"A Blind Child" by W.H. Davies

 

Her baby brother laughed last night,

The blind child asked her mother why;

It was the light that caught his eye.

Would she might laugh to see that light!

The presence of a stiffened corse

Is sad enough; but, to my mind,

The presence of a child that’s blind,

In a green garden, is far worse.

She felt my cloth—for worldly place;

She felt my face—if I was good;

My face lost more than half its blood,

For fear her hand would wrongly trace.

We’re in the garden, where are bees

And flowers, and birds, and butterflies;

One greedy fledgling runs and cries

For all the food his parent sees!

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I see them all: flowers of all kind,

The sheep and cattle on the leas;

The houses up the hills, the trees—

But I am dumb, for she is blind.

Detailed Summary of "A Blind Child"
                W. H. Davies’s poem “A Blind Child” is a deeply emotional poem that describes the sadness of a child who cannot see the beauty of the world around her. The poet presents the innocence of the blind child and at the same time expresses the pain felt by others when they realize that she can never experience nature visually. The poem is simple in language, but it carries strong emotions and sympathy.
                The poem begins with a small domestic moment. The blind child hears her baby brother laughing and asks her mother why he laughed. The mother explains that the baby laughed because light caught his eye. This moment becomes very touching because the blind child cannot understand what light looks like. The poet sadly wishes that she too could laugh by seeing light. Right from the beginning, the poem creates a feeling of pity and emotional pain.
                In the next stanza, the poet compares the sadness of seeing a dead body with the sadness of seeing a blind child in a beautiful green garden. According to the poet, the presence of a blind child among nature is even more heartbreaking. A corpse is naturally associated with sorrow, but a child is usually connected with life, joy, and happiness. However, blindness prevents the child from enjoying the beauty of the living world around her. This contrast makes the situation more tragic.
                The poem then becomes more personal. The blind child touches the speaker’s clothes and face in order to understand him. Since she cannot see people, she recognizes them through touch. When she touches the poet’s face, he becomes nervous and emotional. He fears that she may wrongly imagine or misunderstand his appearance. This moment reveals how blindness changes the way the child experiences human relationships. It also shows the poet’s deep compassion and discomfort at her condition.
                The poet then describes the lively garden around them. There are bees, flowers, birds, butterflies, and hungry young birds crying for food from their parents. The garden is full of movement, colour, and life. Nature appears beautiful and energetic. But the tragedy is that the blind child cannot see any of it. She can perhaps hear sounds or feel the surroundings, but she remains cut off from the visual beauty that others enjoy naturally.                                 In the final stanza, the poet says that he can see everything clearly — flowers, sheep, cattle, houses on the hills, and trees. The world is rich with beauty and colour. Yet he becomes “dumb,” meaning speechless and helpless, because the child beside him is blind. The poet feels guilty and sorrowful because he can experience all the beauty of nature while the innocent child cannot. The poem ends with a deep sense of sadness and sympathy.

Themes of the Poem
1. Blindness and Human Suffering
                The major theme of the poem is the tragedy of blindness. The poet shows how painful it is for a child to live without seeing the beauty of the world. Blindness separates the child from experiences that most people take for granted.
2. Innocence of Childhood                The child is innocent and curious. She asks simple questions and tries to understand the world through touch and sound. Her innocence makes her condition even more heartbreaking.
3. Beauty of Nature                The poem contains vivid images of nature such as flowers, birds, butterflies, sheep, trees, and hills. Nature is shown as lively and beautiful, which increases the sadness because the child cannot see it.
4. Sympathy and Compassion                The poet expresses deep sympathy for the blind child. His emotional reaction shows human compassion toward those who suffer from physical disabilities.