THE SOWER

By Victor Hugo
Translated by Torulata Dutt

About The Poet: Victor Hugo

The poem 'THE SOWER' is written by the famous French writer and
poet, Victor Hugo. Though regarded in France as one of the country's
greatest poets, he is better known for novels as ''Notre-Dame de Paris''
(1831) and "Les Miserables" (1862).
Romantic features were one of the major factors which made Victor
Hugo famous among his contemporaries. He mainly dealt with
common life in the language used by the common men. The poem titled
The Sower is one among such works.
This French poem is translated by an Indian poetess Torulata Datt.

About the Translator: Torulata Dutt:

A Bengali poet, also known as Toru Datta, wrote in English and
French along with Bengali, was born on 4th March 1856 in Kolkata.
She is considered to be ‘The first Indian poetess’ to write verses in
English and French. She translated dozens of poems and completed a
novel before her death at the age of 21. Her poems such as ‘Seeta’,
‘Lotus’ and ‘Our Casuarina Tree’ are well-loved.
According to the poet (Victor Hugo) and the translator of the poem,
(Toru Dutt) This poem is not primarily just a mirror of a man at work
but the poet’s own feelings which were the central idea while
processing the composition.
Poems come out of the real life situations which touch the poet’s heart.
ABOUT THE POEM
‘The Sower’ is a translation of Victor Hugo's poem, ‘Saison des
Semailles: Le Soir’. It is translated by Toru Dutt from French to
English.
‘The Sower’ is a poem about a farmer who is sowing seeds. He might
have seen many bad harvests in his life. However, he is very optimistic
of having a good harvest every time he tosses grains.
The poem depicts a strong message for it’s reader. This poem motivates
the reader to be a strong person with firm belief in what one is doing.
The poet describes his feelings for the farmer along with the detail
description of the nature around the farmer. This gives a message to the
readers that no matter what happens one should be dedicated to the
work and complete it with determination. One should stick to the goals
and believe in themselves while own struggles and works hard in order
to get success.
The poem is about an old man who is sowing the seeds in his farm by
scattering them. It was the time when the sunlight was fading away and
working hours were almost over. But still the farmer was doing his job
with dedication and determinations.
The poet was sitting comfortably in his porch way, looking upon the
Sower who is as an old man in rags. As the time passes the poet is
fascinated to see the dedication and patience of the farmer. The old man
was sowing the seeds and was hoping that this would be beneficial in
future and these seeds will get him good harvest in the future. That’s
how poet shows that the struggle should be done with complete belief
and strong hope.
The poem is a magnificent poem dealing with both nature and
humanistic features. The words are carefully selected and have detail
description of each and every moment the poet witnessed. Toru Dutt’s
translation is considered as the most appreciated among all the other
translations of the poem.
THEME OF THE POEM
The focussing elements in the poem are the dedication and commitment of
the sower, his perseverance, and the poet's acknowledgment of the sower's
actions as being selfless and noble. The values that one can learn from this
poem are determination, perseverance, and selflessness.
PARAPHRASE OF THE POEM:
In the Beginning, the narrator sitting in the “porch way” is observing
the sudden onset of “twilight,”, when the sunlight fades after the sunset
and day will soon turn to night.
The poet is sitting leisurely in a porchway, enjoying the sunset and
reddish sky. Poet describes the twilight sky. The poet describes this
time between the day and night. The poet mentions that the work
timings in the fields are over and the farmers and other workers have
left for the day. Soon it is going to be night and dark all around.
As the evening approaches, the twilight begins to dominate the globe
and the darkness starts spreading all over. At such a time, people finish
their work in the farms and they go back to their homes. The narrator
then sees a lone sower in the fields. The sower’s working state, "old"
age and clothing of "rags" stand out against the speaker's relaxation in
a "cool" porch. Due to the fact that the sower is still working even after
the working time is over and all the others have left the farm, the
speaker feels a thrill at the work of the sower in the fields. The feeling
mentioned as thrill is more of surprise and appreciation.
The twilight sky beautifies the place. The shadows and dark images are
spreading all around. The shadows running could be the distant images of
the farmers and workers who are going back home and have left the field.
The narrator’s major attention is now taken over by the farmer who is
working alone in the fields.
The poet describes the old sower and his cloths, how tattered and muddy
they were, and the poet is so much thrilled and impressed to see how calmly
and peacefully he’s doing the work in the field as the sower is still lingering
there.
In the following poem, the sower then creates a more powerful position
in the mind of the narrator: no longer does the sower merely stands still,
he now "dominates the furrows" with his figure and "strides" with the
scattering of grain. His actions take on an unusual liveliness and flair
when perceived by the speaker, who does not perform any similar
work.
As the poem comes to the close and night takes over, the speaker
deliberately exaggerates the sower's magnificent appearance, saying
that his movements or "gestures" are majestic and that his figure seems
to reach upward to the stars. In line with Hugo's original Romantic
sentiments, he’s focused on the outpouring of deep emotions in
response to everyday occurrences. The poem is thus an expression of
the spontaneous grandeur the narrator perceives in the habitual actions
of the sower at his work, as well as it is a description of an encounter
between people of different walks of life.
The poet says that the sower’s silhouette i.e. the shadow of the soweris
dark and keeps growing as it’s evening time. It spreads over the narrow
stretch made by a plough for sowing seeds i.e. deep furrows. According
to the poet, the sower knows that it is the time to sow the seeds and
soon the crops will grow and sower will be able to reap the fruit of his
hard labour and dedicated work. This stanza contains a lesson for young
people. One should work hard though others give up. This way, they
will be able to get fruits of their dedication.
Since it is a twilight time everything appears to be blackish and reddish
