Prelude to a Swimming Pool

O beloved swimming pool that
I would visit when the sun in summer's
Glory held the world, whose chlorinated
Vapors 'round my head give rise to such sweet
Sentiment! Beneath thy crystal surface,
Peace divine suspends me in the water
Till the lifeguard's whistle calls me to the surface.

By Janie, Jonathan Y., and Kristina

"A Prelude to Lunch"

Shortly before lunchtime it dawned on me,
What I had never noticed before, that
Humble sandwich, the vessel by which life
Is transferred from the cow, the fowl, and the
Lowly chaff of wheat into God-hewn tract,
Hath a power to consecrate—if we
Have tongue to taste—even the dreariest
Workday afternoon. The mayo, mustard,
Savory meats and hearty garden plants
Have flavors in themselves that interact
With the passions of man’s palate, and spur
Mere taste to evolve, by process unclear,
Into the poet’s loftiest genius.

Based on Wordsworth’s Prelude, 1805 version, lines 278-296

The Prelude: Book XII

In the Prelude, Wordsworth emphasizes the concept of nature’s gift. This is seen with the opening of Book XII. In the first two lines, Wordsworth explains how man’s emotions and feeling of internal calmness are the gifts that nature has to offer to the human race. To Wordsworth, these two attributes of nature are seen as two “sister horn’s that constitute her strength”. With lines 5 and lines 6, Wordsworth explains how the sun, the simple rain shower of the spring, or anything seen in nature are the origins of this gift. With the conclusion of stanza 1 of the opening of Book XII, Wordsworth explains how the energy of seeking truth and the happy stillness of the mind are the results of seeking nature. By analyzing Wordsworth use of comparison, enjambment, and what Wordsworth believe are the benefits of seeking nature, one can see how Wordsworth draws his internal strength from nature.

In stanza one of Book XII, Wordsworth uses extensive comparison. In line 4, Wordsworth compares nature’s attributes of providing man with emotion and internal calmness to that of “sister horns”. He also compares nature to having qualities of a human being. This is seen in his extensive use of the pronoun “her” when referring to nature. By using comparison in stanza one, Wordsworth creates the image of nature being “alive”, always placing “her” influence on one’s life.

Wordsworth also uses enjambment with the opening of Book XII. This is seen in the first sentence of Book XII. In this sentence, Wordsworth extensively explains the idea of man’s emotion and the feeling of calmness and how this is directly correlated to finding refuge in nature. This extensive comparison starts at line 1 and ends at line 7, only separated by a comma, a semicolon, and a colon. Wordsworth’s use of enjambment displays the emotional connection he has with nature, and the connection he wants others to have.

With the conclusion of the opening of Book XII, Wordsworth explains the benefits of nature’s gifts (emotion and calmness) in one’s life. These benefits include having the energy to seek truth in life, and happy stillness of the mind. To Wordsworth, these attributes are essential to life, and can only come from seeking refuge in nature.

The Prelude: Book XII

Blog post: Book 12 Response Victoria Sosa
In Wordsworth’s Prelude, Book XII he begins with contrasts of peace and excitation, the city compared to his rural neighborhood, nature and mankind. I believe that he’s saying that Nature emphasizes our self knowledge and experience, yet it is us up to us to acknowledge it. He puts a lot of emphasis on truth with the connection between him and nature and opening his mind. It seems when he escapes to Nature, it’s because he feels a sense of trust and steadiness and consistency of Nature. Wordsworth goes on to criticize society’s politics with “false philosophy… false thought” to expose the greed that we have been succumbed to due to society. He describes wealth as “lodged” into our minds and seems to be deeply disturbed by the city/urban lifestyle. Or that he might just be open to realize the real beauty is in our own world which creates itself, something not man-made yet connected to us.
Wordsworth comments in lines 85-88 about how rare a creature (“one in 10,000?”) is to be more into the spirit or the soul of someone than the superficial, and to not conform to social norms. From here Wordsworth goes on to describe the ultimate goal of man is to achieve “real worth, genuine knowledge and true power of mind.” Which I believe tunes in to his philosophical views throughout the poem. He goes on to describe our bodies as the frame and under our weight lies something deeper, such as our soul. We are more than we can merely imagine. He continues to use a contrast of images throughout the poem that entails intertwining qualities such as “from that great city—else it must have been a heart-depressing wilderness.” Here he puts adjectives that contrast the subject like great in front of city that he’s describing as heart-depressing and the wilderness is related to nature which I believe in his eyes would be positive.
I feel throughout the majority of the poem Wordsworth is venting his dislikes of politics, society, and even cities. He has this back and forth rhythm where he goes into this praising tone of Nature and it’s beauty and vast qualities and then his anger and distaste towards what seems like many social norms and corruptions as well. I believe he makes great points about how nature is right in front of us and yet most people can’t understand its beauty and roles that it plays in our lives and how it can relate to how we live and die. I also like his points on how cities somewhat fuel ignorance like in lines 210-216 “By artificial lights- -how they debase, The many for the pleasure of those few, Effeminately level down the truth, To certain general notions for the sake, Of being understood at once, or else , Through want of better knowledge in the men, Who frame them, flattering thus our self conceit.” Even simply his word choice and syntax make a beautiful yet effective statement that is eloquent and has meaning as well not just pretty words.
Wordsworth wished to connect to man universally by analyze come human character and relations such as child, parent, husband and I think he does a great job in impacting many peoples opinions and views on life itself.

