Choose ONE of Wordsworth's poems from the packet ("We are Seven," "Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey," "Nutting," or "Lines Written in Early Spring"), and choose three lines (or three small line groupings) to dissect (meaning analyze inside-out).
Analyze for wording, literary elements, symbols, themes, Romantic elements, direct connections with the preface to Lyrical Ballads and more.
See my example, and be sure to sign your name!
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"Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey"
ReplyDelete"But oft, in lonely rooms, and 'mid the din / of towns and cities, I have owed to them / in hours of weariness, sensations sweet, / Felt in the blood, and felt along the heart; / And passing even into my purer mind..." (25-9)
After five years away from this cherished place overlooking the ruins of Tintern Abbey, Wordsworth reflects that despite the time away, this scene and his memories of his times there have never been far from his mind's eye. For Wordsworth, the memory of this place that he is visiting again has been a touchstone, a comforter against the chaos and loneliness of city life. He states that often "in lonely rooms" and amid "the din of towns and cities" he is rejuvinated by memories of his time in this beautiful, tranquil, natural place. This isolation and loneliness amid the city's populous clearly connects with the Romantic themes of isolation and the escape from modernity that nature can provide. For Wordsworth not only senses the memories in his now "purer mind" (made unsullied by recollections of the natural world), but also in his heart and "in the blood." This place above Tintern Abbey is truly a part of him, psychologically and physically: it is his life-blood. As stated in the Preface, Wordsworth writes in the common language of men, prose-like, with no artifice. He writes from his heart and soul.
"While here I stand, not only with the sense / Of present pleasure, but with pleasing thoughts / That in this moment there is life and food / For future years" (61-4).
What I love about this excerpt is Wordsworth's consciousness of the breadth of a moment. He stands again at this spot he visited five years before, one which has provided him psychological, emotional, and even physical sustenance for those five years, and has cognizance of not just the moment of here and now, but also of how he is consciously forming a memory. He speaks of layers of memory and experience. What we live is not just of the present, but of the past and even the future, too. Wordsworth is so thoughtfully aware that he knows "that in this moment there is life and food for future years". Again, this is simple and straignt forward in writing style. It reads as beautiful prose with a metaphor of memories being "food" for the future. This is personal and emotional, but it also connects with my life by making me more aware of the moments that I carry with myself, and those that I should be even more "in the moment for."
"...The anchor of my purest thoughts, the nurse, / The guide, the guardian of my heart, and soul / Of all my moral being" (109-111)
I chose this passage because it is the culmination of a powerfully cadenced list of appreciation for the spirit and sublimity of the natural world. Wordsworth's words before this quote roil and roll like a turbulent sea of rhythmic intensity, and then it comes to a halt with metaphors that are simple and striking to emphasize his point. He states that nature is "the anchor of [his] purest thoughts," holding him steady and sure in the ocean of humanity. It is also "the nurse" which nurtures and heals and "the guide" for his heart and mind. Finally, nature is "the guardian of [his] heart, and soul." This last phrase sums up his appreciation for the spirit of nature as a mentor and protector. For Wordsworth, like most Romantics, nature is his parent, teacher, and even his god.
-Ms. Coppens
"Seven Are We"
ReplyDelete"She had a rustic and woodland air, /And she was wildly clad;" (9-10).
This is from the very beginning of the poem when he first meets the little girl. I thought that this description of her was very interesting and Romantic. It describes her as having very nature-like qualities. This is not only a Romantic theme of nature but also a message that we are all connected with nature and should all follow our basic nature. It also sets up the character for the rest of the poem (when it calls her wild), giving slight foreshadowing of how she has dealt with the deaths of her siblings quite well.
""And there on the ground I sit, /And sing a song to them" (43-44).
I thought that this part of the poem where the girl is telling him about her dead brother and sister very fascinating. It tells of how she goes to their graves everyday (which are right outside her house) and has a fun time pretending they are there and playing on their graves and singing to them. At first this might seem quite sad. But it is put in a cheerful light because the girl still has faith that they are with her even in spirit. This emphasizes the Romantics belief in a higher power and the supernatural.
"But they are dead; those two are dead! /Their spirits are in heaven! /...Nay, we are seven!" (65-69).
