HOW IS THE NATURAL
WORLD PRESENTED
For the Romantics, nature was seen as pure and a spiritual source of renewal for the
soul, and Romantic verse was suffused with reverence for the natural world as they
emphasised the glory and beauty of nature and the power of the nature world. Within
‘Lines Written in Early Spring’ and ‘The Cold Earth Slept Below’, Wordsworth and
Shelly explore how the natural world triggers sense of reflection. For Wordsworth, na-
ture makes him look outward into society as harmonies in nature remind him of the
failures of humans, whereas for Shelley, nature makes him look inward as he offers an
introspection of the despair on his own life.
In ‘Lines Written in Early Spring’, Wordsworth explores how the beauty of the naural
world brings about a feeling of the sublime, forcing him to reflect on the failures of hu-
manity as a whole. Wordsworth initially reflects on how nature brings him to “that
sweet mood when pleasant thoughts / bring sad thoughts to the mind”. Here, the noun
phrase “sweet mood” suggests that he doesn’t see these “sad thought: as unpleasant
or distressing but rather, he revels in this contemplation, indicating ideas of the sub-
lime, The sublime is a philosophical idea that permeates Romantic literature and art;
its the belief that awesome landscapes or extreme rituals elicit intense admiration of
reverence, but also fear and trepidation. Edmund Burke famously proposed the idea
that “whatever is in any sort terrible or is conversant about terrible objects or operates
in a manner analogous to terror, is a source of the sublime; that is, it is productive of
the strongest emotion which the mind is capable of feeling’, which influenced
Wordsworth’s view of the world and thus this poetry. Due to this feeling of the sub-
lime, Wordsworth explores human nature. The speaker describes how “to her fair
works did Nature link / The human soul that through me ran”, reflecting on how nature
had forged a connection between itself and mankind yet the speaker goes on to reflect
on how “it give my heart to think / what man had made of man” suggesting that hu-
mankind has destroyed this connection. Within the quatrain, the personification of na-
ture, indicated though the pronoun “her” allows Wordsworth to describe nature almost
like a goddess highlighting his complete reverence for haute and, by giving “her” hu-
man like qualities, he strengths the connection between humans and nature. Addition-
ally, the dynamic vern “rap” is used to suggest that the human soul is not static, sug-
gesting its freedom and connection to nature by likening it to a dream, however alter-
natively, Wordsworth could be hinting at the humans soul ability to change, perhaps
hinting at a hopeful tone. Furthermore, the use of the stative verb “grieved” highlights
the intense sorry Wordsworth feels as a results of man’s action which is intensified bu
his use of the noun “heart” which draws a parallel to the “souls”, suggesting that this
is the deepest most profound form of despair. In the monosyllabic end focused line
“what man has made of man” Wordsworth uses a grim, dry, monotonous lexis, creat-
ing a stark contrast to the beautiful flowery language he uses to describe nature, high-
lighting how the separation between humans and nature is dismal and tragic, which is
furthered by the metrical changes to the iambic tetrameter which cuts off the line,
mirroring the loss humanity has suffered by betraying its connection with nature.
Wordsworth intentionally chooses to create a later of ambivalence, allowing the reader
to inset what they feel is humanity’s greater failing and encourages them to lament on
this as well. During the Romantic period, major transitions took place in socially the in-
dustrial revolution and the age of the enlightenment saw increasing urbanisation of so-
ciety and a reliance on capitalistic labour. The romantic poets were at the heart off
thus movement as they were insured by a desire for liberty and they denounced the
exploitation of the working class. Within this poem, Wordsworth reflects these Roman-
tic ideals, championing the joyful harmony of nature and lamenting humankind capi-
