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Ode to the West Wind

On the Poet

� Percy Bysshe Shelley� Shelley was born on 4 August 1792 at Field Place, Broadbridge Heath, near

Horsham, West Sussex, EnglandWhig Member of Parliament and his wife, Elizabeth Pilfold a Sussex landowner.

� In 1804, Shelley entered Eton College, where he fared poorly, and was subjected to an almost daily mob torment at around noon byincidents "Shelley-baits".

� Shelley was expelled from Oxford University for an anonymously published a pamphlet called The Necessity of Atheism

� Shelley eloped to Scotland with the 16� He did not see fame during his lifetime, but recognition for his poetry grew

steadily following his death.� His literary circle included Lord Byron, Leigh Hunt, Thomas Love Peacock, and

Mary Shelley. � His verse drama: The Cenci� Inspired by the death of Keats, � William Godwin the philosopher was his father� On 8 July 1822, less than a month before his 30th birthday Shelley drowned in a

sudden storm on the Gulf of Spezia while returning from Leghorn (Livorno) to Lerici in his sailing boat, the

� He was cremated on the beach near Viareggio. � In Shelley's pocket was a small book of Keats' poetry.� He was in favour of Vegetarianism

� He supported Nonviolence

� He propagated Social justice

� "Poets are the hierophants of an unapprehended inspiration; the mirrors of the gigantic shadows which futurity casts upon the present; the words which express what they understand not; the trumpets which sing tothey inspire; the influence which is moved not, but moves. Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world." Defence of Poetry

O wild West Wind, thou Thou, from whose unsee



in any form in any media for any kind of purpose. © AesthetixMS www.wbsscenglish.com

Ode to the West Wind

Percy Bysshe Shelley (4 August 1792 – 8 July 1822) a radical poet. Shelley was born on 4 August 1792 at Field Place, Broadbridge Heath, near Horsham, West Sussex, England. He was the eldest son of Sir Timothy Shelley, a Whig Member of Parliament and his wife, Elizabeth Pilfold a Sussex landowner.In 1804, Shelley entered Eton College, where he fared poorly, and was subjected to an almost daily mob torment at around noon by older boys, who aptly called these

baits". Shelley was expelled from Oxford University for an anonymously published a

The Necessity of Atheism. Shelley eloped to Scotland with the 16-year-old Harriet Westbrook.

t see fame during his lifetime, but recognition for his poetry grew steadily following his death. His literary circle included Lord Byron, Leigh Hunt, Thomas Love Peacock, and

The Cenci (1819) Inspired by the death of Keats, in 1821 Shelley wrote the elegy AdonaisWilliam Godwin the philosopher was his father-in-law. On 8 July 1822, less than a month before his 30th birthday Shelley drowned in a sudden storm on the Gulf of Spezia while returning from Leghorn (Livorno) to

erici in his sailing boat, the Don Juan He was cremated on the beach near Viareggio. In Shelley's pocket was a small book of Keats' poetry. He was in favour of Vegetarianism

Nonviolence

Social justice for the lower/working class in his writings

"Poets are the hierophants of an unapprehended inspiration; the mirrors of the gigantic shadows which futurity casts upon the present; the words which express what they understand not; the trumpets which sing to battle, and feel not what they inspire; the influence which is moved not, but moves. Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world." Defence of Poetry

Ode to the West Wind I

O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn's beingThou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead

© AesthetixMS www.wbsscenglish.com

8 July 1822) a radical poet. Shelley was born on 4 August 1792 at Field Place, Broadbridge Heath, near

. He was the eldest son of Sir Timothy Shelley, a Whig Member of Parliament and his wife, Elizabeth Pilfold a Sussex landowner. In 1804, Shelley entered Eton College, where he fared poorly, and was subjected to

older boys, who aptly called these

Shelley was expelled from Oxford University for an anonymously published a

old Harriet Westbrook. t see fame during his lifetime, but recognition for his poetry grew

His literary circle included Lord Byron, Leigh Hunt, Thomas Love Peacock, and

Adonais.

On 8 July 1822, less than a month before his 30th birthday Shelley drowned in a sudden storm on the Gulf of Spezia while returning from Leghorn (Livorno) to

for the lower/working class in his writings

"Poets are the hierophants of an unapprehended inspiration; the mirrors of the gigantic shadows which futurity casts upon the present; the words which express

battle, and feel not what they inspire; the influence which is moved not, but moves. Poets are the

breath of Autumn's being, n presence the leaves dead




Are driven, like

Yellow, and black, and pale, and PestilenceWho chariotest to their

The winged seedsEach

Thine azure sister of the Spring

Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth, and fill(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air

With living hues and odours plain and hill:

Wild Spirit, which artDestroyer and preserver;

Thou on whose stream, mid the steep sky's commotion,Loose clouds like earth's

Shook from

Angels of rain and lightning: there On the blue surface of

Like the bright hair uplifted from the head

Of some fierce Of the horizon to the zenith's height,

The locks of the approaching storm.

Of the dying yeaWill be the dome of a vast

Vaulted with all thy congregated might

Of vapours, from whose solid atmosphereBlack rain, and fire, and hail will burst

Thou who didst waken from his summer dreamsThe

Lull'd by the coil of his crystalline streams

Beside a And saw in sleep old palaces and towers

Quivering within the wave's intenser day,

2 Advanced Modular Guidance for WBSSC English




Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,

Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red, Pestilence-stricken multitudes: O thou, Who chariotest to their dark wintry bed

The winged seeds, where they lie cold and low,

Each like a corpse within its grave, until Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow

Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth, and fill

Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)With living hues and odours plain and hill:

Wild Spirit, which art moving everywhere; Destroyer and preserver; hear, oh hear!

