Snake

Summary of Snake by D.H.Lawrence

1st stanza:

A snake came to my water-trough

On a hot, hot day, and I in pyjamas for the heat,

To drink there.

In this stanza, the poet describes how it was a typical summer day and how he had been

wearing pyjamas in order to cool himself. Again in order to keep cool, he had gone to fetch

water from his trough, but found that a snake had reached before him.

2nd stanza:

In the deep, strange-scented shade of the great dark carob tree

I came down the steps with my pitcher

And must wait, must stand and wait, for there he was at the trough before me.

In this stanza, the poet describes how the trough was kept in the shade of a large carob tree

and how that entire place had a strange smell. When he poet reached with his pitcher, he has

to stand and wait for the snake to finish drinking.

3rd stanza:

He reached down from a fissure in the earth-wall in the gloom

And trailed his yellow-brown slackness soft-bellied down, over the edge of the stone trough

And rested his throat upon the stone bottom,

And where the water had dripped from the tap, in a small clearness,

He sipped with his straight mouth,

Softly drank through his straight gums, into his slack long body,

Silently.

In this stanza, the poet describes how the snake came out of a crack in the wall of his house

and how it slithered leisurely over the edge of the trough and finally came to rest with its

throat on the bottom of the stone trough. Water had fallen in drops from the tap forming a

small and transparent pool, from which the snake drank silently and the poet could imagine

the water travelling through its long flexible body.

4th stanza:

Someone was before me at my water-trough,

And I, like a second-comer, waiting.

In this stanza, the poet says that generally he was the only one to drink out of his trough, but

that particular day, he himself was second to reach the trough and he had to wait as a result.

5th stanza:

He lifted his head from his drinking, as cattle do,

And looked at me vaguely, as drinking cattle do,

And flickered his two-forked tongue from his lips, and mused a moment,

And stooped and drank a little more,

Being earth-brown, earth-golden from the burning bowels of the earth

On the day of Sicilian July, with Etna smoking.

In this stanza, the poet describes how the snake stopped drinking at one point and looked at

him, in the same way that cattle drinking in ponds sometimes pause between sips. Then the

snake moved its forked tongue quickly from side to side, thought for a bit and continued to

drink again. The poet imagines this snake to be Typhon, the mythical and monstrous serpent

that was descended from Gaia and that was finally defeated by Zeus by throwing Mount Etna

on it, but that still spews up fire and boulders when the volcano erupts.

6th stanza:

The voice of my education said to me

He must be killed,

For in Sicily the black, black snakes are innocent, the gold are venomous.

In this stanza, the poet says that while he was in Sicily, he had learnt that black snakes will

not harm anyone, but that golden ones are poisonous. So his education told him to kill the

golden snake that had come to his trough.

7th stanza:

And voices in me said, if you were a man

You would take a stick and break him now, and finish him off.

In this stanza, the poet hears voices in his head goading him on to kill the snake with a stick,

for that would prove his masculinity.

8th stanza:

But must I confess how I liked him,

How glad I was he had come like a guest in quiet, to drink at my water-trough

And depart peaceful, pacified, and thankless,

Into the burning bowels of this earth?

In this stanza, the poet says that he quite liked the snake and was happy that it had come to

drink at his trough like a guest and then to leave as peacefully as he had come to go back to

the depths of the earth from which he imagines it had risen.

9th stanza:

Was it cowardice, that I dared not kill him?

Was it perversity, that I longed to talk to him?

Was it humility, to feel so honoured?

I felt so honoured.

In this stanza, the poet wonders what it was that had stopped him from killing the snake –

whether it was because he was a coward, or because he has some unnatural affinity with the

snake. In the end he concludes that it was because he felt honoured to have been visited by

the snake.

10th stanza:

And yet those voices :

If you were not afraid, you would kill him!

In this stanza, the poet again hears voices telling him to conquer his fear and kill the snake.

11th stanza:

And truly I was afraid, I was most afraid,

But even so, honoured still more

That he should seek my hospitality

From out the dark door of the secret earth.

In this stanza, the poet confesses that he was very scared of the snake, but more than that,

he was honoured the snake had chosen to come only to the poet’s trough while making its

journey out of the earth’s crust.

12th stanza:

He drank enough

And lifted his head, dreamily, as one who has drunken,

And flickered his tongue like a forked night on the air, so black,

Seeming to lick his lips,

And looked around like a god, unseeing, into the air,

And slowly turned his head,

And slowly, very slowly, as if thrice adream,

Proceeded to draw his slow length curving round

And climb again the broken bank of my wall-face.

In this stanza, the poet describes how once the snake had finished drinking, it lifted its head

slowly and made quick movements of its tongue as if it were licking its lips in satisfaction

that its thirst had been quenched. It then looked around as if it were lord over all the land

and slowly turned its head and then its body to begin its ascent over the crack in the wall

from which it had come.

