Hum of Insects

The essayist brings out the differences between bee and wasp on one hand and mosquito on the other. For him a mosquito is an unscrupulous enemy and it attacks without waiting to be attacked. It is always in search for its prey for blood without any consideration whether it is a gentleman or a person ready to use violence. However bee and wasp are noble creatures for they don’t harm anyone without being harmed. The worst thing about these insects is that they can’t discriminate one human being and another and for that reason when they retaliate, they don’t see whether it is the same creature or person who had harmed them. Despite its crossness, morally the bee is far higher in the scale than the mosquito as it gives honey and helps in multiplying the various kinds of fruits while helping in the process of pollination. It loves to live an inoffensive, quiet and peaceful life.

Lynd then expounds how to avoid a sting of a wasp in the bedroom. He says the infallible preventive is to lie down quietly and holding one’s breath. There is every possibility for the wasp to enter the ears but fortunately this question does not arise practically as bees and wasps are in the habit of nocturnal rest.

Lynd changes his tone from humorous to seriousness. He tells that the hum of insects, the noise of sea and the sound of birds are quite appealing to the human beings. He finds some close resemblance of the rhythm of their music with his breath and blood. Man loves life and the rhythm of nature’s music find a ready echo in his heart. He also feels that he has become a part of the cosmic or universal music.

The hum of insects has one more advantage according to Lynd. It reminds man of his childhood days when everything was so peaceful, so serene, so beautiful and so innocent. It reminds man of the springs and summers of the yester years. It also brings to him the reminiscences of those carefree days when the world seemed such a beautiful place to live in amidst nature and her wonderful creatures. Lynd says that we do not remember any of our toys so intensely as we remember the garden and the farm and that’s the main reason why the world shall always remain the chief toy to a child.

From the child Robert Lynd moves on to the adults and says that it is possible for adults to feel as happy as a child, to see the lighter side of life only if they take a child-like interest in watching the things that inhabit the earth. The world is like a musical top to him then. But the illusion of a happier world comes to an end very soon when the man is reminded of the ugly realities like making a phone call or reading a newspaper or writing a letter . To man then the world turns out to be a stuffy room , a run down machine , a problem.