback stays silent and apart, lost in his own world.
In the sixth stanza, the poet shows the hunchback’s imagination. All day he builds an image of a perfect woman — straight and tall — from his crooked body. She is the dream of beauty and love that he never had.
In the last stanza, the park becomes quiet and empty at night. The birds and children go home, but the lonely hunchback goes back to his kennel, followed only by the memory of the wild boys.
The poem shows the pain of loneliness, cruelty of childhood, and the deep desire for love and dignity in an outcast’s heart. It teaches us to feel sympathy for those who live outside society’s care.
Bangla Summary
ডিলান টমাসের কবিতা “The Hunchback in the Park” এক নিঃসঙ্গ ও কুঁজো মানুষের জীবনের গল্প। কবিতাটি কবির শৈশবের স্মৃতিনির্ভর—তিনি তাঁর শহর Swansea Park-এ এমন এক কুঁজো মানুষকে দেখেছিলেন, যিনি প্রতিদিন একা পার্কে বসে থাকতেন।
প্রথম স্তবকে, কবি কুঁজো মানুষটিকে পরিচয় করিয়ে দেন—তিনি একজন একাকী মানুষ (“a solitary mister”), যিনি সকালে পার্ক খোলার পর থেকে সন্ধ্যার ঘণ্টা বাজা পর্যন্ত গাছ ও পানির মাঝে বসে থাকেন।
দ্বিতীয় স্তবকে, তাঁর দরিদ্র জীবনের ছবি ফুটে ওঠে। তিনি খবরের কাগজে মোড়ানো রুটি খান, বাঁধা কাপ থেকে পানি খান, যেখানে শিশুরা পাথর ফেলে রাখে। রাতে তিনি পার্কের একটি কুকুরের ঘরে ঘুমান—তাঁর জীবনের একাকিত্ব ও অবহেলা এখানে স্পষ্ট।
তৃতীয় ও চতুর্থ স্তবকে, শহরের দুষ্টু ছেলেরা তাঁকে “Mister” বলে ডাকাডাকি করে ও উপহাস করে। তিনি তাদের থেকে দূরে পালিয়ে বেড়ান—ছেলেদের নিষ্ঠুরতা ও সমাজের অবহেলা তাঁকে আরও একা করে তোলে।
পঞ্চম স্তবকে, তিনি আবার একা বসে থাকেন—নার্স, শিশু ও রাজহাঁসদের ভিড়ে থেকেও তিনি আলাদা। ছেলেরা খেলায় মেতে ওঠে, কল্পনায় বাঘ তৈরি করে, কিন্তু কুঁজো মানুষটি নিরব, নিজস্ব জগতে হারিয়ে যায়।
আরো পড়ুনঃ After The Funeral Bangla Summary (বাংলায়)
ষষ্ঠ স্তবকে, তাঁর কল্পনার জগৎ দেখা যায়। তিনি নিজের বাঁকা দেহ থেকে কল্পনায় গড়ে তোলেন এক সুন্দর, সোজা ও লম্বা নারীর মূর্তি—যে তাঁর স্বপ্নের প্রতীক, যাকে তিনি কখনো পাননি।
শেষ স্তবকে, রাত নেমে আসে, পার্ক ফাঁকা হয়ে যায়। পাখি, শিশু ও মানুষ সবাই ঘরে ফিরে যায়। কিন্তু একমাত্র কুঁজো মানুষটি ফিরে যায় তার কুকুরের ঘরে—তার একাকী জীবনের প্রতীক হিসেবে।
কবিতাটি একাকিত্ব, সমাজের অবহেলা, শিশুদের নিষ্ঠুরতা এবং ভালোবাসা ও মর্যাদার প্রতি আকুল আকাঙ্ক্ষা প্রকাশ করে। এটি আমাদের শেখায়—যাদের সমাজ ভুলে যায়, তাদের প্রতিও আমাদের সহানুভূতিশীল হওয়া উচিত।
Themes
1. Loneliness: The poem shows the deep loneliness of the hunchback. He spends his days and nights alone in the park, without friends, family, or love.
2. Isolation from Society: The hunchback is cut off from the world. People ignore him, and children mock him. He represents all those who are rejected or forgotten by society.
3. Childhood Cruelty: The truant boys make fun of the hunchback and laugh at his deformity. The poet shows how cruel and careless children can be to the weak and helpless.
4. Poverty and Suffering: The man is very poor — he eats old bread, drinks from a chained cup, and sleeps in a dog kennel. His simple, sad life shows human misery and neglect.
5. Imagination and Escape: Though his real life is hard, the hunchback uses imagination to escape. He dreams of a beautiful, straight woman created from his “crooked bones.”
6. Sympathy and Humanity: The poet feels pity and respect for the hunchback. Through this poem, he asks readers to be kind and understanding toward lonely, suffering people.
7. Nature and Freedom: The park, trees, birds, and lake represent nature’s freedom. The hunchback, however, cannot share that freedom — he remains chained by his loneliness.
Quotations
1. Quote: “The hunchback in the park / A solitary mister / Propped between trees and water.”
Speaker: The Poet (Narrator)
Stanza: 1
Explanation: The poet introduces the hunchback as a lonely man who spends his days alone in the park. “Solitary mister” shows his isolation from the world — a symbol of human loneliness and neglect.
2. Quote: “Eating bread from a newspaper / Drinking water from the chained cup.”
Speaker: The Poet
Stanza: 2
Explanation: These lines show the hunchback’s poor and pitiful life. He eats simple food and drinks water like a beggar. The “chained cup” represents his limited freedom and the hardships of poverty.
3. Quote: “The truant boys from the town / Running when he had heard them clearly.”
Speaker: The Poet
Stanza: 3
Explanation: The boys tease the hunchback and run away laughing. This shows the cruelty and carelessness of children who do not understand his pain.
4. Quote: “Made all day until bell time / A woman figure without fault / Straight as a young elm.”
Speaker: The Poet
Stanza: 6
Explanation: The hunchback imagines a perfect woman — beautiful, kind, and straight like a tree — to escape his sad reality. It shows his longing for love and beauty that he can never have.
আরো পড়ুনঃIn My Craft or Sullen Art Bangla Summary (বাংলায়)
5. Quote: “And the wild boys innocent as strawberries / Had followed the hunchback / To his kennel in the dark.”
Speaker: The Poet
Stanza: 7
Explanation: At night, the hunchback goes back to his lonely shelter — the dog kennel. The boys, though called “innocent,” still disturb him. This ending shows his endless loneliness and society’s lack of compassion.
