Question

‘Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o’er-brimmed their clammy cells.’

1. Who is being referred to as ‘they’?
2. What do they think? Why?
3. What kind of effect is achieved with the use of words such as ‘o’er brimmed’ and ‘clammy’?
4. What is the overall effect of this stanza?
5. Describe the images and word pictures in this stanza.

Answer 1

1. ‘They’ refers to the bees.
2. They think that warm summer days will never end because their cells are overflowing with the honey and nectar collected during summer.
3. These words create a vivid sensory image of the bees’ cells being filled to overflowing with sticky honey. They emphasise the richness and abundance of summer.
4. The stanza creates an image of abundance, sweetness and contentment. It presents summer as a season of plenty and prepares us for the richness of autumn.
5. The stanza presents a picture of bees working in their honey-filled cells. The cells are overflowing with sticky honey, suggesting the bees have gathered so much food during the warm summer that they feel the pleasant season will never end.