Summary Poem Analysis of 'A Complaint' by William Wordsworth
9 views 0 purchase
Course
Poetry
Institution
CIE
Here’s a full analysis of the poem ‘A Complaint’ by William Wordsworth, tailored towards A-Level students but also suitable for those studying at a higher level.
Includes:
POEM
VOCABULARY
STORY / SUMMARY
SPEAKER / VOICE
LANGUAGE FEATURES
STRUCTURE / FORM
CONTEXT
ATTITUDES
THEMES
There is a change—and I am poor;
Your love hath been, nor long ago,
A fountain at my fond heart’s door,
Whose only business was to flow;
And flow it did; not taking heed
Of its own bounty, or my need.
What happy moments did I count!
Blest was I then all bliss above!
Now, for that consecrated fount
Of murmuring, sparkling, living love,
What have I? shall I dare to tell?
A comfortless and hidden well.
A well of love—it may be deep—
I trust it is,—and never dry:
What matter? if the waters sleep
In silence and obscurity.
—Such change, and at the very door
Of my fond heart, hath made me poor.
VOCABULARY
Hath been - has been
Fond - being affectionate about something, liking something
Taking heed - listening or paying attention to something
Bounty - a generous amount of something
Blest - blessed
Bliss - extreme joy or happiness
Consecrated - sacred, blessed or holy
Well - a deep hole in the ground that is built for drawing water
Obscurity - oddness, or lack of visibility - hidden
, STORY/SUMMARY
The speaker, talking directly to an addressee (his previous love), says that something
has changed - he is now poor. Not long ago, her love was a fountain at the door of his
keen heart. The heart’s only job was to flow - and it flowed a lot, without paying
attention to how lucky it was to have such a bounty as her love, or his need of that
love.
What happy moments he had! He was blessed with all the joy that heaven could
provide! Now, instead of that holy fountain of murmuring, sparkling, living love what
does he have left? A comfortless and hidden well.
He thinks more about this well that he’s left with - it is deep and the bottom is never
dry, but its characteristics have changed a lot from that fountain of overflowing love
that it used to be. What does it matter if the water at the bottom of it is now silent and
hidden, seeming as if to sleep? It matters a lot, he concludes, because this kind of
change of feeling at the door of his heart, its opening, has made him poor.
SPEAKER/VOICE
Adopting the persona of a tormented lover (a common poetic trope where the
speaker of a poem addresses a silent and unresponsive lover who does not return his
affections); the speaker uses a plaintive tone to lament his love. He thinks of the
happy times he and his lover shared together, but those fleeting joys now serve only
to accentuate his current lack of love to a point where he is in a state of mental
turmoil and suffering. He has the capacity for love still - symbolised in the poem
through water, but instead of the overflowing fountain that it was before, it is now
characterised as still water that sits at the bottom of a deep well, silent and hidden.
The central idea of the poem is that this change in feeling has left the speaker ‘poor’.
LANGUAGE
● Repetition - ‘poor’ - the repetition of this abstract noun emphasises the theme
of poverty in the poem, yet rather than thinking of poverty in financial terms we
are encouraged to think about how the concepts of wealth and poverty can be
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller natashatabani. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $5.80. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
