Summer Friends Summary
Summer friends’ is a poem written by Mary Lamb. The poem is about friendship. The poet here uses bird as an example to show the different kinds of friendship. It wants to show how a good friend remains by your side even during your worst days.
In the 1st stanza, the poet describes a swallow bird, which is a summer bird. When the weather is warm and good, swallow bird is seen roaming around the chimneys and houses of people. When the weather is fine the bird become friends easily with people. But as soon as winter arrives this bird easily abandons human company and returns to its home. Swallow is shown like a guest who stays for some time and then returns back. The author compared the behaviour of bird with behaviour of real people. She showed how some friends only stay with you in your good time and when the time is hard, they leave you and go back for their own good.
On the 2nd stanza, the poet again gives example of a bird. The bird her is sparrow. The sparrow is completely different from swallow. The sparrow’s behaviour is compared to a good friend. The sparrow is seen to remain even in harsh winter. Harsh winter weather means the hard time faced by man and sparrow is that good friend who sticks by your side even during your struggle and hard times. They are the real friends who will support you in your bad times. They will encourage and motivate you. Sparrow is an example of a true friend a man can have.
Hence, the poem shows what a good and bad friendship is like, she shows how a good friend always there for you in your bad times like a sparrow who even in harsh winter sticks to a man.
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