II Thou on whose stream, mid the steep sky's commotion,

Loose clouds like earth's decaying leaves are shedShook from the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean

Angels of rain and lightning: there are spread

On the blue surface of thine airy surge, Like the bright hair uplifted from the head

Of some fierce Maenad, even from the dim verge

Of the horizon to the zenith's height, The locks of the approaching storm. Thou dirge

Of the dying year, to which this closing night

Will be the dome of a vast sepulchre, Vaulted with all thy congregated might

Of vapours, from whose solid atmosphere

Black rain, and fire, and hail will burst: oh hear!III

Thou who didst waken from his summer dreamsThe blue Mediterranean, where he lay,

Lull'd by the coil of his crystalline streams,

Beside a pumice isle in Baiae's bay, And saw in sleep old palaces and towers

Quivering within the wave's intenser day,

Advanced Modular Guidance for WBSSC English


ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,

, where they lie cold and low,

)

Thou on whose stream, mid the steep sky's commotion, decaying leaves are shed,

the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean,

, even from the dim verge

Thou dirge

: oh hear!

Thou who didst waken from his summer dreams

3 Ode to the West Wind




All overgrown with azure moss and flowersSo sweet, the sen

For whose path the Atlantic's level powers

Cleave themselves into chasms, while far belowThe sea

The sapless foliage of the ocean

Thy voice, and suddenly grow gray with fear,And tremble and

If I were a dead leaf thou mightest bear;If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee;

A wave to pant beneath thy power, and share

The impulse of thy strength, only less freeThan thou, O uncontrollable! If ev

I were as in my boyhood, and could be

The comrade of thy wanderings over HeavenAs then, when to outstrip thy

Scarce seem'd a vision; I would ne'er have striven

As thus with thee in prayer in my sore need.Oh, lift me as a wave, a leaf, a

I fall upon the thorns of life

A heavy weight of hours has chain'd and bow'dOne too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud.

Make me thy lyre, even as the forest isWhat if my leaves are falling

The tumult of thy migh

Will take from both a deep, autumnal tone,Sweet though in sadness

My spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one!

Drive my dead thoughts over the universeLike wither'd leaves to quicken a new birth!

And, by the




All overgrown with azure moss and flowers

So sweet, the sense faints picturing them! Thou For whose path the Atlantic's level powers

Cleave themselves into chasms, while far below The sea-blooms and the oozy woods which wear

The sapless foliage of the ocean, know

Thy voice, and suddenly grow gray with fear, And tremble and despoil themselves: oh hear!

IV

If I were a dead leaf thou mightest bear; If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee;

A wave to pant beneath thy power, and share

The impulse of thy strength, only less free Than thou, O uncontrollable! If even

I were as in my boyhood, and could be

The comrade of thy wanderings over HeavenAs then, when to outstrip thy skiey speed


As thus with thee in prayer in my sore need. Oh, lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!

I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!

A heavy weight of hours has chain'd and bow'dOne too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud.

V Make me thy lyre, even as the forest is:

What if my leaves are falling like its own! The tumult of thy mighty harmonies

Will take from both a deep, autumnal tone,

Sweet though in sadness. Be thou, Spirit fierce,My spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one!

Drive my dead thoughts over the universe Like wither'd leaves to quicken a new birth!

And, by the incantation of this verse,


blooms and the oozy woods which wear

: oh hear!

The comrade of thy wanderings over Heaven,


A heavy weight of hours has chain'd and bow'd One too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud.

. Be thou, Spirit fierce,




Scatter, as from Ashes and sparks

Be through my lips to unawaken'd earth

The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?

On the Text

• "Ode to the West Wind• It was originally published in 1820 by Charles and James Ollier in London as part of

the collection Prometheus Unbound.

• Here we have the image of the poet as the poet• The poem allegorises the role

• The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed: “[Poetry]…awakens and enlarges the mind by rendering it the receptable of a thousand unapprehended combination of thought. Poethidden beauty of the world.” “A Defence of Poetry”

• M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force, which the poet needs as a symbol of both destruction and creation”.

• The wind is the metaphor for revolutionary social change

• Shelley's love of enjambment (continuing the sense of a line onto the next line)

• Terza rima is a rhyming verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking threeline rhyme scheme. Terza nina bcb, cdc, etc.

• It was first used by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri in • The first English poet to write in terza rima was Geoffrey Chaucer

• The poem "Ode to the West Wind" consists of five sections (cantterza rima. Each section consists of four tercets (ABA, BCB, CDC, DED) and a rhyming couplet (EE).

• The Ode is written in iambic pentameter.

• Shelley modified the pattern by ending each of the five sections of the poem with a climactic couplet.

• In keeping with his terza nina wind on three classes of objects: leaves, clouds, and water.

• The combination of terza nina poem a pleasing structural

• Shelley wrote: “This poem was conceived and chiefly written in a wood that skirts the Arno, near Florence, and on a day when that tempestuous wind, whose temperature is at once mild and animating, was collecting the vapours which pour down the autumnal rains. They began, as I foresaw, at sunset with a violent tempest of hail and rain, attended by that magnificent thunder and lightning





Scatter, as from an unextinguish'd hearth

Ashes and sparks, my words among mankind! Be through my lips to unawaken'd earth

The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,

If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?

Ode to the West Wind" was written in 1819 near Florence, Italy. It was originally published in 1820 by Charles and James Ollier in London as part of

Prometheus Unbound.

Here we have the image of the poet as the poet-prophet figureThe poem allegorises the role of the poet as the voice of change and revolution.

The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed: “[Poetry]…awakens and enlarges the mind by rendering it the receptable of a thousand unapprehended combination of thought. Poetry lifts its veil from the hidden beauty of the world.” “A Defence of Poetry”

M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force, which the poet needs as a symbol of both destruction and creation”.

the metaphor for revolutionary social change

Shelley's love of enjambment (continuing the sense of a line onto the next line)

is a rhyming verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking threeTerza nina is a series of triplets with interlocking rhymes, aba,

It was first used by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri in Divina CommediaThe first English poet to write in terza rima was Geoffrey Chaucer

The poem "Ode to the West Wind" consists of five sections (cantterza rima. Each section consists of four tercets (ABA, BCB, CDC, DED) and a rhyming couplet (EE).

The Ode is written in iambic pentameter.

Shelley modified the pattern by ending each of the five sections of the poem with a

terza nina stanza, he concentrates on the effects of the west wind on three classes of objects: leaves, clouds, and water.

terza nina and the threefold effect of the west wind gives the poem a pleasing structural symmetry.

