(Poem) Chapter 3: Rain On The Roof

Poem-3

Rain On The Roof

By Coates Kinney

Rain On The Roof Poem Introduction

The title of the poem, 'Rain on the Roof,' indicates that the poem is about rain. The poet is telling us about his memories of rain. The sound of raindrops falling on his house's roof brings back pleasant memories.

Rain On The Roof Poem Summary

The poem 'Rain on the Roof' describes the poet's various reactions to the sound of raindrops falling on his house's roof. He compares raindrops at night to tears shed by the sad, dark night. He enjoys lying in bed and listening to rain fall on his room's roof because it brings back pleasant memories of the past. He says that the sound of raindrops helps him sleep and provides him with sweet dreams. He remembers his loving mother putting them to sleep.

Rain On The Roof Poem Explanation

When the humid shadows hover
Overall the starry spheres
And the melancholy darkness
Gently weeps in rainy tears,
What a bliss to press the pillow
Of a cottage-chamber bed
And lie listening to the patter
Of the soft rain overhead!

• Humid: something which is full of moisture.
• ‘shadows’ refers to the moisture-laden clouds which cast a shadow on the earth.
• hover: Move around something
• melancholy: sad
• bliss: Happiness
• patter: the sound of raindrops falling on the roof.
• Cottage chamber means the bedroom.

When the humid shadows hover (here, 'humid shadows' refers to dark clouds full of water), the poet is saying. The poet is saying that when the sky is full of these clouds that are moisture-laden, full of water, and about to rain, when such clouds hover around in the sky, overall the starry spheres ('starry spheres' refers to the night sky that is full of stars). Huge clouds of moisture move around in the sky at that time, and the sad darkness of the night is wiped away by raindrops that look like tears falling from the sky. The poet compares raindrops to tears, saying that the dark sky, which appears to be very sad, appears to be crying, and the raindrops are the tears shed by it. He adds that lying on his bed in his room (Cottage chamber means bedroom) and listening to the sound of raindrops falling on the roof is a blessing.

Every tinkle on the shingles
Has an echo in the heart;
And a thousand dreamy fancies
Into busy being start,
And a thousand recollections
Weave their air-threads into woof,
As I listen to the patter
Of the rain upon the roof.

• tinkle: short, light ringing sound
• shingles: rectangular wooden tiles used on roofs
• echo: repeated sound
• woof: weft, i.es the thread woven across the loom
• patter: the sound of raindrops falling on the roof
• ‘busy being’ refers to human beings and here, the poet is referring to himself

When the poet hears raindrops falling on his house's roof, he is expressing his feelings. Every tinkle on the shingles, he says, has an echo in the heart. Whenever he hears rain falling on the rooftop, the sound repeats in his heart, and he has many different, fanciful imaginations in his dreams. He goes on to say that the sound of rain falling on the rooftop inspires a lot of new and varied dreams in his mind. He recalls many memories from his past, which reemerge in his mind as dreams. As a result, he says that as he listens to the patter of rain on the roof, he has many new dreams in his mind and that memories from the past return to him in the form of dreams.

Now in memory comes my mother,
As she used in years agone,
To regard the darling dreamers
Ere she left them till the dawn:
O! I feel her fond look on me
As I list to this refrain
Which is played upon the shingles
By the patter of the rain.

• ere: old poetic word for ‘before’
• dawn: daybreak
• list: old poetic word for’ listen’
• refrain: a repeated part of a song or a poem; here, the sound of the rain

The poet introduces his mother here. He says to be dreaming of his mother. Rain, as he stated in the previous stanza, brings back memories of the past – in this case, the memory of his mother, who is no longer alive. She used to love him a lot, she used to think of him as a darling, and she used to let him sleep until daybreak and have sweet dreams.

As he listens to the song created by raindrops falling on his room's rooftop, the poet can still feel his mother's gaze on him. The sound of rain causes him to connect his past with his present. That is why the poet is moved by the sound of raindrops on his room's shingles. When he hears this sound, it brings back memories from his childhood and reminds him of his mother.

Rain On The Roof Poem Literary Devices

Rhyme scheme of the poem: abcbdefe

Stanza 1

Alliteration: The repetition of a consonant sound in two or more consecutive words.
‘Humid Hover’ – ‘h’ sound is repeating.
‘starry spheres’ – ‘s’ should is repeating.
‘press pillow’- ‘p’ sound is repeating.
‘lie listening’ – ‘l’ sound is repeating.

Onomatopoeia: The use of sound words to create a dramatic effect and auditory imagery.

‘Patter’ is the use of sound words. It is the sound made by the raindrops falling on the rooftop.

Personification: Treating a non – living thing as a living being.

darkness has been personified when he says that it is sad.

Transferred Epithet: The use of an adjective with a noun when it refers to another noun.

In ‘melancholy darkness’, the darkness is not melancholy, but it refers to the sad people.

Stanza 2

1.Alliteration: The repetition of a consonant sound in two or more consecutive words.
‘busy being’ – ‘b’ sound is repeating
‘their thread’ – ‘th’ sound is repeating
‘rain roof’ – ‘r’ sound is repeating

Onomatopoeia: The use of sound words to create a dramatic effect and auditory imagery.

‘tinkle’, ‘patter’ – sounds made by the raindrops

Personification: Treating a non – living thing as a living being.

recollection is personified when he says that they weave dreams.

Transferred Epithet: The use of an adjective with a noun when it refers to another noun.

‘dreamy fancies’ – it does not mean that the fancies are dreamy but refers to the people who have dreams.

Stanza 3

Alliteration: The repetition of a consonant sound in two or more consecutive words.

‘memory my mother’ – ‘m’ sound is repeating
‘Darling dreamers’ – ‘d’ sound is repeating

Onomatopoeia: The use of sound words to create a dramatic effect and auditory imagery.

‘patter’ – sound of raindrops falling on the shingles of the roof.

About the Poet

Coates Kinney (1826-1904), the poet, is attempting to connect the rain to both sweet and bitter memories from his past. The poet lies on his bed, clutching his pillow tightly, and loses himself in the thoughts of his caring and loving mother as he listens to the patter of the rain.