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A Student’s Companion toA Student’s Companion toA Student’s Companion to Selected Poems ofSelected Poems ofSelected Poems of

William WordsworthWilliam WordsworthWilliam Wordsworth by Robert W. Watsonby Robert W. Watsonby Robert W. Watson

Selected Poems of William Wordsworth / 1

Introduction to Selected Poems of William Wordsworth

T HE literary period that is called Romanticism has a definite beginning in time. With the publication of Lyrical Ballads in 1798, a work that was a partnership between Samuel Coleridge

and William Wordsworth, the Romantic Period came into being. While it is difficult to define precisely what is Romanticism, as a literary movement, or perhaps more correctly, as an attitude, the Romantics were reacting against the formal, neoclassical structure in poetry and other works. However, underlying Romanticism is the glorifying of nature as a thing in itself, an admiration for the common man, and a healthy distrust for science and urbanization.

The central event that affected most people who lived in the later 18th century was the French Revolution. For Wordsworth, the revolution brought an early heartbreak when he was separated from the French girl whom he intended to marry. Once England declared war on France, Wordsworth had no choice but to wait out the events. Ten years later, Wordsworth saw Annette Vallon, but their love had grown distant.

Wordsworth suffered further disillusionment as the French Revolution took on its bloody character. The high-sounding ideas of liberalism began to fade as the revolution turned on itself and began executing leaders of the initial revolution. Also, Wordsworth for some time was a disciple of William Godwin, who claimed that salvation could only be achieved in human reason, which could be enhanced only by education. It did not take Wordsworth long to realize that his core beliefs rebelled against such an idea. What literally saved Wordsworth from total discouragement was the camaraderie of his sister Dorothy and Samuel Coleridge. Regarding both men in particular, they would discuss their mutual despair and then would write poetry from their discussions. Of course, these discussions were conducted in meadows, fields, woods, and wherever nature was found to be.

As a poet, Wordsworth excels between the years 1797 and 1808. Most scholars and critics state that after 1808, Wordsworth’s poetry is rather mundane. A reading of his poetry during his later years does seem to confirm the critics’ opinions. Most of his life, Wordsworth worked at a governmental post in Westmoreland. Afterwards, he was appointed Poet Laureate of England in 1843, a position which Wordsworth held until his death in 1850.

Wordsworth is considered an anti-intellectual in that he knew that man was much more than just a reasoning thing. According to Wordsworth, man was created to feel emotions and to enjoy life through contemplation about nature. Oddly, Coleridge criticizes the poetry of his friend by stating Wordsworth’s fault is to be excessively matter-of-fact. You will perhaps become aware of this dogmatic approach that Wordsworth has. There is little, if any, compromise with technology or urban life. To Wordsworth, people are better off trusting the thinking of a little child than the scholarly ramblings of learning. The peace and quiet of the countryside are to be preferred than the din and confusion of the city. But most important, Wordsworth refused to be drawn into pretentiousness and materialism with its constant wanting, buying, and selling unimportant trinkets and gadgets. Indeed, as many critics have pointed out before, William Wordsworth believed life to be a fine art to be nurtured by nature with its simplicity. Obviously, there are assumptions about life that Wordsworth held that can be refuted from a Biblical philosophy. Nevertheless, Wordsworth is the master of experiencing, living, and writing about the unhurried, simple life, which man undoubtedly was meant to live. ROBERT W. WATSON

2 / Selected Poems of William Wordsworth

Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Lesson One

1.1 Vocabulary

rustic adj. porringer n. lore n. bandy v. 1.2 Vocabulary Recognition

1. O dearest, dearest boy! my heart / For better ____________ would seldom yearn, / Could I but teach the hundredth part / Of what from thee I learn.

2. And hill and valley rang with glee / When Echo ____________ (ied), round and round, / The halloo of Simon Lee.

3. She had a ______________, woodland air….

4. I take my little ___________, / And eat my supper there. 1.3 Reading Assignment: William Wordsworth Favorite Poems, pages 1–9 1.4 Recall Questions

1. In “We Are Seven,” how many of the young girl’s brothers and sisters are dead?

2. During what season of the year did the girl’s brother, John, die? Why is this symbolic?

3. In “Anecdote for Fathers,” what was the reason for Edward’s preferring Kilve over Liswyn farm?

4. In this same poem, what is the possible significance of the father asking Edward the same question three times and the reference to the weather-cock?