Shelley wrote: “This poem was conceived and chiefly written in a wood that skirts the Arno, near Florence, and on a day when that tempestuous wind, whose temperature is at once mild and animating, was collecting the vapours which pour

utumnal rains. They began, as I foresaw, at sunset with a violent tempest of hail and rain, attended by that magnificent thunder and lightning



" was written in 1819 near Florence, Italy. It was originally published in 1820 by Charles and James Ollier in London as part of

prophet figure of the poet as the voice of change and revolution.

The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed: “[Poetry]…awakens and enlarges the mind by rendering it the receptable of a

ry lifts its veil from the

M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force, which the poet needs as a symbol of both destruction and creation”.

Shelley's love of enjambment (continuing the sense of a line onto the next line)

is a rhyming verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking three-plets with interlocking rhymes, aba,

Divina Commedia The first English poet to write in terza rima was Geoffrey Chaucer

The poem "Ode to the West Wind" consists of five sections (cantos) written in terza rima. Each section consists of four tercets (ABA, BCB, CDC, DED) and a

Shelley modified the pattern by ending each of the five sections of the poem with a

stanza, he concentrates on the effects of the west

and the threefold effect of the west wind gives the

Shelley wrote: “This poem was conceived and chiefly written in a wood that skirts the Arno, near Florence, and on a day when that tempestuous wind, whose temperature is at once mild and animating, was collecting the vapours which pour

utumnal rains. They began, as I foresaw, at sunset with a violent tempest of hail and rain, attended by that magnificent thunder and lightning





peculiar to the Cisalpine regions.”

A Critical Appreciation

Ode to the West Wind by P.B. Shelley

The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed. Poetry, Shelley writes in “A Defenceit the receptable of a thousand unapprehended combination of thought. Poetry lifts its veil from the hidden beauty of the world.” Consistent with this theory of poetc creation, Shelley’s Romanticism is filled with “vehement feelings, ecstatic, mournful, passionate, desperate or fiercely indignant”. Sometimes he makes a sudden turn of the theme and talks about himself just like the movements in Beethoven’s symphonies. It is in this that he is unique among the Romanticsfraternity in his idealistic project of life. For this, he is seen to be pessimistic about the present but highly optimistic about the future to come.

The Romantic poets made frequent Shelley’s treatment it is not a “correspondent breeze”; it is rather ferocious in its energy. M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force, which the poet needs as a symbol importance of the wind as the metaphor for revolutionary social change.

In the very first stanza West Wind appears with an accumulated forceAutumn’s being”—to blow away the dead leaves. Shelmagician because, just as a powerful magician drives away ghosts, the wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead things in autumnal nature by remaining itself invisible. The phrase surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing on the ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the poet thinks, in a state of degeneration.

“…O thou

Who chariotest to their dark

The wing’d seeds, where they lie cold and low,

Each like a corpse within its grave.”

The West Wind carries the seeds with wingthose remain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will blow across the land, the seeds, shooting forth from the ground, will grow into plants. Here Shelley seems to have a very swift vision of the spring. He sees that just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tegreen field, the gentle breeze similarly causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another. The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all that stand in its way. But it takes care to preserve the




peculiar to the Cisalpine regions.”

Ode to the West Wind by P.B. Shelley

The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed. Poetry, Shelley writes in “A Defence of Poetry”, “…awakens and enlarges the mind by rendering it the receptable of a thousand unapprehended combination of thought. Poetry lifts its veil from the hidden beauty of the world.” Consistent with this theory of poetc creation,

is filled with “vehement feelings, ecstatic, mournful, passionate, desperate or fiercely indignant”. Sometimes he makes a sudden turn of the theme and talks about himself just like the movements in Beethoven’s symphonies. It is in this that

mong the Romantics—looking for a better world of liberty, equality and fraternity in his idealistic project of life. For this, he is seen to be pessimistic about the present but highly optimistic about the future to come.

The Romantic poets made frequent use of the wind as a soothing symbol. But in Shelley’s treatment it is not a “correspondent breeze”; it is rather ferocious in its energy. M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force, which the poet needs as a symbol of both destruction and creation”. Herein lies the importance of the wind as the metaphor for revolutionary social change.

In the very first stanza West Wind appears with an accumulated forceto blow away the dead leaves. Shelley compares the West Wind to a

magician because, just as a powerful magician drives away ghosts, the wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead things in autumnal nature by remaining itself invisible. The phrase “pestilence-stricken multitude”surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing on the ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the poet thinks,

Who chariotest to their dark wintry bed

The wing’d seeds, where they lie cold and low,

Each like a corpse within its grave.”

The West Wind carries the seeds with wing-like devices down to the ground where those remain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will blow across the land, the seeds, shooting forth from the ground, will grow into plants. Here Shelley seems to have a very swift vision of the spring. He sees that just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tegreen field, the gentle breeze similarly causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another. The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all that stand in its way. But it takes care to preserve the


The poem “Ode to the West Wind” directly conforms to Shelley’s poetic creed. Poetry, of Poetry”, “…awakens and enlarges the mind by rendering

it the receptable of a thousand unapprehended combination of thought. Poetry lifts its veil from the hidden beauty of the world.” Consistent with this theory of poetc creation,

is filled with “vehement feelings, ecstatic, mournful, passionate, desperate or fiercely indignant”. Sometimes he makes a sudden turn of the theme and talks about himself just like the movements in Beethoven’s symphonies. It is in this that

looking for a better world of liberty, equality and fraternity in his idealistic project of life. For this, he is seen to be pessimistic about the

use of the wind as a soothing symbol. But in Shelley’s treatment it is not a “correspondent breeze”; it is rather ferocious in its energy. M.H. Abrams says “because of the ferocity the wind becomes a vast impersonal force,

of both destruction and creation”. Herein lies the importance of the wind as the metaphor for revolutionary social change.

In the very first stanza West Wind appears with an accumulated force–a “breath of ley compares the West Wind to a

magician because, just as a powerful magician drives away ghosts, the wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead things in autumnal nature by

ltitude” here, on the surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing on the ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the poet thinks,

like devices down to the ground where those remain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will blow across the land, the seeds, shooting forth from the ground, will grow into plants. Here Shelley seems to have a very swift vision of the spring. He sees that just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field, the gentle breeze similarly causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another. The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all that stand in its way. But it takes care to preserve the seeds under




the soil so as to ensure a resurrection in the world of nature with the advent of the spring. In this way, the West Wind becomes both a “destroyer and preserver”.

