The Blind Boy Poem by Colley Cibber - Text Summary and Analysis - Question Answers - Class VI

 Small Biography of Colley Cibber

Colley Cibber was born on 6th November 1671 in Southampton Street, Bloomsbury, London. His father was Caius Gabriel Cibber and his mother was Jane Cibber. He was the eldest son of his parents. Colley Cibber was a versatile person. He was an English actor-manager, playwright and poet laureate. He wrote 25 plays, and many of them were adapted from other writings. He considered himself at first an actor, but his poetic and dramatic works are also notable. His beautiful memoir Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber was a successful work.

His famous plays include Love's Last Shifts, Woman's Wit, The Tragical History of King Richard III and many more. Colley Cibber died on 11th December 1757.

The Blind Boy

poem by Colley Cibber

O say what is that thing call’d Light,

Which I must ne’er enjoy;

What are the blessings of the sight,

O tell your poor blind boy!

You talk of wondrous things you see;

You say the sun shines bright:

I feel him warm, but how can he

Or make it day or night?

My day or night myself I make

Whene’er I sleep or play;

And could I ever keep awake

With me ’twere always day.

With heavy sighs I often hear

You mourn my hapless woe;

But sure with patience I can bear

A loss I ne’er can know.

Then let not what I cannot have

My cheer of mind destroy;

Whilst thus I sing, I am a king,

Although a poor blind boy.

Summary of The Blind Boy by Colley Cibber

Stanza 01:

Through this poem, the poet describes and illustrate the feelings of a blind boy. The blind boy has never seen light, so he does not know how the day looks like. He raises the question of how beautiful it is to have sight. He is eager to know the benefits of eyes.

Stanza 02:

The poet imagines himself as the blind boy and asks to know how the wonderful things look, and how bright the sun shines. The blind boy can feel the warmth of the sun but he does not know how the day-night process happens.

Stanza 03:

The blind boy says that he can not know when it is day or night outside, but he has a world of his own. He makes his day, makes his night. Whenever he plays, it is a day for him, and whenever he sleeps, it is a night for him. If he is awake all the time, it is a day for him all the time.

Stanza 04:

The fourth stanza is full of sorrow. The boy says people around him mourn for the loss of his eyesight. People feel sorry for him. But in the next lines, the boy says with courage that he can bear the loss, he can tolerate the pain. Though it is a loss for other people, it is not for him, because he never had his eyes. So he never knew how it feels to have eyes. He says, with patience, he can bear the loss.

Stanza 05:

In the final part of the poem, the blind boy requests others not to make him remember that he is blind. The boy says remembering again and again of his blindness will only destroy his happiness, rather he requests to let him sing the song of victory so that he can feel uplifted.

Moral of the poem:

This poem has a strong moral message inside it. The poem is a reminder that if we always focus on our disadvantages, we will be unhappy forever. It is very hard to live without eyesight, but if we only see the things we do not have, our minds will be narrow. So let us focus on what we have because only this positive mindset helps us grow. This poem is a reminder that if we decide to be happy, no loss can make us down. We will win, we will be the Kings in our own kingdoms.

Some Question-Answers

1. How is the life of the blind boy?

Ans: The blind boy has many disadvantages, he can not see anything, he can not enjoy nature. He obviously has a lot of difficulties in doing everyday works. Though he can feel the warmth of the sun, he can not see day or night. People feel sorry for him because he has no eyesight. But the boy is very courageous, he says not to worry about his incapability because that will only destroy his happiness. He does not feel sorrow but has a lot of cheer in mind.

2. How positive the blind boy is?

Ans: Although the blind boy has no vision, he does not mourn for it. Because he thinks that only thinking of the negative things will destroy his cheer of mind. So the boy is very positive. He sings and thinks of himself as the king of his own kingdom.

3. How the boy reacts to his blindness?

Ans: Although everyone around him feels sorry he takes everything very positively. He says not to focus on negative things because that will destroy his happiness. The blind boy says that he can bear everything with patience.

4. About which things the boy is aware of?

Ans: Though the boy is blind, he can feel many things. He is aware of the warmth of the sun, he also feels pity for people around him.

5. Who is the speaker and who is he speaking to?

Ans: The blind boy is the speaker. He is speaking to the readers of the poem.

6. How does the boy know that people feel sorry for him?

Ans: The boy knows from the deep sighs made by the people.

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