Lines Written in Early Spring short essay: Grade-98 PDF

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A mini-essay, written on William Woodsworth's poem, "Lines Written in Early Spring."...

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1

What Man Has Made of Man William Wordsworth’s poem, “Lines Written in Early Spring,” implies a popularly pondered question of life; why man destroys man, or as Wordsworth puts it, “What man has made of man.” Wordsworth wrote this poem in 1798, in the middle of The French Revolutionary War, which became the Napoleonic Wars that lasted until 1815. (Moritz) When the events of this time are known, the assumption that mankind is ruining itself becomes prominent. Wordsworth uses imagery throughout the poem to describe the beauty of nature opposed to mankind. Imagery like “The periwinkle trailed its wreaths,” and “The budding twigs spread out their fan, To catch the breezy air” causes a reader to acknowledge the innocence and pure beauty of nature. It seems as though Wordsworth is able to find the pleasure within nature, but not within mankind. When man is mentioned, with nature’s beauty in mind, a dramatic difference becomes obvious. Mankind seems ungrateful of the life that it has been given. Men choose to destroy themselves with wars and tragedies alike. The assumption that man is ungrateful for life, in comparison to nature, is supported in each stanza of Wordsworth’s poem. The first stanza sets Wordsworth in a grove, where he is relaxing. Wordsworth states that he is “In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts Bring sad thoughts to mind.” Seeing the beauty of nature causes Wordsworth to realize the poor condition of mankind. The third and fourth stanza of the poem continue to show nature’s beauty, as they state “And ’tis my faith that every flower Enjoys the air it breathes” and “The birds around me hopped and played… But the least motion which they made, It seemed a thrill of pleasure.” If simple flowers and birds are at peace with what nature has given them, men should be too. Wordsworth’s fifth stanza continues to show the peace within nature. It states “The budding

2 twigs spread out their fan, To catch the breezy air; And I must think, do all I can, That there was pleasure there.” The budding twigs are considered to find pleasure in nature. Yet, men continue to be oblivious to pleasure. Wordsworth ends “Lines Written in Early Spring” with the question he began with, “What man has made of man.” The paradise that nature is, appears to become lost due to damaging human actions. (Raymond) Men are clearly ungrateful for the life that nature has granted them. They are bringing danger to each other. Wordsworth realizes this due to the events happening in the world, at the time the poem was written. The French Revolution and the rise of the Industrial Revolution were occurring, which brought death and harm to men. (Healy) When Wordsworth sits in a grove and observes nature, he notices the subtle beauties of nature, and how each living organism has pleasure. “The birds around me hopped and played,” is one example of imagery used to show living things finding pleasure within nature. There is a drastic difference when nature’s condition and mankind’s condition are compared. In “Lines Written in Early Spring,” Wordsworth questions “What man has made of man.” It is clear that mankind is destroying itself, and Wordsworth is quite aware of that.

3 Works Cited Moritz, A. F. "What Man has made of Man." Poetry, vol. 195, no. 2, 11 2009, pp. 149-159,164. ProQuest Central, http://ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/login? url=http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/docview/217790140? accountid=10428. Healy, Dennis. "British Poet's Words Live in Documentary." Telegraph - Herald, Feb 24 2008, pp. E4. ProQuest Central, http://ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/login? url=http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/docview/368822016? accountid=10428. Raymond, Andrea. "Go Figure it's Autumn at Carrier Art Gallery; ON & OFF THE WALL." The North York Mirror, Sep 26 2003, ProQuest Central, http://ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/login? url=http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.davidsonccc.edu:2048/docview/362451052? accountid=10428....