Prelude Book Twelfth

The first third of Wordsworth’s Prelude: Book Twelfth (1805 version) illustrates a constant struggle between Wordsworth’s ideas of Nature vs. Knowledge. Within the first two lines:

“From Nature doth emotion come, and moods
Of calmness equally are Nature’s gift:”

Here Wordsworth is describing the nature of the origin of human emotions and moods, where they come from and what their purpose is. Later in the paragraph he makes references to another well known pairing, “the sun and shower,” further strengthening the idea behind these two concepts. The purpose of capitalizing the “n” in the word “Nature” could also lead the reader to believe that Wordsworth is alluding to God in the same respect as nature. Since God is the reason for the world around us, he is also the reason for the natural development of emotion and moods within the human being.

It is in the next stanza where Wordsworth talks about his experiences within the world that have given rise to his gathering of knowledge. Not surprisingly, he follows his normal manner of questioning how he came to realize things and ends up on the notion:

“Did Nature bring again this wiser mood,
More deeply reestablished in my soul,
Which, seeing little worthy or sublime
In what we blazon with the pompous names
Of power and action, early tutored me
To look with the feelings of fraternal love
Upon those unassuming things that hold
A silent station in this beauteous world.”

This stanza attributes his sense of higher consciousness and smarter being to his original experiences with nature. He again capitalizes the “n” in “nature,” signifying that he could still be crediting God with everything, but it doesn’t seem to be so religious in this paragraph. Wordsworth’s word choices show an admiration for the world around him in an almost “hippie-ish” way that is different from religion. His experiences in the natural world gave him the knowledge and appreciation for things that he might not have previously noticed in his on secular world.

I found the excerpt between lines 82-96 to be the most intriguing within this book. Wordsworth is questioning why are there so few men in the world that have gained the knowledge and state of mind that he has gained. He further prods why are there not more of these people and what has Nature done to restrict this dream? This juxtaposition is an example of a person’s struggle between the spiritual world and the real world. Wordsworth talks about the “animal wants and the necessities which they impose,” meaning that the human mind thirsts for knowledge. He questions why these are or could be boundaries. Though the spirit is constantly searching for answers it is sometimes hindered by the realities of the real world. Should a person not be born into a privileged family during this time it would be extremely difficult to get a proper education in order to foster the mind to grow. There were not many stories of “rags to riches” back in the early 1800s. Thus a person’s spiritual need to develop and mature the mind could be hindered by obstacles faced within the real world. Sadly, often times there is not much that a person can do about it.

Book Twelfth, Lines 313-349

In the lines preceding this section, Wordsworth has described his view of poets as prophets, privileged with a sense that allows them to see the unseen. Beginning with line 313, he proceeds to tell of the one most significant time when he himself felt he had that poetic gift. Through the progression of images in this anecdote, he further develops his view of man’s relationship with nature.
First, the trackless downs and bare roads inspire a vision of ancient Britons in barbaric habit, shaking their spears. Wordsworth notes that the image is not without “majesty,” but there is a sense of restlessness in this first stage of the vision; nature has inspired a vision of man rather than a classic sense of the sublime, which begins to illustrate a relationship, but balance has not yet been reached.
As Wordsworth delves deeper into his own reverie, the ancient barrows lead him to imagine scenes of human sacrifice by the Druids. He seems to hear the groans of the victims echoing through the downs. This is a very dark and gruesome image, inspired by the burial mounds—which are technically an example of man’s collaboration with nature, but it is the wrong kind of collaboration, a twisted form of the relationship.
The final image in the sequence leaves Wordsworth “gently charmed.” It comes about when he sees “lines, circles, mounts, a mystery of shapes” on the ground, again Druid constructs, but in this case in harmony with nature. This example of the Druids’ work represents their love and recognition of the constellations, forming on the earth an image mirroring the stars. In this final scene, man has finally settled into a balance with nature. The restlessness and violence are gone, and man is now inspired by nature, seeking to emulate it. This seems to reflect Wordsworth’s concept of the ideal relationship between man and nature.
Through this progression, Wordsworth traces a curve of man’s interaction and communion with nature—a curve that passes from its incitement through conflict and is resolved in harmony. In the end, the vision is accompanied by “music,” “stillness and a pleasant sound.” Wordsworth’s vision has resulted in a peaceful and harmonious relationship between man and nature, a glimpse of the poetic truth for which the prophet-poets he has described have a sense.

