Poetry · Chapter
What Shall I Give? explained
The speaker reflects on what to give his younger daughter, concluding that material wealth and land would not enrich her more than the simple, natural world she already inhabits.
What happens
The speaker reflects on what to give his younger daughter, concluding that material wealth and land would not enrich her more than the simple, natural world she already inhabits. He chooses to leave her with her own small world and self, rather than burden her with possessions.
Themes in this chapter
Place and Belonging
The poem contrasts the vast estates of South Weald and Havering with the intimate, personal world of Steep, emphasizing that true belonging is found in one's own small, familiar place.
Love and Loss
The speaker's decision to give nothing material to his daughter reflects a deep, protective love that values her inner contentment over external riches.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The speaker who contemplates what to give his daughter.
Key passages
“What shall I give my daughter the younger More than will keep her from cold and hunger? I shall not give her anything.”
The speaker asks what he can give his younger daughter beyond basic necessities, and decides to give her nothing material.
This opening sets up the central theme of rejecting material gifts in favor of intangible ones.
“She would be no richer than the queen Who once on a time sat in Havering Bower Alone, with the shadows, pleasure and power.”
Even if she owned vast lands, she would be no wealthier than a queen who once sat alone in her bower, surrounded by shadows, pleasure, and power.
The speaker uses the image of a solitary queen to illustrate that material wealth does not bring true richness.
“But leave her Steep and her own world And her spectacled self with hair uncurled, Wanting a thousand little things That time without contentment brings.”
Instead, he will leave her with her own small world of Steep, her unadorned self, and the minor desires that come from a life without contentment.
The conclusion emphasizes the value of simplicity and self-acceptance over the pursuit of material goods.