The Lambs of Grasmere
During a flooded spring in Westmoreland, shepherds feed starving and orphaned lambs with teapots until they recover, play, and follow those who cared for them. The speaker honors the shepherds and lambs and vows never to forget them.
By Christina Georgina Rossetti · Genre: Narrative Poetry, Animal Poetry · 314 words
First lines
1860.
The upland flocks grew starved and thinned: / Their shepherds scarce could feed the lambs / Whose milkless mothers butted them, / Or who were orphaned of their dams. / The lambs athirst for mother's milk / Filled all the place with piteous sounds: / Their mothers' bones made white for miles / The pastureless wet pasture grounds.
Genres
- Narrative Poetry — Four rhymed stanzas follow the lambs from starvation through repeated feeding to recovery and the speaker's pledge of remembrance.
- Animal Poetry — The verses describe hungry lambs, their responses to the shepherds' care, and their renewed strength and play.
Tags
lambs · shepherds · animal care · flooding · Westmoreland
What this Textopian page supports
The Lambs of Grasmere is listed on Textopian as a poem by Christina Georgina Rossetti, dated Date unknown.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Christina Georgina Rossetti
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Narrative Poetry, Animal Poetry
- Length: 314 words
- Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
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