In the second stanza the wind changes its field of operation; it is set in air, sky”. The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might, Shelley imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated cloudsfrom the surface of the ocean up to the skykind of function by forcing the clouds toShelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out of the evaporation of water from the surface of the watimmediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That is why he imagines the clouds as the interShelley compares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair of a Maenad in order to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some supernatural force.

In the European seasonal cycle, autumn the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of the wind is, therefore, imagined byclosing year. Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky, as “angels of rain and lightning” because they obviously indicate that rain

By the expression “the dome of a vast which will serve as the dome of a vast tomb, in which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water vapors also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere seems to be solid because of thick layerswith the same and single point agenda: it destroys the dead and preserves the living.

In the third stanza the realm of the ruling West Wind is the sea, both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and both thepersonified the Mediterranean, which perhaps in its sleep is dreaming of destruction of the palaces. During summer the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers which remain submerged, are allappear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the palaces seem to quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves. This may be easily taken for allusions to Shelley’s hope for political change in Italy, for the collapse of the kings and kingdoms. Shelley here must have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolize corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and institutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea, in order to make way for new beginning.

As the scene shifts to the Atlantic, “the somnolent summer yields to the ruthless autumn”. The reader is taken not only to the Atlantic, w






In the second stanza the wind changes its field of operation; it is set in air, sky”. The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might, Shelley imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated cloudsfrom the surface of the ocean up to the sky—to disintegrate. The Wind performs this kind of function by forcing the clouds to—just as it the leaves of the trees to fall off. Shelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out of the evaporation of water from the surface of the water bodies on earth. But in the immediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That is why he imagines the clouds as the inter-connected boughs of the ocean and the sky. Shelley compares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair of a Maenad in order to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some

In the European seasonal cycle, autumn is the season which stands just before winter, at the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of the wind is, therefore, imagined by the poet to be the dirge or the funeral song for the closing year. Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky, as “angels of rain and lightning” because they

and lightning are approaching soon.

“the dome of a vast 6nawake6t” Shelley here refers to the closing night which will serve as the dome of a vast tomb, in which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water vapors also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere seems to be solid because of thick layers of dense clouds. The point is that Wind operates with the same and single point agenda: it destroys the dead and preserves the living.

In the third stanza the realm of the ruling West Wind is the sea, both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and both the surface and the vegetation beneath. Shelley here has personified the Mediterranean, which perhaps in its sleep is dreaming of destruction of the palaces. During summer the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers which remain submerged, are all quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the palaces seem to quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves. This may be

sions to Shelley’s hope for political change in Italy, for the collapse of the kings and kingdoms. Shelley here must have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolize corrupt, degenerate and old power, old

itutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea, in order to make way for new beginning.

As the scene shifts to the Atlantic, “the somnolent summer yields to the ruthless autumn”. The reader is taken not only to the Atlantic, where its smooth surface has




In the second stanza the wind changes its field of operation; it is set in air, in the “steep sky”. The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might, Shelley imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated clouds—right

Wind performs this just as it the leaves of the trees to fall off.

Shelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out er bodies on earth. But in the

immediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That

of the ocean and the sky. Shelley compares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair of a Maenad in order to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some

is the season which stands just before winter, at the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of

the poet to be the dirge or the funeral song for the closing year. Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky, as “angels of rain and lightning” because they

Shelley here refers to the closing night which will serve as the dome of a vast tomb, in which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water vapors also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere

of dense clouds. The point is that Wind operates with the same and single point agenda: it destroys the dead and preserves the living.

In the third stanza the realm of the ruling West Wind is the sea, both the Mediterranean surface and the vegetation beneath. Shelley here has

personified the Mediterranean, which perhaps in its sleep is dreaming of destruction of the palaces. During summer the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers

quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the palaces seem to quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves. This may be

sions to Shelley’s hope for political change in Italy, for the collapse of the kings and kingdoms. Shelley here must have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolize corrupt, degenerate and old power, old

itutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea,

As the scene shifts to the Atlantic, “the somnolent summer yields to the ruthless here its smooth surface has





turned into a deep waves, but under it, where woods and foliage are forced to dispossess themselves of foliage upon hearing the Wind’s voice.

The fourth stanza begins, as pointed out by Michael Ferver somewhat the way Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” begins, by briefly recapitulating the themes of the first three movements. Now, the Wind is seen in the fourth stanza in relation to the poet himself:

“If I were a dead leaf thou 7nawake

If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee.

As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanized by the corrupt, degenerate and old political powers and institutions. He wanted to see mankind reach an ideal state of life basfraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he refers to as his “sore need”. Shelley erupts in Romantic agony,

“Oh! Lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!

I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!”

The poet wants to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind, he wants to be a piece of cloud, a leaf and a wave. The poet now remembers that in his boyhood he was full of energy and vigor, and as such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to be invaded by the fierce wind so that he may be supplied with energy and inspiration. Again, Shelley here thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated, the poet invites or rather prays to the Wind to invade his self. He wants this also with the intention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process. The West Wind comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the new. As it is destructive, its processes are bound to have certain sad implications. But destruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.

He longs to be invaded by the fierce spirit of the Wind and cleaves with it to become,

“…through my lips to 7nawake’d earth

The trumpet of my prophecy!”

At last he is optimistic of the future and closes the poem with a prophecy:

If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”

It becomes clear that the poet invokes the example of the operations of the west wind in nature because, in turn, he wants to spread his message of resurrection through this poem and other poems he plans to compose. In other words, an evidence of a natural




turned into a deep waves, but under it, where woods and foliage are forced to dispossess themselves of foliage upon hearing the Wind’s voice.

The fourth stanza begins, as pointed out by Michael Ferver somewhat the way s “Ninth Symphony” begins, by briefly recapitulating the themes of the first

three movements. Now, the Wind is seen in the fourth stanza in relation to the poet

nawake7t bear;

If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee.”

