Dylan Thomas based his 1945 poem "Fern Hill" on childhood experiences at his aunt's farm in Wales, where he grew up. The poem is filled with intensely lyrical language and rich metaphorical descriptions that capture the excitement and joy of playing outside as a child and feeling in harmony with the natural world. The result is a hymn to the wonder and grace of childhood and the pain of its eventual loss.

• Read the full text of “Fern Hill”

• “Fern Hill” Summary

• “Fern Hill” Themes

  • 

    Childhood's Joy and Innocence

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-46
  • 

    The Harmony and Wonder of Nature

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-3
    • Lines 6-12
    • Lines 15-54
  • 

    The Power of Time

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-5
    • Line 7
    • Lines 13-14
    • Line 39
    • Lines 42-54
  • 

    The End of Childhood Grace

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-54

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Fern Hill”

  • Lines 1-2

    Now as I ...
    ... grass was green,

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 3-5

         The night above ...
    ... of his eyes,

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 6-9

    And honoured among ...
    ... the windfall light.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 10-14

    And as I ...
    ... of his means,

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 15-18

    And green and ...
    ... the holy streams.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 19-22

    All the sun ...
    ... green as grass.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 23-27

         And nightly under ...
    ... into the dark.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 28-32

    And then to ...
    ... that very day.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 33-36

    So it must ...
    ... fields of praise.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 37-41

    And honoured among ...
    ... house high hay

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 42-45

    And nothing I ...
    ... out of grace,

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 46-51

    Nothing I cared, ...
    ... the childless land.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 52-54

    Oh as I ...
    ... like the sea.

    

    

    

    

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• “Fern Hill” Symbols

  • 

    Fern Hill

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “under the apple boughs / About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green,”
    • Line 3: “The night above the dingle starry,”
    • Lines 6-7: “And honoured among wagons I was prince of the apple towns / And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail with daisies and barley”
    • Line 9: “Down the rivers of the windfall light.”
    • Lines 10-11: “famous among the barns / About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home,”
    • Lines 15-16: “And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves / Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold,”
    • Lines 19-20: “All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay / Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air”
    • Line 21: “And playing, lovely and watery”
    • Lines 24-27: “As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away, / All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars /      Flying with the ricks, and the horses /           Flashing into the dark.”
    • Lines 28-30: “And then to awake, and the farm, like a wanderer white / With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all /      Shining, it was Adam and maiden,”
    • Lines 37-38: “And honoured among foxes and pheasants by the gay house / Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long,”
    • Line 41: “My wishes raced through the house high hay”
    • Line 51: “And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land.”
  • 

    Green and Golden

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “happy as the grass was green”
    • Line 5: “Golden in the heydays of his eyes”
    • Line 10: “And as I was green and carefree”
    • Lines 14-15: “Golden in the mercy of his means, / And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman”
    • Line 22: “And fire green as grass”
    • Line 35: “Out of the whinnying green stable”
    • Line 44: “Before the children green and golden”
    • Line 53: “Time held me green and dying”
  • 

    White

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 28-29: “like a wanderer white / With the dew”
    • Line 46: “the lamb white days”

• “Fern Hill” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “house,” “happy,” “grass,” “green”
    • Line 4: “hail”
    • Line 5: “heydays”
    • Line 7: “time,” “lordly,” “trees,” “leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail,” “daisies”
    • Line 9: “Down”
    • Line 14: “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 15: “green,” “golden,” “huntsman,” “herdsman”
    • Line 16: “clear,” “cold”
    • Line 17: “sabbath,” “slowly”
    • Line 18: “streams”
    • Line 19: “long,” “lovely,” “hay”
    • Line 20: “high,” “house”
    • Line 22: “green,” “grass”
    • Line 23: “simple,” “stars”
    • Line 24: “sleep”
    • Line 26: “Flying”
    • Line 27: “Flashing”
    • Line 28: “wanderer,” “white”
    • Line 29: “With,” “come,” “cock,” “shoulder”
    • Line 30: “Shining”
    • Line 31: “gathered”
    • Line 32: “grew”
    • Line 33: “So,” “been,” “birth,” “simple”
    • Line 34: “spinning,” “spellbound,” “walking,” “warm”
    • Line 35: “whinnying”
    • Line 37: “foxes,” “pheasants”
    • Line 38: “happy,” “heart”
    • Line 39: “over,” “over”
    • Line 40: “heedless,” “ways”
    • Line 41: “wishes,” “raced,” “house,” “high,” “hay”
    • Line 42: “trades,” “time”
    • Line 43: “tuneful,” “turning,” “so,” “such,” “songs”
    • Line 44: “green,” “golden”
    • Line 45: “grace”
    • Line 46: “time,” “take”
    • Line 48: “rising”
    • Line 49: “riding”
    • Line 50: “fly,” “fields”
    • Line 51: “farm,” “forever,” “fled,” “from”
    • Line 52: “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 54: “sang,” “sea”

  • Assonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where assonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “was young,” “under,” “boughs”
    • Line 2: “About,” “house,” “happy as,” “grass”
    • Line 4: “Time,” “hail,” “climb”
    • Line 5: “heydays,” “eyes”
    • Line 6: “among,” “was”
    • Line 7: “once,” “time I,” “trees,” “leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail,” “daisies”
    • Line 9: “rivers,” “windfall”
    • Line 10: “green,” “carefree,” “barns”
    • Line 11: “yard,” “farm”
    • Line 12: “sun,” “young once”
    • Line 13: “me,” “be”
    • Line 14: “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 15: “golden,” “huntsman,” “herdsman”
    • Line 16: “foxes on,” “cold”
    • Line 17: “slowly”
    • Line 18: “holy”
    • Line 19: “sun,” “was running,” “was lovely”
    • Line 21: “lovely,” “watery”
    • Line 22: “as grass”
    • Line 25: “All,” “long”
    • Lines 25-26: “nightjars /      Flying with”
    • Line 26: “ricks”
    • Line 28: “like,” “white”
    • Line 29: “cock on,” “all”
    • Line 30: “Adam”
    • Line 31: “gathered”
    • Line 35: “whinnying green stable”
    • Line 36: “fields,” “praise”
    • Line 37: “honoured,” “foxes,” “gay”
    • Line 38: “made,” “happy as”
    • Line 40: “ways”
    • Line 41: “raced,” “high,” “hay”
    • Line 42: “I,” “my sky,” “trades,” “time”
    • Line 43: “morning”
    • Line 44: “Before,” “children,” “golden”
    • Line 46: “I,” “white days,” “time,” “take”
    • Line 47: “swallow thronged loft”
    • Line 48: “rising”
    • Line 49: “riding”
    • Line 50: “I,” “fly,” “high”
    • Line 51: “forever fled”
    • Line 52: “was young,” “easy,” “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 53: “Time,” “me green,” “dying”
    • Line 54: “I sang,” “my chains like,” “sea”

  • Consonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where consonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “as,” “was,” “easy”
    • Lines 1-2: “apple boughs / About”
    • Line 2: “house,” “happy,” “grass,” “green”
    • Line 3: “starry”
    • Line 4: “Time let,” “hail,” “climb”
    • Line 5: “Golden,” “heydays,” “his eyes”
    • Line 6: “wagons,” “prince,” “apple”
    • Line 7: “And once below,” “time,” “lordly,” “trees,” “leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail,” “daisies and barley”
    • Line 9: “Down,” “windfall light”
    • Line 10: “carefree, famous among,” “barns”
    • Line 11: “About,” “happy,” “singing,” “farm,” “home”
    • Line 12: “sun,” “once only”
    • Line 13: “Time let”
    • Line 14: “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 15: “And green and golden,” “huntsman and herdsman”
    • Line 16: “horn,” “hills barked clear,” “cold”
    • Line 17: “sabbath,” “slowly”
    • Line 18: “pebbles,” “holy streams”
    • Line 19: “All,” “long,” “lovely,” “hay”
    • Line 20: “high,” “house,” “tunes from,” “chimneys”
    • Line 21: “playing, lovely”
    • Line 22: “fire green,” “grass”
    • Line 23: “nightly,” “simple stars”
    • Line 24: “sleep,” “owls”
    • Line 25: “All,” “moon long,” “blessed among stables”
    • Line 26: “Flying,” “ricks”
    • Line 27: “Flashing,” “dark”
    • Line 28: “wanderer white”
    • Line 29: “With,” “dew,” “come back,” “cock”
    • Line 30: “Adam,” “maiden”
    • Line 31: “sky gathered again”
    • Line 32: “sun grew round”
    • Line 33: “So,” “must,” “been,” “birth,” “simple light”
    • Line 34: “first, spinning place,” “spellbound horses walking warm”
    • Line 35: “whinnying green stable”
    • Line 37: “foxes,” “pheasants”
    • Line 38: “happy,” “heart”
    • Line 40: “heedless”
    • Line 41: “wishes raced,” “house high hay”
    • Line 42: “cared,” “sky,” “trades,” “time allows”
    • Line 43: “all,” “tuneful turning so,” “such morning songs”
    • Line 44: “children green and golden”
    • Line 45: “grace”
    • Line 46: “time,” “take”
    • Line 47: “swallow,” “loft”
    • Line 48: “rising”
    • Line 49: “Nor,” “riding”
    • Line 50: “hear him fly,” “high fields”
    • Line 51: “farm forever fled from,” “childless land”
    • Line 52: “as,” “was,” “easy,” “mercy,” “means”
    • Line 53: “Time held me green and dying”
    • Line 54: “sang in my chains like,” “sea”

  • Allusion

    

    

    

    

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    Where allusion appears in the poem:

    • Line 7: “And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail with daisies and barley”
    • Line 17: “And the sabbath rang slowly”
    • Line 18: “In the pebbles of the holy streams.”
    • Line 30: “it was Adam and maiden,”
    • Line 31: “The sky gathered again”
    • Line 32: “And the sun grew round that very day.”
    • Lines 33-34: “So it must have been after the birth of the simple light / In the first, spinning place, the spellbound horses walking warm”
    • Line 35: “Out of the whinnying green stable”
    • Line 36: “On to the fields of praise.”
    • Line 45: “Follow him out of grace,”
    • Line 46: “the lamb white days”

  • Metaphor

    

    

    

    

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    Where metaphor appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “the lilting house”
    • Line 4: “Time let me hail and climb”
    • Line 5: “Golden in the heydays of his eyes,”
    • Lines 6-7: “honoured among wagons I was prince of the apple towns / And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves”
    • Lines 10-12: “I was green and carefree, famous among the barns / About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home, /      In the sun that is young once only,”
    • Line 13: “Time let me play and be”
    • Line 14: “Golden in the mercy of his means,”
    • Line 15: “And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman,”
    • Line 20: “the tunes from the chimneys”
    • Line 21: “lovely and watery”
    • Line 24: “As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away,”
    • Line 30: “it was Adam and maiden,”
    • Line 34: “the first, spinning place”
    • Line 35: “whinnying green stable”
    • Line 36: “fields of praise”
    • Lines 37-38: “And honoured among foxes and pheasants by the gay house / Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long,”
    • Line 39: “In the sun born over and over,”
    • Line 41: “My wishes raced through the house high hay”
    • Lines 42-43: “And nothing I cared, at my sky blue trades, that time allows / In all his tuneful turning so few and such morning songs”
    • Line 44: “the children green and golden”
    • Line 45: “Follow him out of grace,”
    • Lines 46-47: “Nothing I cared, in the lamb white days, that time would take me / Up to the swallow thronged loft by the shadow of my hand,”
    • Line 49: “riding to sleep”
    • Line 50: “I should hear him fly with the high fields”
    • Lines 51-52: “And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land. / Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means,”
    • Line 53: “Time held me green and dying”
    • Line 54: “Though I sang in my chains like the sea.”