Book XII

[I kind of jumped all over in my references, but my focus will (eventually) be lines 368-379).]

We’re still trying to figure out what the heck Wordsworth means when he talks about “imagination.” And there are a whole lot of dualities that Wordsworth explores in this passage, and really throughout. I selected this passage because, as the concluding stanza, it attempts to summarize many of the main points. Those points feature the couples “right reason” and “knowledge,” the temporal and eternal, and the tangible and intangible.

Wordsworth discusses right reason in the second stanza of this book: “I had been taught to reverence a power/That is the very quality and shape/And image of right reason” (lines 25-26). I am almost afraid to tackle these lines because a certain phrase never means the same thing when you ask two different poets. Milton used the term “right reason” when he discussed the inherent understanding of natural law. Heavy stuff. Basically, he thought that every man had a sort of internal way of “knowing” what was right or wrong, important or not, sacred or secular, etc. This understanding seems to stand well against the way Wordsworth discusses knowledge. He talks about walking down the road and meeting people and learning from them through his conversations (lines 145-184). In these lines, it seems that man gains all of his knowledge through experience. He must be taught, he must read, and he must study. Things that wouldn’t have appeared to the “vulgar eye,” the common eye, in this case the unlearned eye. From this passage, it seems that gaining knowledge is hard work, which is a far cry from the knowledge a man possesses automatically with right reason.

The second juxtaposition, brought to my attention by the use of the word “originates” in line 374, is between the temporal and the eternal. Wordsworth writes that right reason allowed him

“a temperate shew

Of objects that endure…

To seek in man, and in the frame of life

Social and individual, what there is

Desirable, affecting, good or fair,

Of kindred permanence, the gifts divine

And universal, the pervading grace

That hath been, is, and shall be” (lines 35-44).

Right reason has revealed that which is lasting, has sifted the chaff from the wheat to reveal those things on early that will endure. This “shew of objects” will assist the speaker in finding value in his experience. As long as he rightly employs right reason in his everyday life, the more important aspects of life will stand out to him, and he will be able to make a proper investment of his time and attention. On the other hand, the speaker also highlights his experience. He wishes

“To ascertain how much of real worth,

And genuine knowledge, and true power of the mind,

Did at this day exist in those who lived

By bodily labour, labour far exceeding

Their due proportion, under all the weight

Of that injustice which upon ourselves

By composition of society/Ourselves entail.” (lines 98-105)

This description is very much focused on daily toil. The speaker is wondering in this passage if the concerns we have in this world are getting in the way of the exercise of our imaginations. “What bars are thrown/By Nature in the way of such a hope?/Our animal wants and the necessities/Which they impose, are these the obstacles?” (lines 92-95) This also harkens to the dichotomy of the body and soul. Where does the soul exist in the body? Is the soul impeded by the body? How can the two disparate entities exist in such close connection to each other? The speaker seems to equate the imagination to the soul, but cannot ignore the physical needs that our life on earth requires.

This leads directly into the last pair, the tangible and intangible. In this final line, the speaker refers to the excellence, spirit, and power “Both of the object seen, and the eye that sees” (379). The object seen links directly to these human needs. This is the physical world, the tangible world, the world that is related to our body, and to the knowledge that we gain by experience. The eye that sees is, ostensibly, the imagination. This eye sees Nature, it sees grandeur all in one picture, it sees the everlasting in the midst of the temporal, it sees the right through all the wrong. And the speaker credits this eye to the poet: “poets…/Have each for his peculiar dower a sense/By which he is enabled to perceive/Something unseen before” (lines 301-305). I hate to try and boil it down, to reduce it to such a thin mixture, but it seems that the speaker finds that poets possess something in themselves, some form of right reason that empowers their imagination, allows them to see all of nature at once, even that which is not evident to the “vulgar eye.” Unlike the common man, they do not see and appreciate Nature after long study and through hard-earned knowledge, but through some divine gift that always has been, and always will be.