Extract from, The Prelude - William Wordsworth

• William Wordsworth (poet) - one of the Romantics
• The Poem is an extract from an Epic about his life, detailing how he became a poet, his muse (a person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist) lead him through experiences that inspire him to be a poet
• Lines 1-3: "One summer evening (led by her) I found A little boat tied to a willow tree Within a rocky cave, its usual home."

  • "led by her" - his muse
  • "little boat tied to a willow tree" - positive, comforting
• Lines 4-5: "Straight I unloosed her chain, and stepping in Pushed from the shore. It was an act of stealth"

  • "unloosed her chain" - sounds like he is releasing an animal/prisoner - sees himself as a hero
  • "act of stealth" - Doesn't see it as stealing, seen it as an act of skill (once again sees himself as a hero)
• Beautiful images of nature throughout the poem:

  • Lines 9 - 11: "Small circles glittering idly in the moon, Until they melted all into one track of sparkling light"
• Lines 12-13: "Proud of his skill, to reach a chosen point, with an unswerving line, I fixed my view..."

  • "Proud of his skill", "chose point", "unswerving line", "fixed my view" - confident of his ability - skilful, secure
• Lines 15-16: "The horizon's utmost boundary; far above Was nothing but the stars and the grey sky."

  • "utmost boundary" - edge of his world, soon this will shift
  • Beautiful images of nature
• Line 22: "The horizon's bound, a huge peak, black and huge"

  • Nature now has power over him
  • "huge" - repetition is less effective description, shows the effect of nature on him, losing vocabulary and panicking
• Lines 23-24: "As if with voluntary power instinct, Upreared its head. I struck and struck again"

  • Anthropomorphism - monstrous power over him, violent imagery but seems powerless
  • "Upreared its head" - nature seeking him out, feels threatened, complete shift in power dynamics in first half of the poem
• Lines 25-29: "And growing still in stature the grim shape Towered up between me and the stars, and still, For so it seemed, with purpose of its own And measured motion like a living thing, Strode after me."

  • Anthropomorphism - monstrous power over him, violent imagery but seems powerless
  • "Measured motion" - calmness, earlier, speaker was calm and in control, now he's panicking and nature is calm and in control
  • Stars earlier used to describe beauty, but this blocks stars - no more awareness of beauty and nature.
• Line 30: "And there through the silent water stole my way"

  • "stole" - Sneaking off; sense of him in the wrong (contrast to stealth)
• Lines 33-36: "And through the meadows homeward went, in grave And serious mood; but after I had seen That spectacle, for many days, my brain Worked with a dim and undermined sense"

  • trying to understand but cannot
  • "for many days" - shows the magnitude of the effect that it had had on him
• Lines 38-39: "There hung a darkness, call it solitude Or blank desertion"

  • "darkness", "blank desertion" - trying to but cannot understand
• Lines 39-42: "No familiar shapes Remained, no pleasant images of trees, Of sea or sky, no colours of green fields; But huge and mighty forms"

  • "no" - Now he is just aware of absence of positive things. Can no longer think of nice, natural images. Sublime - can no longer experience nature in the same way
  • "huge and mighty forms" - shapeless, shows lack of clarity
• Lines 42-44 (end): "But huge and mighty forms, that do not live Like living men, moved slowly through the mind By day, and were a trouble to my dreams"

  • They move through his mind, he has no control
• No rhyme scheme shows unpredictability, but iambic pentameter shows artifice and poetic skill
• PERSPECTIVES

  • Nature as overwhelming/powerful
  • This is easily forgotten and overlooked
  • Nature's power is unpredictable
  • Shift from beauty to scary; beauty hides power
  • Nature is a force
  • Man vs. Nature conflict
  • Power of Nature to inspire