As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanized by the corrupt, degenerate and old political powers and institutions. He wanted to see mankind reach an ideal state of life basfraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he refers to as his “sore need”. Shelley erupts in Romantic agony,

“Oh! Lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!

I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!”

to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind, he wants to be a piece of cloud, a leaf and a wave. The poet now remembers that in his

ll of energy and vigor, and as such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to be invaded by the fierce wind so that he

lied with energy and inspiration. Again, Shelley here thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated, the poet invites or rather prays to the Wind to invade his self. He wants

ith the intention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process. The West Wind comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the new. As it is

its processes are bound to have certain sad implications. But destruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.


nawake’d earth

The trumpet of my prophecy!”


If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”



turned into a deep waves, but under it, where woods and foliage are forced to dispossess

The fourth stanza begins, as pointed out by Michael Ferver somewhat the way s “Ninth Symphony” begins, by briefly recapitulating the themes of the first

three movements. Now, the Wind is seen in the fourth stanza in relation to the poet

As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanized by the corrupt, degenerate and old political powers and institutions. He wanted to see mankind reach an ideal state of life based on fraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he

to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind, he wants to be a piece of cloud, a leaf and a wave. The poet now remembers that in his

ll of energy and vigor, and as such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to be invaded by the fierce wind so that he

lied with energy and inspiration. Again, Shelley here thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated, the poet invites or rather prays to the Wind to invade his self. He wants

ith the intention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process. The West Wind comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the new. As it is

its processes are bound to have certain sad implications. But destruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.







phenomenon in nature turns out to be a poetic inspiration for him.

Inside the Text

1. Explain the expression, “Like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing".

Shelley compares the West Wind to a magician because, just as a powerful magician drives away ghosts, the wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead things in autumnal nature by remaining itself invisible.

2. Why does Shelley address the Wind as “the breath of Autumn’s being”?

Shelley imagines the West Wind here as a restless anthropomorphwhich comes to being as a result of special climactic condition during the season, autumn.

Who are referred to as “pestilence

The phrase here, on the surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the poet thinks, in a state of degeneration.

3. “Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air”

With the onset of spring shepherds go out wigreen field. The gentle breeze similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

4. What is referred to here as “azure sister of the spring”? What is its srelation to the West Wind?

The West Wind carries the seeds with wingremain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will blow across the land, the seeds, shooting for

5. Why is the West Wind called “destroyer and preserver”?

The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all thatway. But it takes care to preserve the seeds under the soil so as to ensure a resurrection in the world of nature with the advent of the spring. In this way, the West Wind becomes both a “destroyer and preserver”.

6. Explain the expression “w

Ans: Certain plants and trees in nature produce seeds which are formed in such physical condition that those may be transported by the wind from one place to another. This natural device is employed by the plants and trees to perpetuate theirarea of land. Shelley suggests that the West Wind performs just this function in nature.

7. How does Shelley equate “Loose clouds” with “earth’s decaying leaves”?

The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might,





phenomenon in nature turns out to be a poetic inspiration for him.

Explain the expression, “Like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing".

Shelley compares the West Wind to a magician because, just as a powerful magician wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead

things in autumnal nature by remaining itself invisible.


Shelley imagines the West Wind here as a restless anthropomorphising force, as a spirit, which comes to being as a result of special climactic condition during the season,

Who are referred to as “pestilence-stricken multitude”?

The phrase here, on the surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the poet thinks, in a state of degeneration.

3. “Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air”—Explain the expression.

With the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field. The gentle breeze similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

4. What is referred to here as “azure sister of the spring”? What is its s

The West Wind carries the seeds with wing-like devices down to the ground where those remain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will blow across the land, the seeds, shooting forth from the ground, will grow into plants.

Why is the West Wind called “destroyer and preserver”?

The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all thatway. But it takes care to preserve the seeds under the soil so as to ensure a resurrection in the world of nature with the advent of the spring. In this way, the West Wind becomes both a “destroyer and preserver”.

. Explain the expression “winged seeds”.

Ans: Certain plants and trees in nature produce seeds which are formed in such physical condition that those may be transported by the wind from one place to another. This natural device is employed by the plants and trees to perpetuate theirarea of land. Shelley suggests that the West Wind performs just this function in nature.

. How does Shelley equate “Loose clouds” with “earth’s decaying leaves”?

The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might,



Explain the expression, “Like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing".

Shelley compares the West Wind to a magician because, just as a powerful magician wind performs same kind of operation by sweeping away the dead


ising force, as a spirit, which comes to being as a result of special climactic condition during the season,

The phrase here, on the surface level, refers to the leaves, which are decomposing on the ground. But symbolically the ‘multitudes’ refers to the entire human society, which, the

Explain the expression.

th their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field. The gentle breeze similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and

4. What is referred to here as “azure sister of the spring”? What is its significance in

like devices down to the ground where those remain dormant. During spring, however, when Zephyr, the warm and gentle wind will

th from the ground, will grow into plants.

The West Wind moves with a terrific force and makes massacre of all that stand in its way. But it takes care to preserve the seeds under the soil so as to ensure a resurrection in the world of nature with the advent of the spring. In this way, the West Wind becomes

Ans: Certain plants and trees in nature produce seeds which are formed in such physical condition that those may be transported by the wind from one place to another. This natural device is employed by the plants and trees to perpetuate their lines over a wide area of land. Shelley suggests that the West Wind performs just this function in nature.

. How does Shelley equate “Loose clouds” with “earth’s decaying leaves”?

The West Wind, while operating in the sky, moves along with all its might, Shelley





imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated cloudsfrom the surface of the ocean up to the skyof function by forcing the clouds to

8. Explain the expression “...tangled boughs of heaven and ocean”.

Ans: Shelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out of the evaporation of water from the surface of the water bodies on earth. Buimmediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That is why he imagines the clouds as the inter

9. Who is a Maenad? Why does Shelley compare the clouds to the uplifted hair of a Maenad?

Ans: Maenad is a frenzied womancompares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair oorder to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some supernatural force.

10. Why does Shelley call the West Wind, “dirge of the dying year”?

Ans: In the European seasonal cycle, autumn is the season which stands just beforewinter, at the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of the wind is, therefore, imagined by the poet to be the dirge or the funerfor the closing year.

