Asleep In The Valley :- Arthur Rimbaud

Asleep In The Valley

Arthur Rimbaud

Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimband (1854-1891) was a French poem from the nineteenth century.  He started writing poetry even before he reached his teens.  He stopped writing poetry at the age of nineteen.  His major works include To Music, Evening prayer.  The present poem, originally titled Le Dormeur le Val, was included in his collection of poetry called, Poesis (1872).  This poem is written in the model of the Italian sonnet that has fourteen lines divided as octave and sestet.  The poet explores the inherent futility of war.  This theme is expressed in the contrasting images of a bountiful nature as background and the tragic death of a young soldier in the midst of nature's splendor.

A small green valley where a slow stream flows

And leaves long strands of silver on the bright

Grass; from the mountaintop stream the Sun's

Rays; they fill the hollow full of light.

A soldier, very young, lies open-mouthed,

A pillow made of fern beneath his head,

Asleep; stretched in the heavy undergrowth,

Pale in his warm, green, sun-soaked bed.

His feet among the flowers, he sleeps. His smile

Is like an infant's - gentle, without guile.

Ah, Nature, keep him warm; he may catch cold.

The humming insects don't disturb his rest;

He sleeps in sunlight, one hand on his breast;

At peace. In his side there are two red holes.

Summary of Asleep In The Valley 

The poet in the poem Asleep in the Valley holds up his first hand experience of war . The poem begins with a description of the serene beauty of nature's bounty in a green valley . Subsequently , Rimbaud goes on to describe the tragic death of a soldier lying among the heavy undergrowth . In an ironic tone , the poet describes the calm and peace which envelops the soldier in his death . The poem creates a shock as the imagery passes from pictures of nature's fruition to the image of cold death . The irony comes out strongly as the poet unfolds the presence of a dead body in the midst of a beautiful , idyllic scene . This emphasises the notion of death in the middle of life . It is the intention of the poet to underline the futility manifest in war .