13th stanza:

And as he put his head into that dreadful hole,

And as he slowly drew up, snake-easing his shoulders, and entered farther,

A sort of horror, a sort of protest against his withdrawing into that horrid black hole,

Deliberately going into the blackness, and slowly drawing himself after,

Overcame me now his back was turned.

In this stanza, the poet describes what he did when he saw the snake putting its head into

the crack of the wall and slowly slithered the rest of its body in after that. The poet protested

against its leaving and going back into the blackness of the hole.

14th stanza:

I looked round, I put down my pitcher,

I picked up a clumsy log

And threw it at the water-trough with a clatter.

In this stanza, how the poet put down his pitcher, picked up some wood and threw it at the

trough in a desperate attempt to stop the snake from leaving.

15th stanza:

I think it did not hit him,

But suddenly that part of him that was left behind convulsed in undignified haste,

Writhed like lightning, and was gone

Into the black hole, the earth-lipped fissure in the wall-front,

At which, in the intense still noon, I stared with fascination.

In this stanza, the poet says that he thought the log had not hit the snake, but he was wrong.

As a result, the snake speeded up its motion and disappeared into the hole in the wall in a

flash like lightning. As the sun was beating down mercilessly, the poet kept looking at the

crack in the wall in awe.

16th stanza:

And immediately I regretted it.

I thought how paltry, how vulgar, what a mean act!

I despised myself and the voices of my accursed human education.

In this stanza, the poet describes how he was filled with regret that he had acted in such a

cruel and petty way with the snake. He hated himself and the education that had urged him

to act in such a manner.

17th stanza

And I thought of the albatross,

And I wished he would come back, my snake.

In this stanza, the poet says that he felt like the ancient mariner (from Coleridge’s poem of

the same name) who had killed the albatross for no reason and he wished that the snake

would come back to the trough once again.

18th stanza:

For he seemed to me again like a king,

Like a king in exile, uncrowned in the underworld,

Now due to be crowned again.

In this stanza, the poet says that the snake should have been a king. Though his place was

beneath the surface of the earth, it had not been crowned there. However, the poet thinks it

would be crowned shortly.

19th stanza:

And so, I missed my chance with one of the lords

Of life.

And I have something to expiate :

A pettiness.

In this stanza, the poet says that he missed the chance to welcome a lord of life into his

home and he must apologize for his petty behaviour in the matter.

Who has come to drink and what has he come for?

The poet has come to collect water in the pitcher and the snake has come for

drinking water.

How does the poet describe the day when he saw the snake?

The poet happened to see the snake at the water trough on a hot day of July. The poet

went to the water trough in his pyjamas. The poet also used the image of Mount Etna

to heighten the intensity of the heat. Also, the snake had come from the burning

bowels of the earth to quench its thirst.

Describe the surroundings of the water trough?

The water-trough is in the open, under the shade of the sweet-scented carob tree.

Why does the poet repeat ‘hot’, ‘must wait’ twice? What purpose does it serve?

These words are used repeatedly because the poet wishes to emphasise on them. ‘Hot’

means very hot as there are many reasons like the month of July, Etna volcano etc.

‘must wait’ means compulsion. The poet believes that anyone who comes first, must be

served first.

From where had the snake emerged? What do you think was the reason for the snake to

come out in the open?

The snake had come out from the crack in the wall. It was very hot and scorching

inside due to July month, active volcano etc. The snake wanted to drink water and

satisfy his thirst.

Describe the relaxed manner in which the snake makes his way to the water trough and the

manner in which he drinks water.

The movement of the snake is described as ‘slack’ ‘soft-bellied’, most relaxed and

unhurried. He appeared out of a crack in the wall and very languorously stretched

himself and slow crawled to the edge of the water-trough. One reason could be that he

had not seen the poet.

Why is the snake compared to cattle?

The relaxed manner in which the snake drinks water reminds the poet of cattle. Even

the cattle drink water, then look up, muse a moment and continue. The snake also

behaves similarly.

Explain – ‘And depart peaceful, pacified and thankless’.

The snake appeared to be pacified and satisfied, for he had taken water generously.

He was not the harmless kind, neither had the poet given him any reason, so there was

no confrontation. The poet believes that the snake has no reason to thank the poet for

a natural resource like water which is God’s gift for all.

The poet is too impressed with the majestic manner in which the snake conducts himself.

What comparisons does the poet make to highlight this behaviour of the snake?

The manner in which the snake drinks water is like the cattle. He appears to muse a

bit, drink with intervals. The snake is called ‘lord of life’ because life and death is in his

hands. He is also compared to ‘a king’ for his majestic style and when he quickly

disappears he is compared to lightening.

