Figures of Speech

• Alliteration: Hopkins repeats consonant sounds to make the poem musical and rhythmic. Example: “heart hears,” “ghost guessed” — the repeated ‘h’ and ‘g’ sounds create a soft, flowing effect. This matches the gentle sadness of the poem.
• Imagery: Hopkins uses vivid words to help us picture and feel the scene. Example: “Goldengrove unleaving” — we can clearly see the colorful leaves falling from the trees. This image makes us feel the loss and change in nature, which reflects the child’s sorrow.
• Personification: Hopkins gives human feelings to nature. Example: “the blight man was born for” — here, “blight” (a disease or decay) is like a cruel fate that humans must face. This shows death as an active force affecting all living things.
• Symbols

• Margaret (The Child): Symbolizes innocence, youth, and the beginning of awareness. 
• Falling Leaves: Symbolize the cycle of life and death. 
• Autumn (The Season): Symbolizes change, decline, and the passing of time. 
• Nature: Symbolizes the world’s constant change and life’s impermanence. 
• The Child’s Tears: Symbolize the first experience of grief and the awakening of human emotion.