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Nature in poetry
Nature in poetry
Influences of romantic literature
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The English Romantic poets of the 19th Century had a conception about nature that, over a century later, appears in the poetry of today. These poets have had a significant influence on the attitude and vocabulary a contemporary poet uses. Among the contemporary poets, Dana Gioia, in his two poems, "Becoming a Redwood," and "Rough Country," has drawn on the idea of the innocence and untainted part of nature that parallels the Romantic poetry of William Wordsworth and William Blake in their poems "Nutting," and "The Tyger." Also, Gioia has captured the wild-like and untamable demeanor of nature that many English Romantics have similarly captured. Finally, Gioia uses the concept of the sublime in his poetry to the extent that nature becomes dangerous to humans.
Many English Romantic poets have written about the innocent and purity that can be found in nature. In Wordsworth's "Nutting," he comments on the beauty of the innocence of an "unvisited" nook his character discovers. Wordsworth writes, "Unvisited, where not a broken bough / Drooped with its withered leaves, ungracious sign / Of devastation; but the hazels rose / tall and erect, with tempting clusters hung, / A virgin scene!" (Ln17-31) Wordsworth is commenting on the innocence and beauty of nature without human intrusion. This Romantic conception of innocence parallels Gioia in his poem "Rough Country." He writes, " a spot so hard to reach that no one comes-- / a hiding place, a shrine for dragonflies / and nesting jays, a sign that there is still / one piece of property that won't be owned." (17-20) This last line implies that this part of nature will remain untouched, this part of nature will remain pure and innocent, and a Romantic conception of nature that even Gioia has adopted in his poetry.
Another conception that the English Romantics held about nature was that nature is wild and untamable. This wild-like aspect of nature is described in William Blake's "The Tyger." Blake writes, "Tyger, Tyger / Burning bright / In the forests of the night / What immortal hand or eye / Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?" (1-4) Blake creates this image of the Tyger as a wild beast, an untamable creature of the for...
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... no silence but when danger comes." (25-27) This English Romantic concept of sublime that Gioia uses, makes humans to not only fear nature such as the Tyger or the mountains, but also to hold high respect for its beauty and magnificence.
It is interesting to see how much of our history actually does repeat itself. It is amazing that even today, we are asking the same questions about nature and coming to similar conclusions as people did in the 19th century. Its not that nature hasn't changed, but the attitudes toward nature still build on many general English Romantic ideas. Dana Gioia, in particular, has taken some of the same attitudes toward nature as the Romantics have; he has developed the untamable and wildness of nature, the innocent and virgin, as well as the sublime in his two poems, "Becoming a Redwood," and "Rough Country." English Romantic poets such as William Wordsworth and William Blake influence each of his poems. Because of their strong influence on contemporary poets today, it would not be surprising to see their influence carry on in yet another century, and have the influence on poets for years to come.
The beauty of the English countryside--cultivated or wild, pastoral or primeval, it was an endless source of inspiration for eighteenth-century Romantic poets. Such notables as Wordsworth, Keats, and Shelley envisioned ancient and exotic Hellenic gods in familiar, typically British settings. Douglas Bush says of Keats, "For him the common sights of Hampstead Heath could suggest how poets had first conceived of fauns and dryads, of Psyche and Pan and Narcissus and Endymion" ( Pagan Myth 46). Later writers, clearly influenced by the Romantic world view, would describe idealized pastoral scenes in terms of "the rich meadow-grass . . . of a freshness and a greenness unsurpassable . . . . the roses so vivid, the willow-herb so riotous . . ." (Grahame, Wind 911). This was the haunt of Nature personified:
Throughout the Romanticism period, human’s connection with nature was explored as writers strove to find the benefits that humans receive through such interactions. Without such relationships, these authors found that certain aspects of life were missing or completely different. For example, certain authors found death a very frightening idea, but through the incorporation of man’s relationship with the natural world, readers find the immense utility that nature can potentially provide. Whether it’d be as solace, in the case of death, or as a place where one can find oneself in their own truest form, nature will nevertheless be a place where they themselves were derived from. Nature is where all humans originated,
During the Romantic Era drastic events changed the way people lived. One major change came with the Industrial Revolution, many job opportunities began to arise and people started to change their living lifestyle. Many people went to live in the cities and left behind the breathtaking countryside. The British Culture became better because they had more resources and its economy increased rapidly, however people lost the tranquility of nature with their movement into the emerging cities. Another important event that had a significant effect on the British culture and Literature was the French revolution; poets like William Wordsworth were devastated to see the horrible changes the revolution had caused. The revolution was one of the major reasons why poets focused more on the theme of nature. The poem “Lines Written a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey” written by William Wordsworth expresses the power of nature. The author uses his memories from past experiences to illustrate the importance of nature in a person’s life. In the poem he describes nature’s strong healing power. Wordsworth communicate...
