How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #1
——A simple Child,
That lightly draws its breath,
And feels its life in every limb,
What should it know of death? (1-4)
The poem begins with an abstract question: what can "a simple Child"—presumably young and innocent—possibly understand about the Great Beyond? Hmm, we're not sure. Do we have anything to learn from kids? Let's read on, and find out.
Quote #2
"And where are they? I pray you tell."
She answered, "Seven are we;
And two of us at Conway dwell,
And two are gone to sea."Two of us in the church-yard lie,
My sister and my brother;
And, in the church-yard cottage, I
Dwell near them with my mother." (17-24)
Here we find out that the little girl has six siblings: they are seven altogether. Two are off to sea (we hope they are pirates), two are in Conway, and two lie in the church-yard—which means, ya know, that they are dead.
Quote #3
"You say that two at Conway dwell,
And two are gone to sea,
Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,
Sweet Maid, how this may be." (25-28)
The speaker disagrees with what the girl has to say about her siblings. He counts up the (living) children and only gets to five. How can the siblings be "seven" when two are dead? For the speaker, the dead don't count.