Is Reading Enough?
0/6/03 Dominick Vargas Is Reading Enough? Lyrical Ballads was an experimental book of poems written by William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge in the late seventeen hundreds. This book of poems was called experimental because the style it was written in was unlike anything of that time. In this collection of poems is a poem written by Wordsworth called "The Tables Turned." At first glance of this poem, one can assume that this is an anti-intellectual poem. Reason for this is in the opening paragraph when the speaker in the poem tells his friend to, "quit his books." So why would Wordsworth and Coleridge write a book against books? For starters, this poem is against conventional learning. The person that is being spoken to in this paper is probably a common person who at that time is under the notion that you can learn everything and anything from a book. The speaker of the poem calls books a "dull and endless strife." This line must have sound as absurd then as it does now. In each semester of college so far, I am averaging about 10 books a semester that I have to read, which does gives the impression of endless. However, there are a countless number of books in the world, each with its own set of knowledge and information. So can books be considered dull? To top it all off, he goes on to say, "Come, here the woodland linnet / how sweet his music; on my life /
Write about the importance of memory in Wordsworth's "Daffodils" and Clarke's "Miracle on St. David's Day".
Write about the importance of memory in Wordsworth's "Daffodils" and Clarke's "Miracle on St. David's Day" The first of the two poems, Wordsworth's "Daffodils" is about a man remembering that some daffodils cheered him up one day. The poem starts off with the person being described as a cloud and how he slowly joins a "host" of "golden" daffodils. But the reader does not know at first that this poem is actually a memory until further down in the poem. Throughout the poem Wordsworth refers back to the daffodils and makes a connection with other things like them such as stars. Wordsworth also depicts how the daffodils "dance". In the last verse the reader finally finds out that the poem is a recollection. Whilst the second of the two poems, "Miracle on St. David's Day" written by Gillian Clarke is about a mentally ill patient reciting Wordsworth's "Daffodils" in front of a crowd of other patients and daffodils. From the title "Miracle on St. David's Day" it is revealed to the reader what this poem is about. It is obvious that a miracle is the main point of the poem, meaning something holy yet unexpected. The poem starts off in a very positive setting "among the cedars and enormous oaks" but by the second verse the reader finds out that Clarke is, in reality, describing an Insane Asylum. The poet describes herself "reading poetry to the insane" as she does a "huge and
Discuss the ways in which the extract evokes the beauty and the power of the landscape of Lake District.
Nicki Hewitt-Stubbs 14th December 2001 Discuss the ways in which the extract evokes the beauty and the power of the landscape of Lake District. The extract that we are studding was written by Wordsworth in 1805, while the Battle of Trafalgar was going on, is The Stolen Boat, which was published after he died. It is an extract about a childhood experience, and particularly about a moment of epiphany, which he had. A sudden realisation of the magical scenery around him. The whole poem is about when he stole a shepherds boat and went out on to the lake with it, and then it became scared and returned. He begins the poem by talking about a godlike figure, and almost as if he is discussing a religious matter but at the same time that he is talking about nature, and how it came, about and praising it's existence. He then almost changes his style totally. He then begins in narrative and begins to tell the story of when he was a young boy and went to the lake district and saw a shepherds boat that he stole, and went out on to the lake with. He then discusses the fear that he began to feel, and also explained to a pint how that fear came about and why he felt it. We can see that the light has begun to fade and so with the shadows and shapes his eyes and mind begin to play with his childlike emotions. The way that he personificates the poem is very clever as he uses nature to show
How does Wordsworth convey a London of light, life and liberty in the poem Composed upon Westminster Bridge?