This quote is the most significant in my opinion. It appears at the very end of the poem when the man is puzzled about why the girl says there are seven siblings if there are two that are dead. The girl still insists that there are seven of them because she doesn't believe that they are truly gone. They will always be with her in some way. Just because someone is dead does mean that they are any less important than they were in life. This again demonstrates the Romantic theme of a higher power that influences life. The two dead siblings still hold a special place in their sister’s life because they are still her siblings and are important to her.
-Allison
Lines Written in Early Spring
ReplyDelete"In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts/Bring sad thoughts to mind" (3-4).
The contradiction in this passage made me pause when reading. "when pleasant thoughts/Bring sad thoughts" brings a sense of confusion. How can happy thoughts bring on sad thoughts? This poem is speaking of nature and how man has come to destroy what there once was. The speakers "sweet mood" is brought on by the nature surrounding and the speaker thinks of the wonderful nature. Then the speaker recalls that the world is now taken over by man. This "pleasant thought" has been removed all over the world and replaced by society. Making the speakers "pleasant thought" turn to "sad thoughts"
"To her fair works did nature link/The human soul that through me ran;" (5-6).
This passage speaks of mother nature, personifying nature. The passage says that mother nature did a good job linking the human soul to nature. Being surrounded by nature now, the speaker feels that connection with nature and it is alive and well. I liked how the poet used the word link because it is a connection between nature and man which makes them seem equal. Although, nature is no longer equal to man, man has overrun nature and mother natures "fair work" has been destroyed.
"And much it griev'd me my heart to think/What man has made of man" (7-8)
This passage is directly after the last passage posted. The speaker goes from a strong sense of connection to the forest to a grieving state. The quote "What man has made of man" is used twice in this poem. It indicates the fall of man and the continuous downfall of man. The speaker feels guilty for what has become of the world that nature once controlled. Man has only himself to blame for man's downfall. The mood goes from a happy, uplifting feeling of connection to nature; to a gloomy, guilty feeling of man's faults.
Kelsey G.
"Lines Written in Early Spring"
ReplyDelete"I heard a thousand blended notes/While in a grove I sate reclined" (1-2)
These two lines start off Wordsworth's poem, “Lines Written in Early Spring.” I find this passage to be striking, portraying many Romantic elements and connections to the preface of Lyrical Ballads. The speaker is described as comfortably sitting outside and peacefully listening to the sounds of nature around him. He is in tune to the many spirits and the rhythm of nature: to the "thousand blended notes" that surround him. In the preface to this collection of poems, Wordsworth often describes a beautiful yet ironic unity between man and nature, and these two lines verify this idea. The Romantics also felt as though this statement was valid. Often times the most beautiful and precious things in life were not those that are materialistic, but rather natural. The speaker obviously sees this place where he is reclined as both a haven and refuge from society.
"To her fair works did nature link/The human soul that through me ran" (5-6)
This passage stresses this overshadowing idea of a brotherhood between humans and nature. Although the speaker is acknowledging that he is indeed a human, he is simultaneously acknowledging that there is a definite link between himself and the natural world around him. In addition, he personifies nature, calling it "her." This subtle change in pronoun shows the speaker's opinion on nature's identity. He sees it as a woman, perhaps alluding to the idea of Mother Nature. This means that he says nature as more than just a thing, but rather a living collection of spirits.
"And 'tis my faith that every flower/Enjoys the air it breathes" (11-2)
In this excerpt, I see Wordsworth saying a lot, both about nature and its contrast with mankind. The speaker is personifying the flower, saying that it "every flower enjoys the air it breathes." He is giving the flower humanlike qualities and emotions. This set of lines can also be seen as insight into the speaker's opinion of humans. Humans get so caught up in life that often they forget just how lucky they are. They take the simplest things for granted, like having air to breathe. By being outside of society, and outside of man's control, these flowers, as well as the rest of nature, are able to live unperturbed, enjoying the little freedoms they have and not taking a single thing for granted.
-Kelsey F.
"We are Seven"
ReplyDelete"That lightly draws its breath/And feels its life in every limb/What should it know of death"(1-3)
I liked this quote because it really gave an overview to the purpose of the poem. Before initially reading the poem, it seems that Wordsworth is simply commenting that vivacious, living beings should not know about death. However, after reading the poem and reflecting, it seems that the young girl is almost a comparison to a mother nature figure. What should nature in its purest form know of death? Seasons cycle through, and after the harshness of the winter ends, life begins anew. To the child, her dead siblings will always be there for her, just like there will always be a new spring. The optimism and liveliness of the child is refreshing here.