11. Whom does Shelley address as “angels of rain and lightning” and why?

Ans: Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky, as “angels of rain and lightning” indicate that rain and lightning are approaching soon.

12. What does Shelley refer to as “the dome of a vast sepulchre”?

Ans: By the expression Shelley here refers to the closing night which will serve as the dome of a vast tomb, in which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water vapours also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere seems to be solid because of thick layers of dense clouds.

13. How does Shelley personify “the Mediterranean”?

Ans: During summer the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers which remain submerged, are all quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the palaces seem to quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves.

14. Explain the line: “I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!”.

Ans: At the very end of the fourth stanza of the poem “Ode to the West Wind” Shelley




imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated cloudsfrom the surface of the ocean up to the sky—to disintegrate. The Wind performs this kind of function by forcing the clouds to—just as it the leaves of the trees to fall off.

. Explain the expression “...tangled boughs of heaven and ocean”.

Ans: Shelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out of the evaporation of water from the surface of the water bodies on earth. Buimmediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That is why he imagines the clouds as the inter-connected boughs of the ocean and the

. Who is a Maenad? Why does Shelley compare the clouds to the uplifted hair of a

Ans: Maenad is a frenzied woman-worshipper of Bacchus, the Greek god of wine. Shelley compares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair oorder to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some supernatural

. Why does Shelley call the West Wind, “dirge of the dying year”?

Ans: In the European seasonal cycle, autumn is the season which stands just beforewinter, at the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of the wind is, therefore, imagined by the poet to be the dirge or the funer

. Whom does Shelley address as “angels of rain and lightning” and why?

Ans: Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky, as “angels of rain and lightning” because they obviously indicate that rain and lightning are approaching soon.

. What does Shelley refer to as “the dome of a vast sepulchre”?

Ans: By the expression Shelley here refers to the closing night which will serve as the which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water

vapours also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere seems to be solid because of thick layers of dense clouds.

. How does Shelley personify “the Mediterranean”?

er the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers which remain submerged, are all quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the

quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves.

. Explain the line: “I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!”.



imagines, just as the stream of a river. In so doing it forces accumulated clouds—right to disintegrate. The Wind performs this kind

s to fall off.

Ans: Shelley here may be referring to the scientific fact that clouds are created in the sky out of the evaporation of water from the surface of the water bodies on earth. But in the immediate context of the poem, he must have observed the clouds to have been accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. That is

connected boughs of the ocean and the sky.

. Who is a Maenad? Why does Shelley compare the clouds to the uplifted hair of a

worshipper of Bacchus, the Greek god of wine. Shelley compares the clouds ravaged by the power of the wind to the uplifted hair of a Maenad in order to convey the sense that the West Wind operates possessed by some supernatural

Ans: In the European seasonal cycle, autumn is the season which stands just before winter, at the end of which a year closes. So before the coming of winter West Wind passes over earth destroying the old degenerate things and making horrible sounds. The howling of the wind is, therefore, imagined by the poet to be the dirge or the funeral song

. Whom does Shelley address as “angels of rain and lightning” and why?

Ans: Shelley here addresses the clouds, accumulated from the surface of the ocean up to because they obviously

Ans: By the expression Shelley here refers to the closing night which will serve as the which the closing year will be buried. The accumulated water

vapours also make the roof over the dying year and the atmosphere seems to be solid

er the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the towers which remain submerged, are all quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and the

quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves.





refers to the troubles, sorrows and the bitter dto every human being. Shelley was no exception to it. More importantly, as he was an idealistic and Romantic, he was deeply hurt by the bitter experiences of life.

15. Where is Baiae’s Bay?

Ans: The Baiae’s Bay is situated on the western coast of Italy near Naples. Vesuvius stands close to the Bay. The Bay is famous for islands formed from the deposit of lava.

16. What is the significance of the phrase “old palaces and towers quivering”?

Ans: Shelley here must have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolise corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and institutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea, in order to make way for new beginning.

17. What does the poet refer to as “sore need”

Ans: As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanised by the corrupt, degenerate and old political powers and institutions. He fraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he refers to as his “sore need”.

18. “If even I were in my boyhood...seemed a vision”

Ans: The poet now remembeas such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to be invaded by the fierce wind so that he may be supplied with energy and inspiration. (The expression “scare seemed a vision” means it did not seem impossible in his boyhood.)

19. Why does the poet wish to be “a dead leaf”, “a swift cloud” and “a wave”?

Or, Why does the poet wish to “share the impulse of thy strength”?

Ans: The poet wants to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind, he wants to be a piece of cloud, a lea

20. “Make me thy lyre”—Explain.

Ans: Shelley here in the poem Ode to the West Wind thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated, the poet invites or rather prays to the Wiintention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process.

21. “The tumult of thy mighty harmonies/

Will take from both a deep, autumnal tone





refers to the troubles, sorrows and the bitter disappointment of life which are inevitable to every human being. Shelley was no exception to it. More importantly, as he was an idealistic and Romantic, he was deeply hurt by the bitter experiences of life.

Bay is situated on the western coast of Italy near Naples. Vesuvius stands close to the Bay. The Bay is famous for islands formed from the deposit of lava.

. What is the significance of the phrase “old palaces and towers quivering”?

st have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolise corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and institutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea, in order to make way for

. What does the poet refer to as “sore need”

Ans: As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanised by the corrupt, degenerate and old political powers and institutions. He wanted to see mankind reach an ideal state of life based on fraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he

. “If even I were in my boyhood...seemed a vision”

Ans: The poet now remembers that in his boyhood he was full of energy and vigour, and as such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to

ierce wind so that he may be supplied with energy and inspiration. (The expression “scare seemed a vision” means it did not seem impossible in his

. Why does the poet wish to be “a dead leaf”, “a swift cloud” and “a wave”?

wish to “share the impulse of thy strength”?

Ans: The poet wants to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind, he wants to be a piece of cloud, a leaf and a wave.

Explain.

Ans: Shelley here in the poem Ode to the West Wind thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated, the poet invites or rather prays to the Wind to invade his self. He wants this also with the intention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process.