5. In “Simon Lee,” what is the “one prop” Simon Lee had in his old age?

6. What task does the speaker in the poem perform for Simon Lee?

7. In “Lines Written in Early Spring,” what prompts the poet to reflect upon the nature of man?

8. In “Expostulation and Reply,” according to Matthew, what should William be receiving from “dead men”?


9. While William notes that we are forced to experience the physical world, what may we choose to do regarding the metaphysical one (the mind)?

1.5 Critical Thinking

Discuss the significant of the weather-cock in “Anecdote for Fathers.” Why would Edward not like the sight of a weather-cock? Consider both occupational and spiritual applications.

What is the difference between Wordsworth “wise passiveness” and just plain goofing off, or wasting time? Discuss.

1.6 Bonus Thoughts

Praise for the Common Man: The poem, “Simon Lee,” is a good example for illustrating one of the primary tenets of Romanticism. While the Neoclassicists imitated the Greek and Roman poets with their praise for heroes and for men of noble birth, the Romantics believed that it was the common man, and oftentimes the yeoman farmer, who represented the ideal life. Indeed, most of the members of society belong to the “common” class and are not privileged to belong to the elite. It is the common man who works for a living, who fights and dies in a country’s wars, and who pays the most in taxes. While Shakespeare thought the masses to be too fickle (read The Tragedy of Julius Caesar for an example), the Romantics felt common men were capable of making good judgments and needed no assistance from the privileged classes. Thus politically, Romanticism has a misplaced faith in democracy, since all democracies eventually will spend themselves into bankruptcy, due to the majority’s desire to get more from the public treasury.

Echo: In “Simon Lee,” Wordsworth makes an allusion to Echo. According to legend, Echo had to always say the last word during any conversion. Juno became angry with Echo one day, and Echo’s punishment was that she would always have the last word, but she would no longer have the power to speak first.

Leisure: As he reveals in “Expostulation and Reply,” Wordsworth shows his dislike for pedantry and scientific analysis. At the same time, Wordsworth promotes another tenet of Romanticism; that is, a “wise passiveness” is the best way to obtain self-enrichment and. truth. While this way to truth is decidedly anti-Biblical, it is necessary to note that the truly educated individual understands the importance of leisure. In a technological society, leisure has little importance. People are too busy coming and going, buying and selling, and working and playing. The true sense of leisure is the intellectual and spiritual enrichment of the mind. Thus, creative, educational, or political activities where contemplation and study are required is leisure. The leisure class is not composed of very wealthy people, but is composed of writers, artists, educators, students, and statesmen (not politicians).


Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Lesson Two

2.1 Vocabulary

hurly-burly n. demure adj. quandary n. quaff v. 2.2 Vocabulary Recognition

1. _____________ with porringer and plate / She sits, as if in Susan’s fate / Her life and soul were buried.

2. And with a _____________ now / He shakes the green bough in his hand.

3. [B]ut while he laughs, Betty a drunken pleasure ___________(s) / To hear again her Idiot Boy.

4. And Susan’s growing worse and worse, / And Betty’s in a sad __________. 2.3 Reading Assignment: William Wordsworth Favorite Poems, pages 9–25 2.4 Recall Questions

1. What was the reason for Betty Foy’s saddling the pony so late at night?

2. What was the “especial charge” given to Johnny by his mother?

3. What is the noise that Johnny likes to make?

4. Why is Betty in a “sad quandary”?

5. After Betty asks for the doctor’s help to find Johnny, what does the doctor do?

6. What is the “deadly sin” that Betty contemplates as she walks by a pond?

7. Where does Betty find both Johnny and the pony after she searched for them?

8. As the pony, Johnny, and Betty made their way back home, who meets them in the woods?

9. What does Johnny confuse with roosters and with the sun?


10. In “Lines,” what is the primary value of seeing the “beauteous forms” surrounding Tintern Abbey?

11. How does the poet describe his situation whenever he visits the countryside? i.e., is he fleeing towards something or fleeing from something?

12. The poet declares that he no longer sees nature as he did during “the hour / Of thoughtless youth,” but he now hears what whenever he sits and reflects in nature?

13. The latter part of this poem is a prayer. To whom does the poet pray for?


One of the Romantic goals of Wordsworth was to avoid neoclassical conventions in his poetry, such as invoking a muse to help him write his poetry. Explain whether Wordsworth accomplishes this avoidance on page 18 when he seems to invoke the Muses.

One commentator of “Lines,” stated that “the beauty of nature enables the poet to feel, despite the apparent evils of life, that the universe is fundamentally harmonious.” Is this a true statement? If the universe is fundamentally harmonious, what gives this harmony? If there is evil in the world, what creates this evil? Discuss.

Can Wordsworth be accused of being a pantheist, i.e., Creation is God? Is there evidence in “Lines” that can be used to make such a suggestion? Discuss.

