The Laburnum Top Summary Class 11 English

Summary of The Laburnum Top

The Laburnum Top Summary will help students learn about this poem in a simplified manner. It is written by Ted Huges. The poem revolves around a Laburnum tree and a Goldfinch bird. The core theme of the poem shows us the repaying relationship between the two. Further, it begins by describing how the Laburnum tree is pretty quiet in the yellow September light. He notices the yellow leaves of the tree and the seeds on the ground. It appears to be still fleetingly till a goldfinch bird perches on its branch. The poet witnesses the tree come to life as soon as the bird starts chirping. Upon the arrival of the mother goldfinch, the tree and the nestlings, start chirping and become alive. She keeps flying in and out to feed her young ones. Thus, when she leaves, the tree once again dons its elusive silence.

The Laburnum Top Summary in English

The poet describes his experience of what he witnesses in the Laburnum tree. It begins by describing how the leaves of the tree are yellow. Moreover, he notices that the treetop is still and remains silent even in the month of September.

Due to the autumn season, the tree has lost all its leaves and the seeds are on the ground. Most noteworthy, the poet uses ‘yellow’ to describe both, the leaves colour and the sunlight. Over here, yellow represents silence, death and beauty. Thus, he uses this colour and describes the whole setting perfectly.

After that, he notices that the death-like scene of the tree comes to an end when a goldfinch bird perches on it. The tree makes a sudden chirrup sound upon the bird’s arrival. He compares the quickness, speed and alertness of the bird to that of a lizard.

When she starts moving towards the thickness of the branch, the nestlings start chirping and flapping their wings. Thus, due to this movement, the tree also starts shaking and thrilling. Thus, we notice how the poet gives two contrasting scenarios while describing the tree. First was that it was death-like and then it gains life after the bird lands on it.

Further, the poet finally realizes that the goldfinch bird and the tree are the engines of her family. When she brings food for the little birdies, she moves to the end of the other branch. He describes the bird’s appearance. It has a striped face which is dark in colour.

After that, her body is yellow and thus blends in with the yellow leaves of the tree. Finally, after reaching the branch end, she makes a rather sweet chirping sound. The poet compares this sound to whispering as she flies away in the limitless sky. Thus, after the bird leaves the tree, the Laburnum tree once again becomes silent and death-like.

Conclusion of The Laburnum Top

To sum up The Laburnum Top summary, we learn about the sweet and nurturing relationship between the tree and the bird and how they both play such important roles in their lives.