How does Wordsworth convey a London of light, life and liberty in the poem Composed upon Westminster Bridge? William Wordsworth (1770-1850) wrote the poem entitled "Composed upon Westminster Bridge" on 3rd September 1802 after his first visit to London in July of the same year. Along with his sister Dorothy he passed through London on his way to France to visit his former lover (and mother to his daughter Caroline) Annette Vallon, prior to his marriage to Mary Hutchinson. Due to his impending marriage to Mary and his subsequent visit to France, it may be read that perhaps Wordsworth's emotions were high as he and his sister passed over Westminster Bridge by coach on their way to Dover for the crossing to Calais. This impression of Wordsworth's lifted spirits is felt in the tone of the poem, which shows London infused with light, a beating heart of freedom, reaching out to the four corners of the civilised world and pulsing with life. He shows the city as an impression, not necessarily of what he actually sees, but as a reflection of the natural beauty of the summer's day, iridescent in the brilliance of the morning light. However, Dorothy's journal (from which we glean an insight into Wordsworth's earlier poetry) notes that in September 1802 their return home through London from France took place late in the evening, on a misty day when they "could see nothing."
Lyrical Ballads
How do the poems 'We are seven', 'Anecdote for fathers' and 'The idiot boy' reflect Romantics beliefs about childhood Children were severely abused during the 18th century; they were used, by the poor, as a means to money through child labour or prostitution. The industrial revolution saw children working long hours with the extremely dangerous machinery and equipment in the factories. The infant mortality rates were also very high during the 18th century. The romantics saw childhood as the most important period of time in a person's life where one is closest to nature than he would ever be through his innocence and spirituality. Wordsworth shows how much one can learn from children through his poem 'Anecdote for fathers'. The father feels he could not 'teach the hundredth part' of what he learns from his child, here we see the Romantic's beliefs of equality, where the commonly impotent child has actually taught his father, an adult, the lie that is born from love. The use of 'hundredth' exemplifies the extent of knowledge that the child has passed on to the father, which is the art of lying born in love and sensitivity. From this the child has taught the father the innocent, if not pure, form of lying which seems so alien to the brutal and sinful lying in the adult world, Wordsworth seems to highlight this with the extent of the fathers astonishment at his child. The
English essay about Worthwords
'Strange fits of passion have I known' Strange fits of passion I have known, And I will dare to tell, But in the Lover's ear alone, What once to me befell. When she I loved, was strong and gay And like a rose in June, I to her cottage bent my way, Beneath an evening moon. Upon the moon I fixed my eye, All over the wide lea; 10 With quickening pace my horse drew nigh Those paths so dear to me. st stanza - I have had strange fits of passion that I would only describe them in my lover's ear, what once happened to me. The opening line of the poem suggests that Wordsworth has a craze idea of his lover being dead that his mind has adjust too. Wordsworth has been a victim of his strange fits of passion and he will only describe them in his lover's ear alone. Here Wordsworth is overcome and defeated by passionate fits of thought and realizing of how horrifying it would be if she, his lover, were dead. The "strange fits", something eccentric or unjustified, which Wordsworth is relating to is the terrible and frightening thought of his lover dying. Here we can see that Wordsworth is portraying his transcending human fears and he is relating to his own fears against immortality. 2nd stanza- When the girl I loved was strong and happy, "like a rose in June" (an image of beauty), I would go to her cottage under the evening moon. He
Differences and Similarities Between Coleridge and Wordsworth Concerning People's Relationship to Nature
Differences and Similarities Between Coleridge and Wordsworth Concerning People's Relationship to Nature Although Wordsworth and Coleridge are both romantic poets, they describe nature in different ways. Coleridge underlines the tragic, supernatural and sublime aspect of nature, while Wordsworth uses anecdotes of everyday life and underlines the serene aspect of nature. In order to imply a connection between nature and the human mind, Wordsworth uses the technique of identification and comparison whereas Coleridge does the opposite in "The Ancient Mariner" and "Kubla Khan". Both admire nature's healing strength and hope that their children will grow up in a natural environment instead of growing up in cities. For Wordsworth nature seems to sympathise with the love and suffering of the persona. The landscape is seen as an interior presence rather than an external scene. His idea is that emotions are reflected in the tranquillity of nature. On the contrary, Coleridge says that poetry is clearly distinguished from nature. Reading the poems of both Wordsworth and Coleridge, one immediately notes a difference in the common surroundings presented by Wordsworth and the bizarre creations of Coleridge. Thus they develop their individual attitudes towards life. I will look at differences and similarities concerning people's relationship to nature in poems by Coleridge and
Explore the connections and differences between 'Miracle on St. David's Day' and 'Daffodils'.
