Friday, August 2, 2019
Composed upon Westminster Bridge and The World is too much with us
William Wordsworth, poet and writer, born on April 7th, 1770 in a small Cumberland village named Cochermouth, located on the northern edge of the Lake District. He attended infant school in the small town of Hawkshead, located in one of the most beautiful regions of the Lake District. Wordsworth remained at Hawkshead until the age of 16. There were some long and deeply impressive rumples through the country, which affected his poetry greatly. You will realize that he loves nature and had a deep loyalty to Britain, even though he lived in France and was married to a French woman. The two poems I will be discussing are; ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠and ââ¬Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠. It is interesting to notice that both of these poems take on a Petrarchan sonnet form. The form of a sonnet consists of an octave (first 8 lines) and a sestate (last 6 lines). This gives us a total of 14 lines. However in ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠a unique and significant form is taken on; Wordsworth gives the octave 8 and a half lines while the sestate has only 5 and a half. Wordsworth uses the octave for the exposition or the theme and the sestate for the conclusion. ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠embodies one of the central ideas of the Romantic Movement in poetry, of which Wordsworth was a founder ââ¬â that in our daily life, especially living in towns, we have lost touch with the renewing powers of nature. ââ¬Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠is a magnificent sonnet, which shows Wordsworth appreciating and indeed demonstrating the beauty of a great city ââ¬â though perhaps it is characteristic of his love for solitude, and is set in the early morning, when there is no bustle and noise. Throughout both sonnets Wordsworth cleverly employs the use of semicolons, colons, comma or just a full stop. His reasons for this is to make us pause, reflect and get the true meaning of the line we have just read. In the first two lines of ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠ââ¬â The World is too much with us; late and soon Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Wordsworth uses both the semicolon and the colon and intends us to think ââ¬Å"what world?â⬠ââ¬Å"which power?â⬠he gets across that we are being engulfed in the materialistic world and have a lack of concern for nature, thus we take nature for granted and we waste our natural powers. In the corresponding lines of ââ¬Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠ââ¬â Earth has not anything to show more fair: Dull would he be of soal who could pass by A sight so touching in its majesty: Wordsworth utilizes a number of ploys to grab our attention. The opening line is a bold statement meaning he has not ever seen a better sight. The use of the word ââ¬Å"earthâ⬠suggests the supreme quality of such beauty. He uses the words ââ¬Å"earthâ⬠, ââ¬Å"anythingâ⬠and ââ¬Å"fairâ⬠to indicate the entire world. In the second line syntax is put to use; ââ¬Å"dull would he be of soulâ⬠as opposed to ââ¬Å"he would be dull of soulâ⬠. This is for extra emphasis on the word ââ¬Å"dullâ⬠. He also uses enjambment by allowing lines 2 and 3 to flow together as 1; this helps to stress ââ¬Ëa sight so touching'. The repetition of the letter s sound helps to convey the ââ¬Ëbreathless' sense of admiration. Touching is a word that we can all relate to whereas majesty shows the importance of nature and how much he was startled by this view. In the next two lines of ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠ââ¬â ââ¬Å"Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!â⬠Here Wordsworth gives nature a capital letter. This is the first indication in the poem of what it is about. Syntax again is used where he could have simply written ââ¬Å"we see little in nature that is oursâ⬠, which means we don't recognise nature as being part of ours. In line two, the poet says ââ¬Å"we have given our hearts awayâ⬠, our heart is associated with love and without it he is implying we do not appreciate nature in the manner we should. A sordid boon is a phrase used to convey the meaning of a gift of no value. This hints that we no longer value our love by living in the materialistic world. Wordsworth uses personification in line four of ââ¬Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠. A simile is also implied for further understanding. ââ¬Å"This City now doth, like a garment, wear The beauty of the morning; silent, bareâ⬠Garment suggests a comfortable easy fit yet the world is more grand than say, clothing, and the beauty of the scene is enhanced by implications of resplendent finery. Another capital letter is used in the middle of the sentence on the word city. This shows the importance and beauty of the city. The two lines mean that the city now wears the beauty of the morning; again Wordsworth shows us his love and passion for nature. In the corresponding lines of ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠there is the same punctuation and language affects ââ¬â ââ¬Å"This Sea that bears her bosom to the moon; The winds that will be howling at all hours, And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers; Again to show the importance of nature Wordsworth uses a capital letter on sea, which is most of our natural world today. Personification is used on these same lines ââ¬â ââ¬Å"the sea that bears ââ¬ËHER' bosom to the moonâ⬠and ââ¬Å"the winds that will be ââ¬ËHOWLING' at all hoursâ⬠. ââ¬Å"Like sleeping flowersâ⬠is the simile implied to show the calming after the storm. The octave in ââ¬Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠ends with: ââ¬â ââ¬Å"Open unto the fields, and to the sky; All bright and all glittering in the smokeless air.â⬠You could almost say these statements are incorrect, but remember it was the 1800's when this sonnet was composed. When Wordsworth stood upon this bridge he could see everlasting green fields, surrounding London, that lead right to the horizon. Open is a word that could mean anything but in this poem it means that there is a light open feeling to the atmosphere. ââ¬Å"Smokelessâ⬠ââ¬â still, pure, unpolluted. Perhaps this reminds us of how the scene will change once days of smoky industry begin. ââ¬Å"For this, for everything, we are out of tune; It moves us not.â⬠These are the last one and a half lines of the octave in ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠. Wordsworth suggests here that we are out of tune. Thus hinting we are not in harmony with nature. This again shows the difference of tone. In ââ¬Å"composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠the tone is a hushed, almost breathless admiration. He was surprised by sudden vision of splendor and became more emotional whereas he recognizes the materialistic living in ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠. The sestet of ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠opens with ââ¬Å"Great Godâ⬠. Wordsworth recognises God's great power of nature but he would also rather be a Pagan because Pagan's appreciated nature. He wants to see glimpses to make him less sad and a glimpse would keep the suspense and make him more aloof. Proteus and Triton are Greek Gods. Proteus: Greek sea God and Triton: one of a race of minor sea ââ¬â Gods in Greek mythology, with a mans form but the tail of a fish, often depicted as carrying a shell ââ¬â trumpet. In the sestet of ââ¬Å"composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠Wordsworth seems very happy with the view of London city with the sun rising. He says such things as: ââ¬Å"Never did the sun more beautifully steepâ⬠, and ââ¬Å"Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!â⬠which is another cleaver use of syntax. This is a change from ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠as in that sonnet the wonderful natural scenery in which he was writing made him sad to think about how people don't appreciate it anymore. ââ¬Å"Dear Godâ⬠is also used in ââ¬Å"composed upon Westminster Bridgeâ⬠. This is maybe his prayer to God to keep nature so beautiful whereas in ââ¬Å"The World is too much with usâ⬠, he used ââ¬Å"Great Godâ⬠as to say WAKE UP! We (the readers) can visualize and relate to the wonderful scenery Wordsworth describes effectively, with language and punctuation to convey his meaning.
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