There are several authors that one can look to in search of classic, still wild and inventive adventure, one might first think of Jules Verne or Mark Twain, Herman Melville or Arthur Conan Doyle; but eventually you would come across Robert Louis Stevenson and that is because no does intrepid expedition or mystery quite so well. From “Treasure Island” to “Kidnapped” no one has children’s hearts beating quite as fast as Stevenson nor keeps them on the edge of their seats quite so completely. Stevenson however did not just right adventure he lived it, he lived in many countries and traveled to more still, he sailed the open sea, and befriended native Islanders, he jumped through a windows to proclaimed his love to a stranger, and did it all while suffering from a ghastly lung condition. A native Scotsman by birth, and a Samoan Islander by funeral ceremony, Stevenson’s life was quite as intriguing and enthralling as the novels he wrote. Although, the praise of his work has come and gone in the world of academia, he has never lost appeal to the children and adults who treasured his stories. If you wish to read more of his poems, or delve deeper into his incredible life, below are linked a selection of other poetic analysis, all of which explore his life in greater detail(however the most comprehensive biography can be found in “Where Go the Boats”). | “My Shadow” Robert Louis Stevenson I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me, And what can be the use of him is more than I can see. He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head; And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed. The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow-- Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow; For he sometimes shoots up taller like an india-rubber ball, And he sometimes gets so little that there's none of him at all. He hasn't got a notion of how children ought to play, And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way. He stays so close beside me, he's a coward you can see; I'd think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me! One morning, very early, before the sun was up, I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup; But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head, Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed. |
The arrangement of Robert Louis Stevenson’s “My Shadow,” is simple and steadfast, it is neither convoluted nor filled with extemporaneous ramifications. A poem originally intended for children yet so charismatic and straight-forward even adults cannot help enjoy it. Whether, you expand it for have allegorical meaning or take it as simply nonsensical humor it is work of elementary charms and clever verse. “My Shadow” is a total of 16 lines, 4 quatrains of near identical syllabic format each fourteen syllable line is cadenced in perfect iambic feet from start to finish beginning with flawless accuracy, each line begins anew with a new alignment of iambic feet. The rhyme scheme of the piece is classical plain, similar to a nursery rhyme Stevenson uses the traditional AABB then CCDD and so on to great effect. Stevenson also uses several literary devices to give his poem a witty edge, and appealing intricacy while never taking it too far. He utilizes transparent repetition through the composition from the consecutive order of “very, very” to line after line use of “sometimes” and even the internal repetition of “stick to/sticks to” in the twelfth line. The most obvious literary device is of course personification, in how Stevenson gives human emotion to a shadow.
However, as in the case of his poem: “My Shadow” Stevenson demonstrates a dual adeptness of not just entertaining children, but harnessing their imaginations and exploring their minds. He writes from the perspective of a child, and does so expertly, bringing the whimsical down to earth with the application of the naive logic of youth. What was once impossible is suddenly not just plausible but beyond questioning. The existence of fairies and Santa Claus are not just stories that are everyday incarnations of the magical world children exist in. For the truth is a matter not of evidence but belief, and every man and woman will have their own faith, just as every child will have an entire reality that are encased within. There comes a time when every child grows to large and cultured for their innocent realities and that shell that once protected them becomes delicate and permeable, even absorbent it no longer shields them from their surroundings but soaks them in, magnifying every insult or revelation, and their FADING SHIELD becomes too weak and battered to carry on. There are only so many bullets a WALL can take, and a child’s world will shatter showered them in the cutting shards of everything in which they once had faith, as the harsh and force of reality will be brought down upon their youth from all that surrounds us. All this brings about a period of transitional confusion, everything that was once clear and certain, becomes muddled and treacherous, because now nothing can be taken in without doubt in and no one can be trusted. After all, even our parents have lied to us. Where is Santa Claus? The Tooth-fairy? Easter Bunny? Life is not a fairy tale? There is no magic. There comes a time in every child’s life when his/her convictions are brought about for questioning by their peers and not everyone bubble of innocent sincerity will shatter simultaneously or at an opportune moment, it may come too early brought about not by an internal clock but by the cruel facts of existence, leaving the soul vulnerable, and prematurely exposed, these children have not been given time for their confidences to concrete. So when interrogated or mocked they drop their old ideas obediently. This insecurity may drive them to attack another child defenses as though the fall of their own shield has caused a chain reaction it’s shrapnel impaling many more than just its first victim. For after all misery loves company. The broken now strive to assert their new bitter truths upon other children desperate for these truths to be more stable than the last. Guided in this action by the misconception that this will bring them stability. However, very few truths are universal and stability is not found in surrounding yourself in a single truth but by trusting in and developing your own based on your own values and experiences. Stevenson’s description of a shadow is so beautiful in it’s naive description of the shadow as though it were capable of human emotion and feeling, as though the it’s simple existence and concept was an everyday miracle. Obvious observations regarding the shadow’s appearance such as “He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;” are not annoying but comic. He describes the shadow is a way that is neither new nor shocking but he has given it such life with his clever personification that suddenly that is plenty. Some interpret the last lines of “My Shadow” as reference to sorrow or death, as the speaker( a young boy)’s shadow: “Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.”
but it seems far more likely that it is nearly nothing more than a cloudy day or has stated earlier in the stanza it is simply: “very early, before the sun was up”. Robert Louis Stevenson is as delightfully charming and his personification of a young boy’s shadow is not shallow for it’s lack of deeper or complex meaning but rare and delightful or it’s basic form and swift and astute language.
Stevenson writes about a period of impeccable collaborations, where he is a boy of affirmed realities and guaranteed truths. His shadow has a unique mind of it’s own and Stevenson masterfully conveys the chimerical cognition as irrevocable veracity. His poem is a nursery rhyme turned humorous exploit. Appealing openly to children with it’s simple consistent rhyme scheme, and clever but not confusing wording. “My Shadow” captures the confidence and candid honesty of childhood, in a fashion that ends in empathy and hilarity for the young and a pleasant nostalgia for such light-hearted obstacles as apathetic shadows for the aging. It resonates with the youthful mind and displays a talented grasp of imagery in addition to the continued theme of personification making Stevenson’s poem engaging and enjoyable.
Whether you find it pleasing in regard to its buoyant verse or simply for it's the frolicsome antics of it’s characters, whether you treasure it’s joyous nostalgia( in how it reminds one of the effervescence of your youth) or relish is its relevance to your present life. Robert Louis Stevenson “My Shadow” is a charismatic, captivating and never fails to please.