Why did the poet remember the albatross after dropping the log?

The poet’s act of dropping the log was one of the most shameful act that he did. Be

hospitable as a host and then tease the guest, the poet’s act deserves no excuse, no

justification, no forgiveness. If the ancient mariner killed the albatross for no

reason, the poet here hurt the snake’s self-esteem forever. If the ancient mariner

carried with him the shame of guilt, the snake in the poem was doomed to carry

thick shame for the rest of its life.

Why did the poet have a sudden urge to hit the snake? Do you think he was justified in

trying to hit the snake, when its back was turned? 

When the snake’s back is turned, the ‘voices of education’ that were troubling the

poet, overtake him. He hits the snake with a stick which was quite unjustified. The

snake had not troubled the poet and one must behave with one’s instincts than

preconceived notions.

And voices in me said, if you were a man

You would take a stick and break him now and

finish him off

(a) What are ‘voices’?

The voices refer to the beliefs that are ingrained in one’s mind due to society.

(b) What do the voices suggest? Why?

They suggest that the snake should be killed as he is poisonous.

(c) Do you think it would be cowardice or manly for the poet to kill the snake? Why/Why

not?

It was cowardice because the snake had not harmed the poet — to strike the snake

behind its back is not ethical.

And so, I missed my chance with one of the lords of life

And I have something to expiate

A pettiness

(a) Why is the poet’s action called ‘a pettiness’?

It was a mean act to hit the snake behind his back.

(b) What is there for the poet to ‘expiate’?

The poet wishes to compensate for his mean act.

(c) Why is the snake called the lord of life? Which poetic device is used here?

It is used as a metaphor for the reason is not given.

But I must confess how I liked him,

How glad I was he had come like a guest,

To drink at the water-trough

And depart peaceful, pacified and thankless,

Into the burning bowels of this earth?

(a) Who had come as a guest?

A snake had come as a guest to the poet's water trough to quench his thirst.

(b) How do we know that the guest's thirst was quenched?

The way the snake raised his head dreamily after drinking water and slowly moved

away from the water trough shows that his thirst was quenched.

(c) Where would it go?

After taking water, the snake climbed the wall with the crack and entered deep inside

the hole.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1 Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

(a) He reached down from a fissure in the earth-wall in the gloom

And trailed his yellow-brown slackness soft-bellied down, over the edge

of the stone-trough

i. Who is referred to as ‘he’ and how did ‘he’ look like?

The snake is referred to as ‘he’. The snake was yellow- brown in colour .

ii. Describe the path the snake took to reach the stone-trough.

The snake came out from the crack in the wall and came trailing on the

ground to reach the edge of the water trough.

iii. Why did the snake come to the stone -trough?

The snake had come there to quench his thirst.

iv. Give the synonym of the word ’trough’.

container

(b) And flickered his two-forked tongue from his lips, and mused a moment,

And stooped and drank a little more,

Being earth-brown, earth-golden from the burning bowels of the earth

i. Which creature is being spoken about? Where had it come from according to the

poet?

The creature spoken about is a snake. According to the poet the snake had

come from the burning bowels of the earth on the hot Sicilian July.

ii. What does the manner of the creature suggest?

The snake appears very relaxed and ‘unhurried’ and takes his time to drink

water.

iii. Why is the poet watching every action of the creature?

The poet was fascinated with the snake’s majestic behaviour. The poet was

waited for the snake to finish drinking water because the snake had come to

the trough before him.

iv. Explain ‘mused a moment’.

It means ‘it appeared to be thinking for some time’.

(c) How glad I was he had come like a guest

In quiet , to drink at my water-trough

And depart peaceful, pacified and thankless

Into the burning bowels of the earth.

i. How did the poet feel about the snake?

The poet was happy to see the snake and considered him as a guest.

ii. When would the snake feel pacified?

The snake would feel pacified after having his fill of water .

iii. Why would the snake be ‘thankless’?

Water is a free gift of nature. The snake had as much right to it a anybody

else. So there was no need for the snake to thank anybody.

iv. Find the antonym of ‘depart’

arrive

(d) And immediately I regretted it

I thought how paltry, how vulgar.

What a mean act.

I despised myself and the voices of

My accursed human education

i. Which act is being referred to ?

The poet hurled a log at the snake in order to kill it.

ii. What does the poet feel about the act?

The poet feels that the act was paltry, mean and vulgar and he despised

himself for it.

iii. What were the ‘voices’ telling the poet?

The voices of his education tell the poet that the snake was poisonous, hence

harmful and that it must be killed.

iv. Give the antonym of the word ’accursed’.

blessed

Q2 Answer each of the following questions in 30-40 words.

(a) How were the poet’s beliefs regarding snakes conditioned by society?

