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There's a family nobody likes to meet;
They live, it is said, on Complaining Street
In the city of Never-Are-Satisfied,
The River of Discontent beside.
They live, it is said, on Complaining Street
In the city of Never-Are-Satisfied,
The River of Discontent beside.
They growl at that and they growl at this;
Whatever comes, there is something amiss;
And whether their station be high or humble,
They are all known by the name of Grumble.
Explanation:
L.M Montgomery is a poet known for using wit and humour in her poems. The poem 'The Grumble Family' is also one such poem that humorously portrays a family that always grumbles despite being blessed with abundance. The poet sarcastically talks about people who do not live in peace with what they have. Some people only focus on the negative and what they do not have, or what they could have gained more. The poet focuses on the theme of gratitude and the peaceful life that comes along with it. She personifies grumble and gives it a fancy family to portray this thought.
Montgomery introduces this family in the first stanza by giving a negative shade to them. She says that there is a family that nobody likes to talk to. It makes the readers wonder as to what the family must have probably done to earn the wrath of everyone equally. It is not just one family member that people do not talk to, but the entire family. The family represents the entire group of people who always keep complaining and being negative. They live in the street called the complaining street. Rather than saying plainly that the family is complaining, the poet makes it wittier by associating streets, houses and lanes with the family to embody their personality. They live in the city called 'Never-Are-Satisfied', which is their approach to life. They are never satisfied with whatever they get. They become greedy and ask for more. A river called discontent runs beside their house, showing they are discontent with life. When one is not satisfied, there is always a darkness that is attached to their life. This makes them live a discontented life.
They were not satisfied with anything
The family literally growls at this and that, showing that they do not need a reason to complain. Even if there is no reason, they make one up from the existing experiences and start growling about it. The word growl itself shows that they have an animalistic approach to life. No matter how big or worthy they receive things; something is amiss for them. For example, if they have a house, they would complain that they do not have a mansion. If they have a mansion, they would complain about not having enough luxuries in it. It did not matter whether their stage was high or humble; they would not stop grumbling.
They growled about everything
Words with difficult meaning:
| S.No | Words | Meaning |
1 | Sarcastic | To mock in a witty way |
2 | Discontent | Not happy or satisfied |
3 | Growl | To complain and make noise about everything |
4 | Amiss | Things gone wrong |
5 | Humble | Very simple and moderate |
6 | Station | A resting place |
7 | Witty | Funny in a clever way |
Reference:
State Council of Educational Research and Training 2019. Term 1 English Standard - 10. The Grumble Family - L.M. Montgomery (pp. 45 -49). Published by the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation.
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