  • Simile

    

    

    

    

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    Where simile appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “happy as the grass was green,”
    • Lines 19-20: “ the hay / Fields high as the house”
    • Line 22: “fire green as grass”
    • Lines 28-29: “the farm, like a wanderer white / With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder”
    • Line 38: “happy as the heart was long”

  • Personification

    

    

    

    

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    Where personification appears in the poem:

    • Line 4: “Time let me hail and climb”
    • Line 5: “Golden in the heydays of his eyes,”
    • Line 13: “Time let me play and be”
    • Line 14: “Golden in the mercy of his means,”
    • Lines 42-43: “time allows / In all his tuneful turning so few and such morning songs”
    • Line 45: “Follow him out of grace,”
    • Lines 46-47: “time would take me / Up to the swallow thronged loft by the shadow of my hand,”
    • Line 50: “I should hear him fly with the high fields”
    • Lines 51-52: “And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land. / Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means,”
    • Line 53: “Time held me green and dying”
    • Line 54: “Though I sang in my chains like the sea.”

  • Anaphora

    

    

    

    

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    Where anaphora appears in the poem:

    • Line 6: “And honoured”
    • Line 7: “And once below”
    • Line 10: “And as I was green”
    • Line 15: “And green and golden”
    • Line 19: “it was running, it was lovely”
    • Line 20: “it was air”
    • Line 21: “And playing”
    • Line 22: “And fire”
    • Line 23: “ And nightly”
    • Line 28: “And then to awake”
    • Line 29: “it was all”
    • Line 30: “it was Adam”
    • Line 32: “And the sun grew”
    • Line 37: “And honoured among”
    • Line 42: “And nothing I cared”
    • Line 46: “Nothing I cared”
    • Line 51: “And wake”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “young and easy under the apple boughs / About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green,”
    • Line 3: “The night above the dingle starry,”
    • Line 7: “And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves”
    • Line 8: “Trail with daisies and barley”
    • Line 9: “Down the rivers of the windfall light.”
    • Lines 10-11: “And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns / About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home,”
    • Lines 15-16: “And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves / Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold,”
    • Line 17: “And the sabbath rang slowly”
    • Line 18: “In the pebbles of the holy streams.”
    • Lines 19-20: “the hay / Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys,”
    • Line 22: “And fire green as grass.”
    • Line 25: “All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars”
    • Line 26: “ Flying with the ricks, and the horses”
    • Line 27: “Flashing into the dark.”
    • Lines 28-29: “a wanderer white / With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder”
    • Line 31: “The sky gathered again”
    • Line 32: “And the sun grew round that very day.”
    • Line 34: “the spellbound horses walking warm”
    • Line 35: “Out of the whinnying green stable”
    • Lines 37-38: “the gay house / Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long,”
    • Line 39: “In the sun born over and over,”
    • Line 41: “ the house high hay”

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “as I was young and easy,” “apple”
    • Line 2: “house,” “happy,” “the grass was green”
    • Line 3: “starry”
    • Line 4: “ Time let me”
    • Line 5: “Golden”
    • Line 6: “apple”
    • Line 10: “green and carefree”
    • Line 11: “happy,” “the farm”
    • Line 12: “the sun”
    • Line 13: “Time let me ”
    • Line 14: “Golden,” “the mercy of his means”
    • Line 15: “green and golden”
    • Line 19: “the sun,” “lovely”
    • Lines 19-20: “hay / Fields”
    • Line 20: “house”
    • Line 21: “lovely”
    • Line 22: “fire green as grass”
    • Line 23: “nightly,” “stars”
    • Line 24: “rode to sleep,” “farm”
    • Line 25: “the moon,” “stables”
    • Line 26: “horses”
    • Line 28: “the farm”
    • Line 31: “The sky”
    • Line 32: “the sun”
    • Line 34: “horses”
    • Line 35: “green,” “stable”
    • Line 36: “fields”
    • Line 38: “happy”
    • Line 39: “the sun”
    • Line 41: “the house high hay”
    • Line 42: “sky”
    • Line 44: “green and golden”
    • Line 48: “the moon”
    • Line 49: “riding to sleep”
    • Line 50: “the high fields”
    • Line 52: “as I was young and easy,” “the mercy of his means”
    • Line 53: “green and dying”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “boughs / About”
    • Lines 4-5: “climb /      Golden”
    • Lines 7-8: “leaves /           Trail”
    • Lines 8-9: “barley /      Down”
    • Lines 10-11: “barns / About”
    • Lines 13-14: “be /      Golden”
    • Lines 15-16: “calves / Sang”
    • Lines 17-18: “slowly /      In”
    • Lines 19-20: “hay / Fields”
    • Lines 20-21: “air /      And”
    • Lines 23-24: “stars / As”
    • Lines 25-26: “nightjars /      Flying”
    • Lines 26-27: “horses /           Flashing”
    • Lines 28-29: “white / With”
    • Lines 29-30: “all /      Shining”
    • Lines 33-34: “light / In”
    • Lines 34-35: “warm /      Out”
    • Lines 35-36: “stable /           On”
    • Lines 37-38: “house / Under”
    • Lines 42-43: “allows / In”
    • Lines 43-44: “songs /      Before”
    • Lines 44-45: “golden /           Follow”
    • Lines 46-47: “me / Up”
    • Lines 49-50: “sleep /      I”