Explore the connections and differences between 'Miracle on St. David's Day' and 'Daffodils' 'Daffodils' was written by William Wordsworth approximately a century before 'Miracle on St. David's Day' was written by Gillian Clarke. Due to this, the poems differ greatly in their style and language. Observing the poems at first glance, it is obvious that they also contrast in content, however at greater depth, the connections between them are made obvious. In this essay, I will be discussing the connections and differences between the two poems. The daffodil is the national symbol of Wales; it represents hope, joy and celebration. Both of the poets make this markedly palpable using this as a theme for their poems. In 'Miracle on St. David's Day' daffodils are mentioned at the beginning and end of the poem, carrying significance as it is they that remind the '...big, dumb labouring man...' of a time when he had something to say. The man speaks for the first time in forty years, reciting the poem 'Daffodils' implying that this is what he has to say: the joy and hope evoked in him by both the daffodils that he sees and the poem 'Daffodils'. Wordsworth is less subtle is his regard of daffodils, his poem is more conspicuous in portraying the '...fluttering...dancing...jocund...' daffodils as they fill his heart with pleasure and this image of the daffodils is the same throughout
Commentary of "I wandered lonely as a cloud".
Commentary of "I wandered lonely as a cloud" William Wordsworth The poem "I wandered lonely as a cloud" by William Wordsworth is categorized as a representation of Romanticism, an intellectual impression which is characterized by the emphasis of individual's expression of emotion and imagination. Throughout the poem, Wordsworth constantly draws the connections between a heightened interest in nature and the human mood, uniting the two in one, in order to further advocate the qualities of Romanticism. More specifically, the spiritual value which the speaker of the poem finds in nature (daffodils) is delineated through the imageries and other literary technique such as hyperbole and overstatement that the poet employs. In the first stanza, the speaker is metaphorically portrayed as a lonely cloud in the sky, watching down on the crowded daffodils on earth. The apparent distance between the symbolic location of the speaker and the daffodils contrasts the loneliness and the liveliness at the scene, almost as if the speaker is the only cloud in the sky, with no destination and sense of direction while the daffodils "dance[s] in the breeze". Such loneliness and contrast create a sense of emotions in the atmosphere, nearly a feeling of sadness but also a desire of the speaker to join the crowded daffodils. Moreover, the desire is echoed as Wordsworth utilizes hyperboles in the
How do poems 'Daffodils' by William Wordsworth and 'Miracle on St. David's Day' by Gillian Clarke, use the themes of daffodils to explore human emotions?
How do poems 'Daffodils' by William Wordsworth and 'Miracle on St. David's Day' by Gillian Clarke, use the themes of daffodils to explore human emotions? Each of the Wordsworth and Clarke poems show how the poets have been inspired to write about daffodils. In 'Miracle on St. David's Day', Gillian Clarke actually refers to Wordsworth's poem within her own. The poems however differ in structure and their responses to the daffodils are different. All of the poems use personification but the poems are written in contrasting style. William Wordsworth was born in England in 1770, Wordsworth attended Cambridge University and afterwards went on a walking tour of France and Switzerland. When war broke out in 1793 he returned to England, moving in with his sister Dorothy in Dorset. It was during this time he discovered his calling as a poet with a principal theme of the common man close to nature. In 1798 he was central figure in the advent of Romantic Poetry, together with Coleridge writing the Lyrical Ballads, which began with Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner" and ended with Wordsworth's "Tintern Abbey". He spent a year in Germany, then settled down in Dove Cottage, Grasmere with his wife Mary Hutchison in 1802, where he wrote his poetic autobiography The Prelude and two other books of poems. He was selected poet laureate in 1843 and died in 1850. Gillian Clarke was born in