Sonnet: Composed Upon Westminster Bridge
Earth has not anything to show more fair:
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theaters, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill
Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theaters, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill
Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!
Summary
William Wordsworth shows the reader the city of London through his eyes and compares and contrasts it to the country. The poem establishes a sense of calm and yet makes the city seem majestic and awe inspiring through the use of personification, juxtaposition and a range of interesting literary techniques in order to convey this to the reader.
William Wordsworth shows the reader the city of London through his eyes and compares and contrasts it to the country. The poem establishes a sense of calm and yet makes the city seem majestic and awe inspiring through the use of personification, juxtaposition and a range of interesting literary techniques in order to convey this to the reader.
Analysis
The first line shows that the location that the speaker is about to describe is the most beautiful place on earth. The next line exemplifies this, saying that anybody who could pass by without looking at the sight would have a "dull soul". The location has not yet been revealed, and the third line creates a sense of wonder as to what the speaker might be referring to.
A city is revealed in the fourth line: just as one wears a garment to cover oneself, so to is the morning covering the city. This emphasizes the beauty of the city by comparing it to the beauty of the morning. Just like a garment makes something look beautiful, the morning brings a sense of beauty to the city. Personification is used when the city is said to "wear" the beauty of the morning. A paradox is present in the fifth line of the poem: apparently the city is wearing the morning, and yet it’s bare and naked. This shows that it is a mystical place which can simultaneously have these two oxymoronic characteristics. The city itself is further described ironically in the sixth line of the poem: it seems quite busy, rather than silent and bare as previously stated.
The focus of the poem shifts from the city to the natural world in the seventh line. There is a contrast between the previous city theme and this natural world theme when the word "fields" is mentioned. Wordsworth often wrote things that were critical of industrialization, so this is an odd sonnet for Wordsworth in that respect: he is linking city and country so that they appear harmonious.
Riches and perfection are connoted in the eighth line of the poem. The city is said to have "smokeless air" even though it is obviously industrialized. The "bright and glittering" mentioned in the eighth line is emphasized by the mention of the "sun" in the ninth line.
The sun is personified in the tenth line of the poem: the sun (talked about as if he is a person) is making everything look more beautiful.
The river, personified in line 12, is depicted as gliding along peacefully, as if not in any hurry.
A sense of surprise established using the phrase "Dear God!" is juxtaposed with the sense of calm established by the houses that "seem asleep".
The first line shows that the location that the speaker is about to describe is the most beautiful place on earth. The next line exemplifies this, saying that anybody who could pass by without looking at the sight would have a "dull soul". The location has not yet been revealed, and the third line creates a sense of wonder as to what the speaker might be referring to.
A city is revealed in the fourth line: just as one wears a garment to cover oneself, so to is the morning covering the city. This emphasizes the beauty of the city by comparing it to the beauty of the morning. Just like a garment makes something look beautiful, the morning brings a sense of beauty to the city. Personification is used when the city is said to "wear" the beauty of the morning. A paradox is present in the fifth line of the poem: apparently the city is wearing the morning, and yet it’s bare and naked. This shows that it is a mystical place which can simultaneously have these two oxymoronic characteristics. The city itself is further described ironically in the sixth line of the poem: it seems quite busy, rather than silent and bare as previously stated.
The focus of the poem shifts from the city to the natural world in the seventh line. There is a contrast between the previous city theme and this natural world theme when the word "fields" is mentioned. Wordsworth often wrote things that were critical of industrialization, so this is an odd sonnet for Wordsworth in that respect: he is linking city and country so that they appear harmonious.
Riches and perfection are connoted in the eighth line of the poem. The city is said to have "smokeless air" even though it is obviously industrialized. The "bright and glittering" mentioned in the eighth line is emphasized by the mention of the "sun" in the ninth line.
The sun is personified in the tenth line of the poem: the sun (talked about as if he is a person) is making everything look more beautiful.
The river, personified in line 12, is depicted as gliding along peacefully, as if not in any hurry.
A sense of surprise established using the phrase "Dear God!" is juxtaposed with the sense of calm established by the houses that "seem asleep".