"Seven are we/And two of us at Conway dwell/And two are gone to sea"(18-20)
Building off what Allison said, the point of view of the child seems very bizarre and naive to the questioner. I found it very interesting that when he first asks her about her family, she does not even mention that two of her siblings are dead until the second stanza, almost her afterthought. This really emphasizes the Romantic notion of unique, individual perspective. I feel like her perspective is influenced by the nature around her in her daily life.
"You run about, my little Maid,/Your limbs they are alive/If two are in the church-yard laid/Then ye are only five"(33-36).
The phrase I want to focus on in this quote is "Your limbs they are alive," because I feel there is a double meaning to it. I again related this to the girl's likeness to Mother Nature. The word limbs remind me of a tree's limbs. This language is metaphorical for the child's undeniable naturalistic personality. In a way, I feel that narrator envies the child for her simple outlook on life, and I feel this passage exemplifies how even strangers can sense her naturalistic tendencies.
-Shelby
Nutting
ReplyDeleteA virgin scene!-- A little while I stood,/(21)
This line is crucial in Wordsworth's story for the basic concept that it conveys about Nature. This ideal of the Romantic era created and truly defined by Wordsworth is shown in this given line. To Wordsworth, Nature is as innocent and beautiful as a virgin, untouched by sin and adultery. The untouched clearing Wordsworth stumbles upon is alike to viewing a pure and beautiful virgin because of the appreciation and personification Wordsworth gives Nature.
Voluptuous, fearless of rival, eyed/the banquest;(24)
In this line Wordsworth goes on to further describe and detail the personification of Nature as though it were a beautiful, young virgin. To Wordsworth, an appreciator of Nature and one who truly understood the power of Nature in a time of Industrialization and exploitation that Nature is "fearless of rival".
My dear, dear Sister! and this prayer I make,/Knowing that Nature never did betray/ The heart that loved her;(121)
Again Wordsworth continues his development of the personification of Nature by referring to Nature as his "Sister". With just the slightest suggestion of incest, Wordsworth again pushes the fact that love for Nature and the love of the motherly beauty of Nature is universal. The "virgin" comparison to Nature is created by Wordsworth in this poem to affect all readers with the image and notion of Mother or "sister" Nature. Wordsworth uses humanist views and the universal connection of Human emotion to further the appreciation of Nature and understanding of the reader.
XOXO,
Gossip Girl
(Dan McNulty)
LINES WRITTEN IN EARLY SPRING.
ReplyDelete"In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts/ Bring sad thoughts to the mind(3-4)."
This poem immediately makes you imagine Wordsworth in a complete state of serenity. He is relaxed and taking in all the peacefulness and power nature offers. The line I chose however, interupts this fairytale scene. Along with these luxurious feelings, Wordsworth experiences strong feelings of anxiety. The world outside of the one he is in stirs up anger.
"And much it griev'd me my heart to think/ What man has made of man(7-8)."
The purity Wordsworth observes in nature is scarce in the world he knows. Nature serves as a constant reminder to him that the world he sustains himself in is one where money and possessions are the decree of man. This line illustrates how he is a very contentious person who is moved greatly by these sort of things.
"The birds around me hopp'd and play'd:/ Their thoughts I cannot measure,/ But the least motion which they made,/ It seem'd a thrill of pleasure(13-16)."
The way he describes the birds "hopping" and "playing" and yet getting the greatest amount of pleasure out of it, seems juvenile in a sense. Nature is always bright and content like a child. Wordsworth acknowledges and appreciates how easily employed nature is and wishes mankind could act the same way. He repetitively inquires how man got to be the way it is. We rob eachother of happiness and have become our own enemies.
-Amanda R
We Are Seven
ReplyDelete"A Simple Child,
That lightly draws its breath,
And feels its life in every limb,
What should it know of death?"
This is the first stanza in the poem "We are seven" by William Wordsworth. This stanza is what sets up the mood for the poem. In the poem the older speaker does not believe that children know anything about death, which is shown by the fourth line. The man calls the young girl "a simple child" showing how he looks down upon children as being unknowing and immature. The man then goes on to ask "what should it know of death?" which shows once again that he believes that children do not have the intelligence to understand death.
""Their graves are green, they may be seen,"
The little Maid replied,
"Twelve steps or more from my mother's door,
And they are side by side.""
