1. Summary of “The Village School Master” by Oliver Goldsmith
The poem “The Village School Master” is penned by Oliver Goldsmith. The beauty of the poem is in the fact that poem is about a schoolmaster and the poet was himself one of the schoolmaster’s pupils. The name of the schoolmaster was Mr. Thomas Paddy Byrne. Having a glimpse into his past, the poet is able to foster a real aura of thoughts and expression. He gives the details of how the teacher behaved the pupils and how strict personality he had. He also tells the details about the fears which the students felt when he taught them. He was good at heart but the only weakness which he was faced with was his keenness to learn and read more and more.
The poet says that the schoolmaster, Mr. Thomas ran a small school in a very small village. He was a strict disciplinarian. Through his facial expression, the students would be able to know his attitude. Even, the students could guess the upcoming day’s misfortunes that were written on his head or in between his eyebrows.
No doubt, he was a strict disciplinarian, he was good at heart. He was a kind and sympathetic fellow. He had a great and sharp sense of humour. The students enjoyed these jokes making false and fake laughter. There was nothing the trouble with him except one and that was his excessive eagerness for learning. He wanted nothing except to make his pupils the scholars. All the villagers were convinced that he was really an erudite man. He had the ability to make survey the lands and forecast weather. He had also the ability to measure the content of a vessel. The villagers were also convinced that he could have a forceful debate in his defense. Although they did not understand the bombastic words, they were always surprised to hear these words. They were always surprised and envied at his intelligence thinking how he could remember and store such knowledge in his small head.
No doubt, he was a strict disciplinarian, he was good at heart. He was a kind and sympathetic fellow. He had a great and sharp sense of humour. The students enjoyed these jokes making false and fake laughter. There was nothing the trouble with him except one and that was his excessive eagerness for learning. He wanted nothing except to make his pupils the scholars. All the villagers were convinced that he was really an erudite man. He had the ability to make survey the lands and forecast weather. He had also the ability to measure the content of a vessel. The villagers were also convinced that he could have a forceful debate in his defense. Although they did not understand the bombastic words, they were always surprised to hear these words. They were always surprised and envied at his intelligence thinking how he could remember and store such knowledge in his small head.
To conclude, the poem “The Village School Master” is a masterpiece by Oliver Goldsmith for his style and thought. The poet is making fun of the schoolmaster’s strange and idiosyncratic attitude and habits but in doing so he is showing admiration for the teacher out of fun. The wisdom, humility, dedication and knowledge the teacher has captures the readers’ attention and forces them to appreciate the teacher.The setting of the poem in rural life is remarkable. (Words: 415)