I only recently found this particular Wordsworth poem, but it's become a new favorite for me, I think.
by William Wordsworth
Nuns fret not at their convent’s narrow room;
And hermits are contented with their cells;
And students with their pensive citadels;
Maids at the wheel, the weaver at his loom,
Sit blithe and happy; bees that soar for bloom,
High as the highest Peak of Furness-fells,
Will murmur by the hour in foxglove bells:
In truth the prison, into which we doom
Ourselves, no prison is: and hence for me,
In sundry moods, ’twas pastime to be bound
Within the Sonnet’s scanty plot of ground;
Pleased if some Souls (for such there needs must be)
Who have felt the weight of too much liberty,
Should find brief solace there, as I have found.
Discussion Questions:
1. What form does this poem take? (Look at the rhyme scheme for your clue.)
2. What is Wordsworth saying in this poem?
1. I think it's Italian, since it's definitely not English.
ReplyDeleteAn Italian sonnet, yes.
Delete2. He's saying that it's better to be occupied with working on something than to have nothing to do nothing and be lazy. People are happy and contented with what they're doing when they're working, so it's better than having too much time to kill. You get bored if you're doing nothing, so even if you don't think you like your work you're still more satisfied. (I guess?)
ReplyDeleteBasically, yes. Contentment is the key -- if you're contented with what you have, then you have all you need. And it's a decision you can make for yourself -- if you decide this is what you need/want/should have, and decide to be happy with it, then that will work.
Delete1. I had no idea so I asked my mom, and she said she thinks it's couplets, but she said she's not the best at poetry, so... haha! It's my best guess, though! :P
ReplyDeleteWell, I gave the answer away in my answer to Sadie's answer, but you could also have looked back to the lesson on forms and lingo. It has ten syllables per line, which makes it iambic pentameter, and the rhyme pattern is ABBA ABBA CDD CCD -- which means it isn't quite a perfect Italian sonnet, but it's considered a sonnet anyway.
DeleteOkay, good to know! Thanks!
Delete1. He's saying that finding what you want to do and what you're good at, and doing just that all your life is better than doing everything and nothing, and having too much freedom. He gives many things as examples, nuns and bees, but he also gives himself as an example, when he says: "and hence for me,
ReplyDeleteIn sundry moods, ’twas pastime to be bound
Within the Sonnet’s scanty plot of ground". He's saying he's happy just being a poet.
I think he's also saying that boundaries are good -- especially if you decide to live inside them. Making yourself stick to a specific rhyme scheme might seem to make writing poetry harder, but it doesn't have to.
DeleteThat's very interesting that he managed to see what is beneficial about the somewhat "restrictive", for lack of a better word, rules of poetry, and compare it to life in general.
ReplyDeleteNadia -- it's an interesting phenomenon that humans actually are more creative and artistic when they have restrictions imposed on their creativity, whether it's imposed by someone else or by themselves.
DeleteWhen was the "golden age" of Hollywood movies? The 1940s through the early 1960s, when the Hays Code placed a huge number of restrictions on what could and could not be shown on film. The artistry of writing, acting, directing, costumes -- every aspect of filmmaking was at its best right then. When were the highest number of absolutely pointless, terrible, forgettable movies made? The 1970s, when filmmakers insisted there should be no restrictions, they should be able to just show anything on screen they wanted to.
Same for fine art. You cannot look at a Jackson Pollack splatterfest and tell me it is as beautiful as a Rembrandt. When there were rules and expectations for what IS art, and what ISN'T, you end up creating things of unquestionable beauty.
Somehow, having to fit your creative energy into a specific form or parameter doesn't lead to worse creations, but better ones. Isn't that fascinating? (I hope it is, because I just wrote several paragraphs about it, lol.)