. “The tumult of thy mighty harmonies/

Will take from both a deep, autumnal tone



isappointment of life which are inevitable to every human being. Shelley was no exception to it. More importantly, as he was an idealistic and Romantic, he was deeply hurt by the bitter experiences of life.

Bay is situated on the western coast of Italy near Naples. Vesuvius stands close to the Bay. The Bay is famous for islands formed from the deposit of lava.

. What is the significance of the phrase “old palaces and towers quivering”?

st have tried to bring home a political philosophy. The old palaces and towers symbolise corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and institutions. All these should be destroyed, the poet dreams along with the sea, in order to make way for

Ans: As an idealist and as an extremely sensitive soul, Shelley was in much distress to see mankind exploited and being dehumanised by the corrupt, degenerate and old political

wanted to see mankind reach an ideal state of life based on fraternity, equality and democracy. And that is why he was seeking revolution, which he

rs that in his boyhood he was full of energy and vigour, and as such that he would not refrain himself from competing with the cloudlets borne away in the sky by the wind. But now he lacks the energy to do so and that is why he seeks to

ierce wind so that he may be supplied with energy and inspiration. (The expression “scare seemed a vision” means it did not seem impossible in his

. Why does the poet wish to be “a dead leaf”, “a swift cloud” and “a wave”?

Ans: The poet wants to preach the words of revolution to mankind. But he knows that lacks the energy to do so. In order to acquire the strength and speed of the West Wind,

Ans: Shelley here in the poem Ode to the West Wind thinks of himself as having accumulated the degenerate habits and ideas. In order to be refreshed and reinvigorated,

nd to invade his self. He wants this also with the intention of acquiring some of the fierce energy of the wind in this process.





Sweet though in sadness—”

Why does Shelley say this? How can sweetness remain side by side sadness?

Ans: The West Wind, the poet thinks, comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the new. As it is destructive, its prdestruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.

22. What does Shelley want to mean by “Thy mighty harmonies”?

Ans: The West Wind, as it blows across the world, protakes it for granted that the wind possesses a pattern of its operation like musical composition. But since it is destructive in nature, its sounds are horrible.

23. “Drive my dead thoughts...my words among mankind”

Ans: Towards the end of the poem “Ode to the West Wind”, it becomes clear that the poet invokes the example of the operations of the west wind in nature because, in turn, he wants to spread his message of resurrection through this poem and other poems heplans to compose. In other words, an evidence of a natural phenomenon in nature turns out to be a poetic inspiration for him.

MCQs

1. “ O wild West Wind” What is the figure of speech

A. Apostrophe B. Personification C. Metaphor D. Address

3. “the breath of Autumn’s being” can refer

to the neo-platonic idea as theA. Wind as visible expression of the

abstract and intangible Nature B. Wind as the correspondent breezeC. Wind as spirit of revolutionD. Wind as messenger 5. What do “ the leaves dead” and

“pestilence-stricken multitude” refer to symbolically?

A. The degenerate human society B. The Italian people C. The English people D. Rotten vegetation

[Note: Shelley may be using the imagery of the




”

ay this? How can sweetness remain side by side sadness?

Ans: The West Wind, the poet thinks, comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the new. As it is destructive, its processes are bound to have certain sad implications. But destruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.

. What does Shelley want to mean by “Thy mighty harmonies”?

Ans: The West Wind, as it blows across the world, produces horrible sounds. The poet takes it for granted that the wind possesses a pattern of its operation like musical composition. But since it is destructive in nature, its sounds are horrible.

. “Drive my dead thoughts...my words among mankind”—Explain.

Ans: Towards the end of the poem “Ode to the West Wind”, it becomes clear that the poet invokes the example of the operations of the west wind in nature because, in turn, he wants to spread his message of resurrection through this poem and other poems heplans to compose. In other words, an evidence of a natural phenomenon in nature turns out to be a poetic inspiration for him.

“ O wild West Wind” What is the figure 2. “the breath of Autumn’s the figure of speech

A. Allegory B. Metaphor C. Metonymy D. Apostrophe

“the breath of Autumn’s being” can refer platonic idea as the

Wind as visible expression of the abstract and intangible Nature Wind as the correspondent breeze

spirit of revolution

4. How can the imagery of the poem be best described?

A. Secular B. Religious C. Mythical D. Natural

What do “ the leaves dead” and stricken multitude” refer to

The degenerate human society

6. “Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red” What do the colours refer to?

A. The colour of the treesB. The colour of the autumnal leaves C. The colour of the autumnal groundD. NOTA

Shelley may be using the imagery of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalyse


ay this? How can sweetness remain side by side sadness?

Ans: The West Wind, the poet thinks, comes into being during autumn with its predestined function of destroying the old and degenerate, thereby paving the way for the

ocesses are bound to have certain sad implications. But destruction is also a necessary prelude to a new awakening, which implies sweetness.

duces horrible sounds. The poet takes it for granted that the wind possesses a pattern of its operation like musical composition. But since it is destructive in nature, its sounds are horrible.

Ans: Towards the end of the poem “Ode to the West Wind”, it becomes clear that the poet invokes the example of the operations of the west wind in nature because, in turn, he wants to spread his message of resurrection through this poem and other poems he plans to compose. In other words, an evidence of a natural phenomenon in nature turns

“the breath of Autumn’s being” What is the figure of speech

How can the imagery of the poem be

“Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red” What do the colours refer to? The colour of the trees The colour of the autumnal leaves The colour of the autumnal ground

Four Horsemen of the Apocalyse in the




biblical Book of Revelation(Famine), and a pale horse (Death). This would like with the death imagery in the poem, as if the leaves are taking on the role of the Four Horsemen, as harbingers of the end.]

7. “Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air” What does the line mean?

A. Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field, the gentle breeze similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

B. Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field, the west wind similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

C. Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green buds bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

D. AOTA

12. “Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth”. The clarion call refers to

A. The pastoral trumpet call of the shepherd

B. A call for war C. A call for social change D. NOTA 14. “living hues” refers to A. Bright and cheerful hues after the

drabness and death of WinterB. The hues of the shepherdC. The hues of the flowers D. NOTA





Book of Revelation. They ride on a white (Pestilence), red (War), black (Famine), and a pale horse (Death). This would like with the death imagery in the

leaves are taking on the role of the Four Horsemen, as harbingers of

“Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air” What does the line mean? Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of

for tending on the green field, the gentle breeze similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one

Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of

for tending on the green field, the west wind similarly, the poet imagines, causes the buds to bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another. Just as with the onset of spring shepherds go out with their flocks of sheep for tending on the green field, the buds bloom and carry the fragrances from one place to another.

