I wandered by the brookside, I wandered by the mill; I could not hear the brook flow, The noisy wheel was still.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker observes a quiet mill and stream but notes the absence of sound.
- In plain terms
- The speaker walks by water and a mill but hears nothing.
- What can you take from it?
- Silence can reveal itself in familiar places.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When did silence surprise you?
Another view
Silence might be due to external factors not mentioned.
More from Richard Monckton Milnes, 1st Baron Houghton Houghton
A man's best things are nearest him, Lie close about his feet.
Permalink to quote #3 The beating of my own heart Was all the sound I heard.
Permalink to quote #5 Great thoughts, great feelings came to them, Like instincts, unawares.
Permalink to quote #2
Related quotes
To know that no one before you has seen an organ you are examining, to trace relationships that have occurred to no one before, to immerse yourself in the wond…
Vladimir NabokovVladimir Nabokov quote #3 One afternoon in early January, the weather showed a lack of character. There was no frost nor wind: the trees in the garden did not stir.
Brian AldissBrian Aldiss quote #4 O mother Ida, many-fountain'd Ida, Dear mother Ida, harken ere I die. For now the noonday quiet holds the hill: The grasshopper is silent in the grass: The liz…
Alfred (Lord) TennysonAlfred (Lord) Tennyson quote #7