When thinking about nature, Hans Christian Andersen wrote, “Just living is not enough... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” John Muir and William Wordsworth both expressed through their writings that nature brought them great joy and satisfaction, as it did Andersen. Each author’s text conveyed very similar messages and represented similar experiences but, the writing style and wording used were significantly different. Wordsworth and Muir express their positive and emotional relationships with nature using diction and imagery.
“A Poison Tree”, and many other poems by William Blake are superb examples of the Romanticism movement through their focus on the situation and sins of the common man and use of nature as a major symbol and conceit. These highly romantic characteristics, along with his simplistic language, convey the romantic focus on mankind. This poem is easily understood by all who read it; however simplistic it is, the message of warning continues to stand true. Blake’s unique transitional writing style to the romantic literary movement made him one of the most influential men in literature in his day. His works aided in the popularization of Romanticism, which continues to be a large contributor to the art and literature of today.
Nature has long been the focus of many an author's work, whether it is expressed through poetry, short stories, or any other type of literary creation. Authors have been given an endless supply of pictures and descriptions because of nature's infinite splendor that can be vividly reproduced through words. It is because of this fact that often a reader is faced with two different approaches to the way nature is portrayed. Some authors tend to look at nature from a more extensive perspective as in William Wordsworth's "I wandered Lonely as a Cloud." While some authors tend to focus more on individual aspects of nature and are able to captivate the reader with their intimate portrayals of nature that bring us right into their imaginations as shown in John Keats' poem, "To Autumn."
Whether he wrote about woods, milkweed, apple-picking, fire and ice, or rolling hills Robert Frost stands out among poets with his descriptive use of nature with its beauty and splendor. These images hold in a reader's mind and are hard to forget. In many of the works of Robert Frost, you can see the use of nature to convey emotions and thoughts. Not only does Frost use nature to convey images and emotions, but he allows for nature to take its place in the human world around him. Frost's nature poetry is closely related to his pastorlism (Lynen), but unlike most pastoralists, Frost includes nature.
... Nature, including human beings, is `red in tooth and claw'; we are all `killers' in one way or another. Also, the fear which inhabits both human and snake (allowing us, generally, to avoid each other), and which acts as the catalyst for this poem, also precipitates retaliation. Instinct, it seems, won't be gainsaid by morality; as in war, our confrontation with Nature has its origins in some irrational `logic' of the soul. The intangibility of fear, as expressed in the imagery of the poem, is seen by the poet to spring from the same source as the snake, namely the earth - or, rather, what the earth symbolizes, our primitive past embedded in our subconsciouness. By revealing the kinship of feelings that permeates all Nature, Judith Wright universalises the experience of this poem.
Nature and God are consistent themes throughout all three poems. Whether it is the calming tone in Wordsworth’s ,“It is a Beauteous Evening, Calm and Free”, the abrupt tone in Frost’s “Nothing Gold Can Stay” or whether it contains ebb and flow as it does in Wordsworth’s “The World is Too Much With Us”, they all showed the connection between Nature and God.
All in all, throughout all the history of American poetry, we can easily find numerous poems concerning nature from different angles, for nature will never betray a nature-loving heart just as William Wordsworth says.
Two poets who used an abundance of nature imagery in the Victorian period were Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Matthew Arnold. In Tennyson's In Memoriam, he utilizes many different aspects of nature as metaphors to describe his emotions after the death of a close friend. Arnold's poetry uses different types of water as metaphors in To Marguerite--Continued and Dover Beach.
William Wordsworth has respect and has great admiration for nature. This is quite evident in all three of his poems; the Resolution and Independence, Tintern Abbey and Michael in that, his philosophy on the divinity, immortality and innocence of humans are elucidated in his connection with nature. For Wordsworth, himself, nature has a spirit, a soul of its own, and to know is to experience nature with all of your senses. In all three of his poems there are many references to seeing, hearing and feeling his surroundings. He speaks of hills, the woods, the rivers and streams, and the fields. Wordsworth comprehends, in each of us, that there is a natural resemblance to ourselves and the background of nature.
The poem “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” by William Wordsworth is about the poet’s mental journey in nature where he remembers the daffodils that give him joy when he is lonely and bored. The poet is overwhelmed by nature’s beauty where he thought of it while lying alone on his couch. The poem shows the relationship between nature and the poet, and how nature’s motion and beauty influences the poet’s feelings and behaviors for the good. Moreover, the process that the speaker goes through is recollected that shows that he isolated from society, and is mentally in nature while he is physically lying on his couch. Therefore, William Wordsworth uses figurative language and syntax and form throughout the poem to express to the readers the peace and beauty of nature, and to symbolize the adventures that occurred in his mental journey.
Through the ingenious works of poetry the role of nature has imprinted the 18th and 19th century with a mark of significance. The common terminology ‘nature’ has been reflected by our greatest poets in different meanings and understanding; Alexander Pope believed in reason and moderation, whereas Blake and Wordsworth embraced passion and imagination.