8. West Wind is described as an ‘enchanter’. But to the reader who/what is the ‘enchanter’?

A. The west wind B. The spring wind C. The poet himself D. NOTA

9. ‘Enchanter’ means? 10. “winged seeds” refers toA. Seeds flying because of the windB. Seeds having wing

move from one place to another C. Butterfly seeds D. NOTA 11. “Thine azure sister of the Spring”. Azure

refers to A. The clear blue of the cloudless sky of

Spring B. The blue colour of the windC. Name of a mythological goddess from

the Greek pantheon D. The blue mist of the spring

“Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth”. The clarion call refers to The pastoral trumpet call of the

13. “Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth”. What is the figure of speech?

A. Synecdoche B. Metaphor C. Allusion D. Simile

Bright and cheerful hues after the drabness and death of Winter The hues of the shepherd

15. What mythology upon when he calls the wind “Destroyer and preserver”

A. Hindu mythology of three principal gods: Siva (Destroyer), Brahma (Creator) and Vishnu (Preserver)

B. Christian mythology of the trinityC. The apocalypse of Christian mythologyD. The Greek myth of creation and



. They ride on a white (Pestilence), red (War), black (Famine), and a pale horse (Death). This would like with the death imagery in the

leaves are taking on the role of the Four Horsemen, as harbingers of

West Wind is described as an ‘enchanter’. But to the reader who/what

refers to

Seeds flying because of the wind Seeds having wing-like devices to move from one place to another

“Thine azure sister of the Spring”. Azure

The clear blue of the cloudless sky of

The blue colour of the wind Name of a mythological goddess from the Greek pantheon The blue mist of the spring

o'er the dreaming earth”. What is the figure of speech?

What mythology does Shelley draw upon when he calls the wind “Destroyer

Hindu mythology of three principal gods: Siva (Destroyer), Brahma (Creator) and Vishnu (Preserver) Christian mythology of the trinity The apocalypse of Christian mythology

th of creation and





16. “like earth's decaying leaves are shed, Shook from the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean”. What is the thing the poet is referring to?

A. Clouds B. Rains C. Thunder D. AOTA

18. “...tangled boughs of heavenrefers to the phenomenon of

A. The clouds accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky.

B. Corruption on all stages of the society C. Black and white clouds lit up by

thunder D. NOTA 20. Why does Shelley refer to “old palaces

and towers” A. The old palaces and towers

symbolise corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and institutions.

B. They are destroyed by the windC. They are the sources of corruptionD. They are symbols of anarchy

22. “I fall upon the thorns of life!” What is the figure of speech?

24. “Be thou me, impetuous one!” This can be best described as

A. Apostrophe B. Metaphor C. Invocation D. Exhortation 26. “summer dreams” Why is the season

mentioned? A. The mention of the season alludes to




preservation “like earth's decaying leaves are shed, Shook from the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean”. What is the thing

17. “Thou on whose stream”. What does the word ‘stream’ refer to here?

A. The powerful spectacle of fractocumulus turbulence which bring air (Heaven) and water (Ocean) together as one powerful force.

B. Clouds are born out of vapurC. The clouds are imagined as wavesD. The wind is imagined as waves

“...tangled boughs of heaven and ocean” refers to the phenomenon of The clouds accumulated right from the surface of the ocean up to the great heights of the sky. Corruption on all stages of the society Black and white clouds lit up by

19. The expression at the end of the fthree stanzas “O hear!” can be described best as

A. Refrain B. Rondo C. Apostrophe D. Metaphor

Why does Shelley refer to “old palaces

The old palaces and towers symbolise corrupt, degenerate and old power, old order and

destroyed by the wind They are the sources of corruption They are symbols of anarchy

21. “whose path the Atlantic's level powers” What could be the symbolic meaning of the line?

A. The journey of the West Wind from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean leading to the spread of the message eastwards.

B. The power of Europe to produce big ideas

C. The Atlantic representing Europe the corrupt continent

D. The spread of justice through revolution“I fall upon the thorns of life!” What is 23. What is the figure of speech: “Make me

thy lyre” “Be thou me, impetuous one!” This can 25. “Baiae’s bay” refers to

A resort in Italy that was fashionable in the 19th century. In fact, Baiae’scontains visible Roman ruins underwater.

“summer dreams” Why is the season

The mention of the season alludes to

27. “to outstrip thy skiey speed” What is ‘skiey’ here?

A. Clouds seen and perceived against


“Thou on whose stream”. What does the to here?

The powerful spectacle of fractocumulus turbulence which bring air (Heaven) and water (Ocean) together as one powerful

Clouds are born out of vapur The clouds are imagined as waves The wind is imagined as waves The expression at the end of the first three stanzas “O hear!” can be described

“whose path the Atlantic's level powers” What could be the symbolic meaning of

The journey of the West Wind from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean

spread of the message

The power of Europe to produce big

The Atlantic representing Europe the

The spread of justice through revolution of speech: “Make me

“Baiae’s bay” refers to A resort in Italy that was fashionable in the 19th century. In fact, Baiae’s bay contains visible Roman ruins

“to outstrip thy skiey speed” What is

Clouds seen and perceived against




the transition between seasons, symbolizing death and rebirth

B. The season refers to the futureC. The season is symbolic hereD. NOTA

28. The poem is marked by the stylistic feature of

A. Enjambment B. Ungrammatical expression C. Classical style D. Ode





the transition between seasons, symbolizing death and rebirth The season refers to the future The season is symbolic here

the background of skyB. Clouds on the sky C. The moving sky along the cloudD. NOTA

The poem is marked by the stylistic

Ungrammatical expression



background of sky

The moving sky along the cloud

west wind m1wbsscenglish.com/free/sample1.pdf · on the poet percy bysshe shelley shelley was born...

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