in colour. ‘Silhouette’, the black shadow of the sower is dominating the
deep furrows in the fields. The image of the sower is created in the
readers’ mind with this imagery. The sower’s black shadow gradually
becomes bigger and the deep furrows around the field start appearing
smaller. The idea to create such a mental picture which is to present the
longer than life image of the sower who can even dominate over the
nature. Since the sun is setting, the silhouette gradually becomes bigger
and bigger thus even the deep furrows seem to be small in front of the
sower.
In the next line of the poem Victor Hugo describes the mind-set of the
sower in detail through the line, ‘now to sow ... a time to reap’. Here
the farmer is hoping for a good harvest that will be available in future
because today he is sowing some seeds, later it will be watered, the
seeds will grow and soon the grains will appear and all his wishes will
be fulfilled. Just like hard work ultimately results in a fruitful joy the
farmer also dreams about the time of harvest.
Later the poet deals with the movement of the farmer and about his
actions in the field. The poet describes the farmer as marching rather
than just walking. this might be because of his strong determination and
disciplined work with purpose towards a better future. The farmer was
all alone in the field because he was the only person so determined to
do his work of farming. We face our problems in life individually with
courage the same way he stands alone in the field. The farmer moves
forward and backward scattering the precious grains which are both a
symbol of prosperity he will get in future. The grain is called ‘precious
grains’ because each and every grain is important in the life of a farmer.
The grain being the seed will increase in multiple amounts. It’s not any
regular commodity but food which gives life so the grain is called
precious.
The poet concludes with the description of the night. The twilight sky
gradually turns to night sky. There is no light and everywhere the
darkness appears. Now the sower is almost invisible to the poet even
then the poet speaks about the gestures of the sower which will be
continuing in the field. Now the poet feels the majestic and inspiring
image of the sower. The gradual and progressive growth of the shadow
of the sower now reached the top of the sky. Soon, the darkness deepens
i.e., the night appears. In the last line, the poet says that the height of
the sower seems to touch the starry skies indicating he becomes greater
than a normal human being and his hard work and determination have
made a larger-than-life persona. This picture depicts the transition from
the twilight sky to the night sky. The poet wants to express his
reverence for the majestic quality of the sower. To him the image of the
sower gradually grows to reach the top of the sky.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE POEM
The Sower is a poem originally written by Victor Hugo in French
language and it is translated by a Bengali poetess Torulata Dutt in
English language. The title of the poem represents the central character
of the poem, the Sower. The poem is about the hard work and
persistence of the Sower who is working relentlessly on the farm while
the poet observes his actions. The poem is a description of a lone
farmer, toiling in his fields, as the poet watches, even after sundown.
The poem, speaks in praise of his dedication.
The poem is woven around the theme is of a farmer surveying his land,
taking upon himself the hard work to till it, and plodding on into the
night, even after the day is almost over. He seeks neither help nor
company but does what needs to be done.
The poem is about a sower who is sowing seeds. The sower is a poor
old man and might have seen many bad harvests in his life. However,
he is still full of hope of having a bounteous harvest every time he
tosses the grain.
The central idea of the poem revolves around sowing seeds of the sower
while the poet observes him and begins to revere him for his noble
actions. The poetic devices used in the poem are Alliteration,
Personification, Inversion along with Antithesis, Hyperbole. The
structure of the poem is slightly complex because it has been written in
a way that it maintains the rhyme scheme abab. It has steady rhythm
and consistent metre. The poet follows the narrative style of writing.
The language comprises words used in a manner to create a
commanding figure of the farmer, in order to emphasize the importance
of his occupation and the toil it entails. ‘Black high, his silhouette
dominates’ symbolizing a huge figure against the sky. The line,
‘Marches he along. I see him stride’ creates a confident figure in
charge. The line, ‘his height Seems to touch the starry skies’ shows a
larger-than-life figure to be respected for the dedication. The poet
himself is in awe and tries to create the same feeling in the reader’s
mind to look at the farmer with the respect or reverence which we must
give him.
The special features used in the poem are imagery and symbolism. The
novelties in this poem are the exact translation of the lines from French
by Toru Dutt. She chooses to provide a true account of the observations
as written by Victor Hugo. Her retention of the optimistic tone of the
poem makes the poem refreshing and appealing. The focusing elements
of the poem are the dedication and the commitment of the Sower, his
perseverance and the poet’s acknowledgement of the sower’s actions
as being selfless and noble. The sower’s commitment towards his work
and the poet’s admiration of the sower gives the poem a positive and
encouraging tone, thus making it a fine read.
There is emphasis on two aspects, first the hard work which the farmer
performs uncomplainingly day and night. The other aspect is the vivid
description of the dusk, the setting sun and the figure against the sunset.
There is use of poetic language adding to the novelty and beauty. In
several lines the words are in a different order from what is used
normally ex. Furrows deep/ Marches he along/ Fades the light. In these
lines, Inversion as the poetic device adds effect.
The poem gives a very important message. It brings into focus the
importance of the farmer and his unrecognized service to society. How
ever much money one may possess, one cannot eat the money, we need
food to eat. One needs the farmer for creating that food for us and one's
very survival.
My opinion is that the poem is effective in creating a positive, respectful
picture of the farmer. His simple life and hard work is seen in the way
the poet describes his actions. This picture created by the poet
effectively gives motivation to the readers and makes them
acknowledge the farmer’s work and importance.

