SUMMARY: The speaker of the poem is a small boy who was sold into the chimney-sweeping business when his mother died. He recounts the story of a fellow chimney sweeper, Tom Dacre, who cried when his hair was shaved to prevent vermin and soot from infesting it. The speaker comforts Tom, who falls asleep and has a dream or vision of several chimney sweepers all locked in black coffins. An angel arrives with a special key that opens the locks on the coffins and sets the children free. The newly freed children run through a green field and wash themselves in a river, coming out clean and white in the bright sun. The angel tells Tom that if he is a good boy, he will have this paradis e for his own. When Tom awakens, he and the speaker gather their tools and head out to work, thinking that one day they would have a better life. VOCABULARY IN USE scarcely: hardly, none chimney: smoke tract, pipe soot: dirt, stain shaved: cut off, clear locked up: confined, caged coffin: to
Welcome to Nepal's pioneering academic blog, a dedicated resource for students at the Intermediate, Bachelor's, and Master's levels. While this blog provides reference notes, it is strongly recommended that users consult the original texts for the most accurate understanding. The content here reflects the writer's personal interpretation, so summaries may be incomplete or occasionally misleading. Please be aware of these limitations when copying or downloading notes.