THE POEM

(LIFE’S BRIEF CANDLE)

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day today
To the last syllable of recorded time,
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more; it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
THE POET
(WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE)
William Shakespeare is a well known playwright and also a
poet. He was born in 23rd of April 1564 in the small market
town of Stratford-upon-Avon in England. William
Shakespeare has written many poems and at least 37 plays.
Among his popular plays are Macbeth, Julius Caesar,
Midsummer’s Night Dream, Romeo and Juliet and Othello.
His plays and poems have been translated into many
different languages and reprinted countless times.
Shakespeare died in 1616. Until today, his works are enjoyed
by many all over the world.
 SYNOPSIS
This poem is an extract from a tragic play called
Macbeth written by Shakespeare. The play tells the story
of Macbeth, a brave soldier, who was urged by his wife,
Lady Macbeth, to kill the king so that he could become
the new king. Following the death of the king, Lady
Macbeth was filled with guilt. She then committed
suicide. Macbeth who was also feeling guilty and
burdened with many problems after murdering the king,
upon hearing the death of his wife, plunged into despair
and grieved.
He voiced out his sorrow in the poem, regarding life
as a candle. The candle burns only briefly. Life seems to
be like that too, short and then is gone forever. Life to
him seemed to be moving slowly and full of monotony.
He wished to life be over, as he no longer found any
meaning in life. Life may be filled with happenings,
struggles and achievements, but at the end of life, all
these prove to be meaningless.
 UNDERSTANDING THE POEM

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow

 The days to come

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

 Moves very slowly

To the last syllable of recorded time

 To the end of time
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty
death
 Our past has tricked us; we have foolishly believed in the
wrong things, which now lead us to our downfall

Dusty death
 Death turns our body into dust, therefore, it is dusty

Out, out, brief candle!

 Flicker out, candle

Life’s but walking shadow

 Life is like a shadow which moves when a person
moves; it is not real
A poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage
 A bad actor who plays his part on stage in the time given
to him

And then is heard no more

 Is not heard of anymore

It is a tale told by an idiot

 It is a story told by a fool, a person who knows nothing

Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing

 Full of noise and excitement but is actually meaningless
 POINT OF VIEW

The poem is written from the first person point of

view although the pronoun “I” is not used. We know that
it is the persona’s own story.
 THEMES

 Human life is short. Our life is like a flickering candle

blowing in the wind. It may get blown at any time.
 Life is only temporary. It is a journey to a dark end.
 Life is overcast by the darkness that lies within our
hearts.
 Life is sometimes meaningless.
 TONE AND MOOD

In this poem, the tone is bitter and cynical. The

speaker is Macbeth, a person who becomes king
through unethical ways. He is sad and disillusioned. His
enemies are fast approaching and he knows he will be
defeated.
 STRUCTURE AND STYLE

 This poem is written in free verse.

 It is written in one stanza and has only ten lines. There is

no fixed stanza form and line length.

 Certain literary devices are used to make this poem

more interesting. They are:-
• Metaphor
e.g.: petty pace / dusty death / brief candle / walking
shadow
• Figurative language
e.g.: creeps in this petty pace / last syllable of recorded
time
• Personification
e.g.: life’s but a poor player / an idiot / full of sound and fury
• Repetition
e.g.: tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow / out, out brief

candle
• Alliteration
e.g.: petty pace / dusty death
• Symbol
e.g.: candle
 QUESTIONS
Objective Questions

Put a tick (/)

 Choose the best answer for the
following questions.
1. The tale is full of sound and fury meaning
A. it shows anger.
B. it is meaningless.
C. there is a lot of noise.

2. The persona compares life to a candle

A. burns forever.
B. bends as it burns.
C. has a wick and wax.
D. will burn itself out eventually.

3. ‘A walking shadow’ and ‘a poor player’ are similar

because both are
A. easily forgotten.
B. of no consequence.
C. remembered for eternity.
D. temporary features of life.
4. The tone in the poem is
A. happy.
B. peaceful.
C. optimistic.
D. hopelessness.

5. When a tale ends signifying nothing, it indicates that the story

A. has no plot.
B. is meaningless.
C. is not interesting.

6. The persona is in despair because

A. he is bored and unwell.
B. the king has passed away.
C. he cannot get what he wants.
D. his wife has died and life is meaningless.

7. The words ‘to-morrow’ and ‘yesterdays’ are used as

A. idioms.
B. similes.
C. metaphors
D. personification.
8. What is the moral value of the poem?
A. Life is full of adventures.
B. Life should be cherished.
C. Life does not have a purpose.
D. Life is a result of what we choose to do

9. The line ‘And then is heard of no more’ refers to

A. the poor player’s story
B. the poor player’s acting
C. the poor player’s fretting on stage
D. the poor player’s strutting on stage

10. One of the themes in the poem is

A. life is sweet and carefree
B. life is full of sorrow and pain
C. life is full of smiles and laughter
 Put a tick (/) or cross (x) to
indicate whether the statements
are true or false.

1. The poem deals with life after death.

2. The poem is about life and death.
3. The persona feels that life is permanent.
4. The persona looks at life in a very positive way.
5. Life is very meaningful.
6. We know that life is like a walking shadow and is insignificant.
7. Recorded time in the poem refers to history.
8. The poem teaches us value time, as it is life on Earth is short.
9. The phrase “out, out, brief candle” means that a person’s life is
short.
10. The phrase “a poor player” means life is not taken seriously.
11. The phrase “The way to dusty death” means leading to one’s
doom.
12. The phrase “full of sound and fury” states that life is noisy and
extreme anger.
13. The phrase “creeps in the petty pace from day to day” means that
time passes by slowly and quietly.
14. The persona feels that life is full of excitement and surprise.
15. The poem teaches us to appreciate life.
THANK
YOU