Author Name: Alfred Lord Tenyson

SUMMARY OF THE POEM
• "The Beggar-maid " is a story, which tells of the King
Cophetua and his love for the beggar.
• Cophetua was an African king known for his lack of any natural attraction to women. One day while looking out a palace window he witnesses a young beggar suffering for lack of clothes. Struck by love at first sight, decides that he will either have the beggar as his wife or commit suicide.
• Walking out into the street , he tells her that she is to be his wife. She agrees and becomes queen. The couple lives a
"quiet life" but are much loved by their people. Eventually they die and are buried in the same tomb
.

• Alfred Lord Tennyson was the most représentative poet of the Victorian period in England.
The Poet expresses the faith and doubts of people, their sorrows and Triumphs.
• He is a master of language and his publications extended over sixty years.
Melody is the distinctive quality of his verse. His poems evoke word pictures.
• Alfred Lord Tennyson

For Memorization
Her arms across her breast she laid
She was more fair than words can say
Bare-footed came the beggar maid
Before king Cophetua.
In robe and crown the king step’d down,
To meet and greet her on her way;
“It is no wonder,” said the lords,
“She is more beautiful than day”.
As shines the moon in clouded skies,
She in her poor attire2 was seen;
One praised her ankles, one her eyes,
One her dark hair and lovesome mien3.
So sweet a face, such angel grace,
In all that land had never been;
Cophetua swore a royal oath:
“This beggar maid shall be my queen!”

Exercises
(Pick out the best answer and write it in your note book)
• 1. The beggar maid entered the court with her arms across her breast because___________ a) she was afraid of the king.
b) she wanted to show respect to the king.
c) she felt shy d) she was hurt.
• 2) ‘Bare-footed came the beggar maid before the king
Cophetua’ because ___________ a) she was very poor b) one had to enter a court bare-footed.
c) the guards ordered her to enter so.
d) she was not in the habit of wearing slippers.

Exercises
(Pick out the best answer and write it in your note book)
• 3. The king stepped down to______________ a) welcome the beggar maid b) send the beggar maid out of the court c) lead her to the throne.
d) marry her
• 4. ‘As shines the moon in clouded skies’ The figure of speech used in this line is_____________ a) Personification b) Metaphor c) Simile d) Alliteration
• 5. The king decided to marry the beggar maid because___________ a) he had promised to marry a poor woman.
b) he found great beauty in her.
c) the lords praised her beauty.
c) she was bare - footed.

Exercises
(Answer the following questions in a sentence or two each)

Exercises
(Answer the following questions in a sentence or two each)
• 3. Why did the king step down from the throne?
To meet and greet her on her way.
• 4. What did the lords say about the beggar maid’s beauty?
“It is no wonder,” said the lords, “She is more beautiful than day”. As shines the moon in clouded skies…
• 5. What did King Cophetua swear and why?
“This beggar maid shall be my queen”, because she was so beautiful he had ever seen

Exercises
( Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow.
)
• 1. “She was more fair than words can say”.
a) Who is the ‘she’? The Beggar Maid b) What does ‘fair’ mean?
c) What does the statement mean?
• 2. ‘It is no wonder’ a) Who said this? The King b) When was it said? When the king saw the beggar c) What was ‘no wonder’? The beggar’s beauty
• 3. ‘Cophetua swore a royal oath’ a) Who was Cophetua? The King of Africa b) What did he swear? “ This beggar maid shall be my queen” c) What made him swear so?
The beggar maid was very beautiful

• a) Pick out the adjectives and phrases used to describe the beggar maid. e.g.: more fair than words can say.
• b) Pick out the pairs of rhyming words from the poem.
• c) Supply any two rhyming words for each of the following:
• i) maiden ii) down iii) lords iv) grace v) oath