A Shropshire Lad: XXXI, On Wenlock Edge the wood's in trouble, by Alfred Edward Housman

	XXXI

	On Wenlock Edge the wood's in trouble		C	Q
	His forest fleece the Wrekin heaves;		C	Q
V	The gale, it plies the saplings double,			Q
	And thick on Severn snow the leaves.

V	'Twould blow like this through holt and hanger	5
	When Uricon the city stood:		C
V	'Tis the old wind in the old anger,			Q
V	But then it threshed another wood.

V	Then, 'twas before my time, the Roman
	At yonder heaving hill would stare:	10
	The blood that warms an English yeoman,
	The thoughts that hurt him, they were there.

	There, like the wind through woods in riot,
	Through him the gale of life blew high;
	The tree of man was never quiet:	15
	Then 'twas the Roman, now 'tis I.

V	The gale, it plies the saplings double,
	It blows so hard, 'twill soon be gone:
	To-day the Roman and his trouble
	Are ashes under Uricon.	20		Q

Key: V: Textual Variation. C: Commentary. Q: Question. Glossary

Top ▲ Glossary

Line	Word	Glossary
3	saplings	Small trees
5	holt	1. A wood or copse (archaic)
5	hanger	1. A small area of woodland, clinging to the side of a hill. 2. A short sword worn on a belt
5	yeoman	1. A loyal, reliable, or diligent worker 2. A member of a former class of English commoners who owned and cultivated their own land

Top ▲ Commentary

Line	Commentary
	Date: Oct - Dec 1895
1	Wenlock Edge: a wooded escarpment in Shropshire, running SW from Much Wenlock to Craven Arms
2	Wrekin: a prominent hill, just over 300m, which dominates the countryside to the north of Much Wenlock and SE of Shrewsbury
6	Uricon: Viriconium (now Wroxeter); in the First Century AD, this was the fourth largest town in Roman Britain, with a legionary fortress and civilian settlement.
meter	Four line stanzas of alternately nine and eight syllables, rhymed alternately; the additional syllable in the odd-numbered lines produces a feminine ending to those lines

Top ▲ Variations

Line	Text	Textual variation
3	D	The gale] <It blows> \ The wind /
5	D	through holt] <on hill>
7	D	<’Twas> \ ’Tis / the <same> \ old / wind \ <gale> / in the <same> \ old / anger
8	D	threshed] <wrecked>
9	D	Then] <Once>
17	D	The gale] <It blows> \ The wind /

Top ▲ Questions

Line	Question
1	Explore the effect of the additional syllable in the odd-numbered lines; how does it change the mood of those lines?
2	Why do you think the poet uses personification to describe the woods and hills?
3	What effect does substituting "gale" for "wind" have in this line?
7	What effect does substituting "old" for "same" have in this line?
20	The poem deals with the passage of time; do you find its final message more positive or negative?