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Innisfree

Historical Location
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A small island in Lough Gill, Ireland, immortalized by W.B. Yeats as a symbol of pastoral peace and the ideal of simple living; in poetry, it evokes a retreat from urban life into nature's tranquility.

Detailed Definition
Innisfree is the name of a small island in Lough Gill, County Sligo, Ireland. Yeats uses it as an emblem of solitude, nature, and escape from city life, so readers often need to identify the place to understand the poem’s setting and mood.
Example
Example in poetry:
Yeats, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree”: “I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree”; “And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made” develops Innisfree as a dreamed refuge; “Innisfree” names an island in Lough Gill, County Sligo, Ireland; Referencing Innisfree in a new poem can invoke solitude, simplicity, and the pull of an imagined home
Additional Notes
The proper name in the line is specific to Irish geography and is not self-explanatory to many readers.; Found in the poem, The Lake Isle of Innisfree by William Butler Yeats
Also Known As
Isle of Innisfree Innisfree Isle Innisfree Haven
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