  • Asyndeton

    

    

    

    

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    Where asyndeton appears in the poem:

    • Lines 2-3: “About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green, /      The night above the dingle starry,”
    • Lines 10-12: “And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns / About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home, /      In the sun that is young once only,”
    • Lines 15-16: “And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves / Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold,”
    • Lines 19-21: “All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay / Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air /      And playing, lovely and watery”
    • Lines 28-31: “like a wanderer white / With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all /      Shining, it was Adam and maiden, /           The sky gathered again”
    • Line 34: “In the first, spinning place, the spellbound horses walking warm”
    • Lines 40-41: “          I ran my heedless ways, /      My wishes raced through the house high hay”

  • Parallelism

    

    

    

    

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    Where parallelism appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “Now as I was young and easy under the apple boughs / About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green,”
    • Line 4: “Time let me hail and climb”
    • Line 5: “Golden in the heydays of his eyes,”
    • Line 6: “honoured among wagons”
    • Lines 10-11: “And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns / About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home,”
    • Line 13: “Time let me play and be”
    • Line 14: “Golden in the mercy of his means,”
    • Line 19: “All the sun long”
    • Line 25: “All the moon long”
    • Line 37: “honoured among foxes and pheasants”
    • Line 42: “And nothing I cared, at my sky blue trades, that time allows”
    • Line 46: “Nothing I cared, in the lamb white days, that time would take me”

• “Fern Hill” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Easy
  • Lilting
  • Dingle
  • Hail
  • Heydays
  • Honoured
  • Apple towns
  • Below a time
  • Lordly
  • Barley
  • Windfall
  • Mercy
  • Means
  • Huntsman
  • Herdsman
  • Calves
  • Horn
  • Sabbath
  • Hay fields
  • Tunes
  • Bearing
  • Nightjars
  • Ricks
  • Cock
  • Simple light
  • Spinning place
  • Spellbound
  • Whinnying
  • Pheasants
  • Gay
  • Heedless
  • Trades
  • Tuneful
  • Turning
  • Grace
  • Swallow
  • Thronged
  • (Location in poem: Line 1: “easy”)

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Fern Hill”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “Fern Hill” Speaker

• “Fern Hill” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “Fern Hill”

• More “Fern Hill” Resources

  • External Resources

    • More on Thomas's Life — A succinct biography from the Academy of American Poets.

    • The Dylan Thomas Center — Additional resources from the Dylan Thomas Center in Wales.

    • A Biography of Thomas — A more detailed biography of Dylan Thomas from the Poetry Foundation.

    • Thomas at the BBC — Resources on Dylan Thomas from the BBC, with whom Thomas often recorded readings.

    • Thomas Reading "Fern Hill" — Dylan Thomas reads "Fern Hill" in his deep, distinctive voice.

  • LitCharts on Other Poems by Dylan Thomas

    • A Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Fire, of a Child in London

    • Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

    • In My Craft or Sullen Art

    • Poem in October

    • The force that through the green fuse drives the flower

    • The Hand That Signed the Paper

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