2.6 Bonus Thoughts

Onomatopoeia: In “The Idiot Boy,” we have examples of the use of sounds called onomatopoeia. Also known as “echoism,” onomatopoeia is the use of a word that resembles the sound it makes. Examples are “buzz” and “hiss.” In Wordsworth’s poem the boy makes the sound of “burr,” Betty “raps” at the doctor’s door, and the owls cry “who” (“to-whoo”).

“Lines” and Wordsworth Philosophy of Nature: This poem, “Lines,” is the central poem that reflects Wordsworth’s philosophy of nature. In 1798, Wordsworth with his sister, Dorothy, revisited the ruins of Tintern Abbey, which he saw five years earlier. You will note that Wordsworth puts a lot of faith in the workings of memory, especially when it is used to minister the “healing power” of nature. The general outline of this poem is as follows: the previous visit remembered (ll. 1–22); the ministry of nature in the past (11. 23–57); nature appreciated by the poet (11. 58–111); and the poet’s prayer for his sister, Dorothy (ll. 112–159).


Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Lesson Three

3.1 Vocabulary

sullied adj. draught n. [note pronunciation] eminence n. espy v. 3.2 Vocabulary Recognition

1. Wonder to all who do the same _________, / By what means it could thither come, and whence.

2. As a huge stone is sometimes seen to lie / Couched on the bald top of an _____________.

3. [T]he green and mossy bower, / Deformed and ___________ , patiently gave up / Their quiet being.

4. And twice in the day, when the ground is wet with dew, I bring thee _____________(s) of milk, warm milk it is and new.

3.3 Reading Assignment: William Wordsworth Favorite Poems, pages 25–39 3.4 Recall Questions

1. What way does the poet “misuse” Nature when he harvests the hazel nuts?

2. Note the title of “Strange Fits of Passion Have I Known.” What is the significance of the poet’s many references to the moon?

3. In “I Travelled Among Unknown Men,” to whom or to what is the poet speaking to?

4. In “Three Years She Grew in Sun and Shower,” note the phrase in l. 8, “Both law and impulse.” How does the poet repeat this idea in the next two stanzas?

5. In “A Slumber Did My Spirit Seal,” what tone does the use of long vowels and euphony create for this poem?

6. Why does the poet shift the verb tenses in the first and second stanzas?

7. In “Lucy Gray,” at what point did the foot prints of the young girl stop?

8. In “My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold,” what is the double meaning of “natural piety.”

9. In “Resolution and Independence,” how does the Traveller describe the ways of men?


10. What was the employment of the old man in the poem?

11. To whom do you think the old man was selling his “harvest”?


In the several “Lucy Poems,” discuss what attributes Wordsworth gives to Nature that actually belong to God.

Arguably, the lamb in “The Pet-Lamb” represents the discontented soul even though its needs and material wants are satisfied fully. What does the Bible say about contentment and materialism? Consider 1 Timothy 6:6–12.

Wordsworth has been criticized at times for using low-life persons as central figures in his poetry. In your opinion, is this criticism appropriate? In your opinion, is there a limit to the subject matter for poetry? Discuss.

The old man in “Resolution and Independence” seems to be alone in the world. Is this poem an indictment upon the growing industrialization and technology in England? Exactly who is responsible for reducing the old man to the status of a leech-gatherer?

3.6 Bonus Thoughts

The Lucy Poems: “Strange Fits of Passion Have I Known” and the following five poems are collectively known as the Lucy poems. Who is “Lucy”? This question remains a topic of debate among scholars and admirers of Wordsworth.

Thomas Chatterton (1752–1770): Chatterton was a young poet, whose style influenced the Romantics. Even though he was an excellent poet, Chatterton could not support himself through his writing and committed suicide at the age of eighteen.


Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Lesson Four

4.1 Vocabulary

chaunt n. plaintive adj. apparition n. jocund adj. 4.2 Vocabulary Recognition

1. No Nightingale did ever _________________ / More welcome notes to weary bands / of travellers in some shady haunt, / Among Arabian sands.

2. A poet could not but be gay, / In such a ____________ company.

3. A lovely __________________, sent / To be a moment’s ornament.

4. Will no one tell me what she sings?— / Perhaps the _________________ numbers flow / For old, unhappy, far-off things, / And battles long ago.

4.3 Reading Assignment: William Wordsworth Favorite Poems, pages 39–52 4.4 Recall Questions

1. In “Composed upon Westminster Bridge, Sept. 3, 1802,” the “river” does not destroy the peaceful scene of the early tranquility of London. What verb describes what the river is doing, which reinforces this peacefulness?