This stanza is my favorite. The little girl is talking about how she can see the graves from the door at her mother's house. She describes the graves as being green and during this description, its almost as if she sees it as being a beautiful thing. That the grave is always in sight meaning that it will always be in her mind. She is also very precise about the number of steps that they are away from her mother's doorsteps. She claims that there are twelve steps which is actually 7 (the number of children) plus 5 (the number of children that are alive) which was pointed out to me by Annalise during class. That i believe is the most interesting part of the poem.
""How many are you, then," said I,
"If they two are in heaven?"
Quick was the little Maid's reply,
"O Master! we are seven.""
This stanza sums up the poem pretty well. The young girl refuses to admit that there are five like the man wants her too and she insists that there are still seven. This desire to keep the spirits of the two children that died alive is very strong. This goes back to the Romantic motif of children being very wise and innocent. This girl knows that her brother and sister had both once lived and that as long as she keeps them in her heart that there will always be seven children even if only five are tangible.
-{[Nicole LaBelle]}-
"Nutting"
ReplyDelete"I came to one nook/Unvisited, where not a broken bough" (16-17)
This line in the poem describes the narrator as finding the unscathed section of forest in which he can do his nutting. However, when compared to the previous lines describing the rest of the forest, this place seems pure and divine. Although not very apparent at that particular point in the poem, at a second glance, the "broken bough" could be a reference to virginity and purity. This "pure" section of woods is what every good "nutter" would seek out and enjoy.
"And dragged to earth both branch and bough, with crash/And merciless ravaged" (44-45)
This scene in the poem is where the narrator becomes increasingly violent towards the forest. Continuing with the metaphor, the "branch and bough" are destroyed. As previously stated, these things were used to symbolize purity. If the narrator was speaking of a woman instead of the forest, it would sound exactly like a rape scene. This is showed when Wordsworth describes his "merciless ravage". At first, the whole situation seemed consentual, but it soon became harsh and destructive when the narrator gets carried away.
"I felt a sense of pain when I beheld/The silent trees, and saw the intruding sky"(52-53)
These two lines of the poem are showing the narrator's note of what he had done to the beautiful landscape. Wordsworth says that he "felt a sense of pain" when he finally noticed that he had gotten carried away. He also describes the natures hatred and disappointment in the narrator for the uncontrolled destruction and metaphorical "rape" of the scene. These two lines also show the narrator learning from his mistake that he made in ruining the purity of the "virgin lanscape" that he had described at the beginning of the poem. The drastic change in opinion very closely resembles the purity of a virgin human, and how nature can feel the same emotions that humans have.
-Jeff B
We Are Seven
ReplyDelete"'Their graves are green, they may be seen,'
The little Maid replied,
'Twelve steps or more from my mother's door,
And they are side by side."
The man that this little girl is talking about can not seem to get the fact the the little girl truly believes that her brother and sister are still their with her although they are dead. The man says "their graves are green" which hints at the Romantic theme of nature. It makes it seem as though he believes that the children are gone and have become a part of the earth again. This also hints at how the little girl and the man have very different views on what life truly is after death.
"Till God released her of her pain;
And then she went away."
I found this as a very interesting way of explaining the death of the little girls sister. This makes it seem as though it was almost a good thing that her sister had passed away rather than what most people would think of being a bad thing. I also found it interesting that she phrased it as "going away" rather than dying, which leaves the reader with the sense that the girl believes that her sister will be coming back and is not gone forever.
"'But they are dead; those two are dead!
Their spirits are in heaven!"
This passage shows the difference between what the man and what the little girl believe death is. The man still can not get over the fact that the little girl beleives that although her sister and brother have "[gone] away" they are still there in spirit. On the contrary the man believes that they are dead and that she can not still be with them and that it is impossible that there are still seven of them in the family.
-Haley
"WE ARE SEVEN"
ReplyDelete"Their graves are green, they may be seen,"
The little Maid replied,
"Twelve steps or more from my mother's door, And they are side by side.