Society ingrains certain preconceived notions in our mind and due to that we

don’t judge situations by intellect —The poet was fascinated by the snake. He

appreciated the snake’s majestic and harmless nature but the earlier instincts

drilled in him by society force him to strike at the snake. He had been taught

that snakes were harmful.

(b) Why does the poet feel honoured by the presence of the snake?

The poet feels obliged that the snake had come all the way from the inner

depths of the earth to his water trough and this was a kind of honour.

Moreover, the snake was so regal and majestic in his bearing that the poet

feels honoured to have him as his guest.

(c) Why did the poet despise himself? Mention the three words that he uses to

describe his action.

The poet feels very guilty of trying to hit at the snake. He calls his act ‘mean’

‘petty’ and feels like making amends. The poet believes that he must

compensate for his unreasonable and undignified act. He uses the words ‘to

expiate’, which express his feelings.

(d) The poet has a dual attitude towards the snake. Why does he experience

contrasting emotions on seeing the snake?

When the poet saw the snake drinking water from the water trough, he was

overpowered by the voices of human education and natural instinctive

fascination for the snake. On one hand, the voice of modern education

prompts the poet to kill the snake for golden brown snakes are poisonous.

On the other hand, his natural instinct fascinated him and he felt honoured

that the snake had sought his hospitality.

(e) “And I have something to expiate, a pettiness” is the last and most powerful line of

the poem. What does the poet expiate?

‘Expiate’ is such a strong word meaning repent or atone for a crime. The

poet wants to atone for his sin. He regrets throwing the log at the snake as

he realized that the snake was not going to harm him. He wants to repent his

pettiness and atone for the sin he has committed.

(f) The poet gives a vivid description of the snake. Describe accordingly.

The snake, which visited the poet, had a yellowish brown body, which trailed

along the edge of the stone trough. He was resting his throat upon the stone

bottom and sipping water from the trough into his sleek long body. After

quenching his thirst, he raised his head and flickered his forked tongue.

(g) Why is the snake said to be one of the lords of life?

Most people would not think of a snake as a majestic creature, but D.H.

Lawrence makes it clear in this poem that he does. Many people would take

a snake to symbolize sin and evil, but Lawrence presents it in a majestic

and noble light. Perhaps this is the case because he is paralleling society.

Nobility can be sneaky and sinful yet still seem majestic, just like the snake.

Answer each of the following questions in 100-120 words.

(a) What ideas and thoughts come to the poet's mind when he finds a poisonous

snake drinking water at his water trough?

After reaching his water trough on a very hot day,the poet finds a snake

drinking water from his water trough. He waits for the snake to finish

drinking water first since he is very particular regarding protocol. The snake

was brown in colour. The poet makes a frank confession that he really liked

the snake but educational and social conventions make the poet think that

the golden brown snakes were poisonous, so they must be killed. The inner

instinct of the poet makes him feel honoured that a snake had come to seek

his hospitality from the deep recesses of the earth.

When the snake started to retreat back into the dark hole, the poet hurled a

log at the snake.The snake vanished into the hole in great haste. The poet

was full of guilt. He really hated himself for such a mean act and cursed the

voice of education that had always taught him to kill snakes, without any

reason.

(b) Why does D.H Lawrence make an allusion to the albatross from Coleridge’s ‘The

Rime of the Ancient Mariner’?

The poet brings up a comparison with an event of the celebrated poem of

S.T. Coleridge, ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.’ He finds similarity of his

act to that of the mariner’s. In Coleridge’s poem, the mariner had killed the

albatross when it visited his ship for shallow reason and later the mariner

longed for its return. In this poem too, D.H Lawrence tried to harm the snake

by hurling a log without any proper cause and later had longed for its return

from the underworld.

(c) Describe the manner in which the snake arrived and departed.

The snake had come from the crack in the wall made of earth, from the

darkness, from the scorching innner area of the earth. The snake did not feel

the threat of the poet’s presence, so its movement is very languid, very

relaxed and unhurried. It stretched its long and slack body, drank water with

great spells of flavor and enjoyment. It licked its lips; it mused and put his

head on the edge of the water-trough. Its departure was exactly the

opposite—quick, clumsy, abrupt like the speed of lightning because the poet

had thrown a log at it.

(d) Bring out the irony in the poet’s act of dropping the stick that gave the snake an

undignified shiver.

The poet displayed polite behaviour towards the snake while it was drinking

water from his water trough. By behaving benevolently, considering the

snake as a fellow creature, a glorious king, as God himself, the poet had

brought the snake to a false security feeling.When the snake was returning

to his hole once again, it was shaken by the sound of a log falling behind

him. The snake recognized this sound and made a hurried exit. The poet’s

act of mercy at one point clashing with his act of violence, deliberately or by

chance is an irony.