The Village Schoolmaster

UNIT II

The Village Schoolmaster

INTRODUCTION TO OLIVER GOLDSMITH 

Oliver Goldsmith  was an Anglo-Irish novelist, playwright and poet, who is best known for his novel The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), his pastoral poem The Deserted Village (1770), and his plays The Good-Natur'd Man (1768) and She Stoops to Conquer (1771, first performed in 1773). He is thought to have written the classic children's tale The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes (1765).

Born 10 November 1728 Either Ballymahon, County Longford, Kingdom of Ireland, or Elphin, County Roscommon, Kingdom of Ireland

Died 4 April 1774 (aged 45) London, England

Resting place Temple Church, London

Occupation Playwright, poet, busker, apothecary's assistant

Language English

EducationTrinity College, Dublin (B.A., 1749) University of Edinburgh (M.D., 1755)

Notable worksThe Vicar of Wakefield "The Deserted Village"

 

The Village Schoolmaster

Beside yon straggling fence that skirts the way
With blossom'd furze unprofitably gay,
There, in his noisy mansion, skill'd to rule,
The village master taught his little school;
A man severe he was, and stern to view,
I knew him well, and every truant knew;
Well had the boding tremblers learn'd to trace
The days disasters in his morning face;
Full well they laugh'd with counterfeited glee,
At all his jokes, for many a joke had he:
Full well the busy whisper, circling round,
Convey'd the dismal tidings when he frown'd:
Yet he was kind; or if severe in aught,
The love he bore to learning was in fault.
The village all declar'd how much he knew;
'Twas certain he could write, and cipher too:
Lands he could measure, terms and tides presage,
And e'en the story ran that he could gauge.
In arguing too, the parson own'd his skill,
For e'en though vanquish'd he could argue still;
While words of learned length and thund'ring sound
Amazed the gazing rustics rang'd around;
And still they gaz'd and still the wonder grew,
That one small head could carry all he knew.
But past is all his fame. The very spot
Where many a time he triumph'd is forgot.

 

THE VILLAGE SCHOOLMASTER SUMMARY

The poem is about the characteristics of the Schoolmaster who is respected by all the villagers due to his knowledge and interest in reading. It also talks about how things could change in the course of time, a kind of looking back at past. The village school master runs his little school in a small village.

In his poem 'The Village Schoolmaster', Goldsmith presents a vivid picture of a village schoolmaster. The schoolmaster is portrayed as a learned man with sound knowledge and wisdom.

The poet returns to the village and finds it deserted. This poem is a light hearted reflection of his village school master Mr. Thomas Paddy Byrne. As the poet himself was a pupil of this school master, he is able to create an authentic picture of him.

            The village school master’s little school was situated next to the damaged fence. Goldsmith recalls the characteristics of the master with a mixed feeling of fear, respect and humor. He was known as a strict person. He was familiar to all the truants in the village because they had endured the master’s rage. When he cracks jokes, the children used to burst out in “counterfeited” laughter in order to avoid punishment.

            The trembling pupils were curious to know the day’s misfortunes on his face. If they observe a frown, they circulate the gloomy news throughout the class. Though he was stern, he was kind hearted too. He had an intense love for learning also.

            The villagers admired the school master’s knowledge. He was able to read and write well. He was good at arithmetic also. He could also survey land, forecast weather and tides. The village parson approved of his skills in debate. He was able to continue his argument even after losing a debate. He won the arguments with his thundering voice.

            The poem describes the school that was once noisy and led by a stern schoolmaster who took education very seriously. The narrator tells how the children perceived the schoolmaster. Although he was stern, they recognized his kindness and they admired his knowledge and talent. Now, all of that is in the past as the schoolmaster is not in the village any longer.

The schoolmaster was strict and uncompromising because of his commitment to education. The village people stood in awe of him. He was literate and knowledgeable in all academic areas. Additionally, he was skilled in the art of rhetoric (skill of speaking or writing) and debate.

In fact, the schoolmaster was the wonder of the rustic (country-styled) villagers who marveled (admiration) at his deep knowledge and wondered how 'one small head could carry such vast information.'

The poem ends on a note of humor. The villagers gaze (look ) at him whenever they pass the school. They wonder how his small head could keep that enormous hoard (store ) of knowledge. Thus the poet describes the characteristics of the village school master.

Goldsmith ends the poem with the sad note that the schoolmaster no longer teaches at the school house and has been forgotten as an element of the past.

In the modern world, the schoolmaster is only remembered as an old-fashioned, stern (serious ) figure of existing a very long time ago