This is the young girl's response to Wordsworth's telling her that her 'limbs are alive' unlike her dead siblings. The girl says, you can see them, they're there, and their graves are covered in green, in life. They are not far away; they're still home (twelve steps or more from my mother's door) and they're still together, side by side, they're still family. This, and even the rest of the poem, shows the child as more wise than the man--although she cannot fully comprehend death, she can see it in a way that adults can't, something beyond them and I believe this is a Romantic trait...It's ironic that it says in the beginning "a simple child," and she is simple, but this shows her simplicity to be almost a complex insight beyond a full grown man's capacity...although to her it's just, they're there, I see them, they're still my family.
"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."
What's interesting about how Wordsworth replies to the girl is that he seems to be somewhat amused...part of this is how he acts in front of a child but there's a kind of amusement I think in that he pursues the disagreement as long as he does and thought her answer to his questions a wonder. This goes along with the pleaure/pain...pleasure in sympathy he was referring to in 'preface to lyrical ballads'
"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"
I picked out that she says 'us' instead of them. Though they are dead, she counts them as one of her own kind and herself as one of theirs...alive, I mean. They're still counted in the number, 7. And still her sister, still her brother. There's something about this that makes me think that it's showing some greater unification, of people...but my brain is moving at a snail pace so can't think of much reason why at the moment...
And some irony...the young girl dwells with her mother, an older person who you'd think is closer to dying than two of her young ones, yet she hangs around there with her daughter...the dead children and the mother and daughter are in the same place, but two lie and two are dwelling...
"We are Seven"
ReplyDelete"I met a little cottage Girl:/She was eight years old, she said" (5-6).
These two lines exhibit a few of Wordsworth's common themes. He uses "I" setting himself as the subject and narrator of the poem. The little cottage Girl represents a simple common person, and common life was used as a theme in many of Wordsworth's works. In addition, the language used is clearly simplistic, yet another common trait of Wordsworth's writings.
"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" (24-28).
The narrator is confounded by the girl's insistence that she has six other siblings (seven including her). Again, the language is simple, and Wordsworth using himself as a subject. This poem also allows the reader to decide for him or herself as to whether the girl is naive or wise. In the preface, he mentioned that poems should be able to read, interpreted, and judged in many different ways. Also, he wrote that peoms should represent the thoughts and feelings of normal people. The girl and narrator represent two differing but common thoughts. Some people believe the dead people "live" on, while others would argue that they are dead and gone.
"'Twas throwing words away;for still/The little Maid would have her will" (67-68).
The Maid is adamant that there are seven children in the family, and the narrator is unable to convince her otherwise. Because they are always so close to her (both in terms of location and spiritually), she considers them to be very much alive. Probably even more so than the four other siblings that are either at an academy or away at sea. Because Wordsworth would even bother writing a poem about this, it would seem that society was devoid of views like the girl's. That human uniqueness is yet another aspect of Romantic Literature, the start of which can be accredited to Wordsworth, and which blossomed from these roots and erupted into a full-blown literary period, lingering on like a child at a candy store (I tried).
"We Are Seven"
ReplyDelete"She had a rustic, woodland air, And she was wildly clad," (9-10)
This line in Wordsworth's poem shows a few signs Romanticism. The heaviest influence in this passage is on nature. Wordsworth describes the girl as having a "rustic, woodland air" when the narrator firsts meets the girl. This shows that she is a child living in a rustic area and because of this, she can have a more direct connection to nature. Since she has this more direct connection with nature, the narrator describes her as being "wildly clad". The wildness of nature that many Romantics emphasized is manifested in this little girl.
"Two of us in the church-yard lie, My sister and my brother," (21-22)
This passage is another emphasis of the connection with nature that the seven children have. These children being buried in the ground shows that they are now a part of one of the refuges that nature provides. Being in the "church-yard" not only connects them with nature, but it also connects them with god. The supernatural was a common Romantic element and this passage is an example of it. It also relates to the poem "Thanatopsis" because the little girl refers to her siblings as "two of us". This is showing that they are all equal among nature's standards, which was a point that Bryant tried to emphasize in his poem.
"Their graves are green, they may be seen,"
(37)
I believe that this line had a lot of symbolism connecting to the equality of all beings in nature. "The graves are green" shows that nature ignored the mark of humanity that the graves represented. It grew over these graves and made the children a part of nature. A few lines after, the child says "...they may be seen...Twelve steps or more from my mother's door." I believe that this quote tried to emphasize that as soon as you got outside, you would be looking at the grave of these two children. The specific spot was no longer their grave but instead it was nature as a whole that they were a part of.
Kyle S.
am unable to understand your assignment
ReplyDelete