Chapter 1: New Year, New You

LITERATURE IN ACTION: Ring Out, Wild Bells

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,

The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new

Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809 - 1892)
1 Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky

2 The flying cloud, the frosty light:

3 The year is dying in the night

4 Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

5 Ring out the old, ring in the new

6 Ring, happy bells, across the snow:

7 The year is going, let him go;

8 Ring out the false, ring in the true.

1. The main theme of the poem "Ring Out, Wild Bells" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson is

2. Each stanza consists of .

3. Each verse has syllables.

4. The rhyme scheme is , and this plus the repetition of the word ring through all the poem,
gives a very nice rhyme that makes it sound very similar to an authentic Christmas song.
Chapter 1: New Year, New You
LITERATURE IN ACTION: Ring Out, Wild Bells

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,

The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new

Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809 - 1892)

1 Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky
2 The flying cloud, the frosty light:
3 The year is dying in the night
4 Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.
5 Ring out the old, ring in the new
6 Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
7 The year is going, let him go;
8 Ring out the false, ring in the true.
The bells makes allusion ( an indirect reference to something) to the bells of a
Church, and the words Ring out refers to the sound of the bells and the sound
that they make at midnight in Christmas and New Year.
This is a parallelism ( similarities). The phrases flying cloud and frosty
light are symbolic to the windy and cold weather that characterises Christmas Eve.
A personification ( personification of something abstract is its
representation in the form of a person) that refers to the end of the year.
The phrase let him die portrays ( represents) his desire ( strong wish) to
let him go.
This means that bells will take away the old things and bring the new.
The theme of Christmas is portrayed. There is a personification (happy bells) with
the phrase across the snow contributes to this atmosphere of happiness and cold
winter month of January.
This is an allusion to the new year and the memory of Arthur Hallam (Alfred
Tennyson's close friend), because it says The year is going, let him go, and the
phrase let him go can rather make reference to the year or to Tennysons friend.
The poet tells the reader to do away with falsehood ( the quality or fact of
being untrue or of being a lie), and with the New Year, make a new beginning and
embrace the truth.

1. The main theme of the poem "Ring Out, Wild Bells" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson is Renewal. It is apparent that the poem is
about bidding goodbye to the old, and welcoming the new.
2. Each consists of four lines (quatrain),
3. Each verse has eight syllables.
4. The rhyme scheme is ABBA, and this plus the repetition of the word ring through all the poem, gives a very nice rhyme that
makes it sound very similar to an authentic Christmas song.
Questions:
1. What was the weather condition like?
Calm weather.
2. What time of the day was this?
The day was at midnight.
3. What was the season described in the poem? How do you know?
It was winter season. The phrase across the snow contributes to this atmosphere of cold winter month of January.