Summary of the poem

The poem "The Sower" is a translation of a Victor Hugo’s French poem
done by Toru Dutt. It describes an encounter between the poem's
narrator, who sits within a "porch way," and the titular "sower," whom
the poet watches as the sower carries out his task of planting seeds. As
the sun sets and the working hours for farming come to a close, the
speaker is fascinated by the sower's activities and his figure as he sets
about his farming task. As the scene gets darker and darker, the
silhouetted figure of the sower also becomes less and less distinct, and
the speaker muses on the almost transcendent nature of his exercise. By
the end of the poem, we are made to consider the mundane in a new and
exciting light, as well as think about the contrast between the speaker,
who sits more or less indoors, and the sower, whose job necessarily
involves engagement with nature.
POETIC DEVICES
Rhyming Scheme: The structure of the poem is slightly complex in
which it maintains the rhyme scheme abab if divided into 5 stanzas of
4 lines each.

Imagery and Word pictures in the poem:

The visual imagery creates a visual representation of ideas or situations
in the readers minds and helps the reader to create a mental picture with
the help of words. Most of the lines in the poem are the examples of
imagery. Ex.
i) Sunlight I see dying fast
ii) Twilight hastens on the rule
iii) Shadows run across the lands
iv) Old, in rags, he patient stands
v) Black and high, his Silhouette
vi) Dominates the furrows deep.
vii) Seems to touch the starry skies

FIGURES OF SPEECH
• Personification:
1. Sunlight, I see dying Fast.
Explanation: Human quality of dying is given to the
sunlight,
2. Twilight hastens on to the rule.
Explanation: The hastening is a human quality which is given to the
non-human object, ‘Twilight’.
3. Black and high, his silhouette, Dominates the furrows deep!
Explanation: Dominating someone is human quality, given to
the silhouette.
• Inversion:
1. Sitting in a porchway cool,
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, Sitting in a cool porchway,
2. Sunlight I see dying fast
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, I see sunlight dying fast
3. Now to Sow the task is set.
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, Now the task is set to sow.
4. Soon shall come a time to reap.
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, Soon a time to reap shall come.
5. Marches He along the plain.
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, He marches along the plain.
6. ... and scatters wide From his hands the precious grain;
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, and (he) scatters the precious grain wide From
his hands;
7. Now his gestures to mine eyes Are august; and strange
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, Now his gestures are august; and strange to
mine (my) eyes
8. Muse I as I see him stride
Explanation: The word order is not in the correct prose order. The
correct prose order is, I muse as I see him stride.
• Alliteration:
The sound of the consonant letter is repeated pleasingly in a quick
succession.
1. Sunlight I see dying fast.
2. Dominates the furrows deep!
3. Now to sow the task is set
4. Darkness deepens. Fades the light
5. Seem to touch the starry skies.
• Hyperbole:
1.His height seems to touch the starry skies.
Explanation: Starry Skies can never be touched by height of the
person. Here an overstatement is used.
• Antithesis:
 1. Darkness deepens, Fades the light.
Explanation: The Darkness and light which are the opposite terms are
used in the same line to create a contrast.