2. According to the poet in “To Toussaint L’Ouverture,” what are the “friends” of Toussaint?

3. In “In London, September 1802,” what have become lost to the urbanization and industrialization of London?

4. In “London 1802,” to what does the poet attribute to the loss of the “ancient English dower / Of inward happiness”?

5. In “The Solitary Reaper,” what words does the poet use to reinforce the idea of loneliness in the first stanza?

6. How does the singing of the maiden with the stillness and tranquility of the moment affect the poet in the future?

7. In “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud,” what characterizes “the bliss of solitude”?

8. In “The Affliction of Margaret,” what is the occupation of the woman’s son?


9. What is the “affliction” of the woman?

10. In “Ode to Duty,” how does Nature show obedience to Duty and is the better for its submission to Duty?

11. Referring to “Elegiac Stanzas,” even though the poet would have painted the ruined castle in a tranquil setting, rather than in a stormy one, why does he honor the painter for his painting (see the last stanza)?

12. In “Character of the Happy Warrior,” according to the poet, how must the warrior advance himself in order to become in command of an army?


In 1797, the city-state of Venice dissolved its republic in order to honor the condition for Napoleon’s not destroying the city. What causes a people to no longer value liberty as a precious possession? Discuss the possible reasons why a people with a tradition of liberty would easily forfeit this freedom for appeasing a tyrant or for desiring “security.”

While it makes for good poetry, is having an “unconquerable mind” a desirable trait to possess? What should be the Christian’s view of the mind? While it is the duty of the Christian to resist evil, does this mean resistance can only be accomplished with an “unconquerable mind”? Consider Mark 12:29–30; Romans 12:2; and Colossians 3:12.

Compare and contrast the woman in “She Was a Phantom of Delight” with the woman in Proverbs 31:10–31.

4.6 Bonus Thoughts

The Sonnet: With its fourteen lines and iambic pentameter, the sonnet became the favorite poetic form of Wordsworth. In today’s readings, you have read several of Wordsworth’s better sonnets. According to biographers of Wordsworth, Dorothy (Wordsworth’s sister) read several sonnets from John Milton one day, and then immediately, Wordsworth was inspired to write three sonnets. Before his death, Wordsworth had written over five hundred sonnets. While most critics agree that many of these poems are not very exceptional, his few outstanding ones have allowed Wordsworth to join the same company that includes Shakespeare, Milton, and Keats.

François Dominique Toussaint: Called “O’Ouverture” because of his military exploits, Toussaint is credited with leading a slave revolt in Haiti, which led to the slaughter of most slave owners. Later, when Napoleon tried to re-establish slavery in Haiti, Toussaint resisted, but he was captured, was sent to France, and died in prison in 1803. Haiti gained its independence completely from France in 1804.

Ode: An ode is defined as a long lyrical poem with a serious subject and with a style that is elevated. The form of the ode was developed by the Greek poet Pindar, and the tone is one of praise and of glorifying someone. William Wordsworth’s “Ode: Intimations of Immortality,” Samuel Coleridge’s “Dejection: An Ode,” and Allen Tate’s “Ode to the Confederate Dead” are good representatives of the Pindaric ode. Later, the Roman poet Horace created an ode, which, unlike the Pindaric ode, has a calm, pensive, and subdued


tone. In addition to this, the Horatian ode is written in a common stanza that is repeated throughout the entire ode. An example of this kind of ode is John Keat’s “To Autumn.”

Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Lesson Five

5.1 Vocabulary

pensive adj. sordid adj. sullen adj. obstinate adj. 5.2 Vocabulary Recognition

1. But for those __________ questionings / Of sense and outward things, / Fallings from us, vanishings.…

2. We have given our hearts away, a ___________ boon.

3. And hermits are contented with their cells; / And students with their __________ citadels….

4. Oh evil day! if I were _________ / While Earth herself is adorning…. 5.3 Reading Assignment: William Wordsworth Favorite Poems, pages 52–63 5.4 Recall Questions

1. In “Nuns Fret Not at Their Convent’s Narrow Room,” what form of poetry is Wordsworth defending?

2. In “The World Is Too Much with Us,” how do we “waste our powers,” and with what are we “out of tune”?

3. What allusions does the poet use to reinforce his desire to be a pagan, rather than to be a modern man, who cannot appreciate nature?

4. In “November 1806,” who specifically is the “ourselves” that is responsible for one’s safety?

5. According to the poet in “Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood,” who is Nature’s Priest?

6. Who is the “best philosopher” in stanza VIII?

7. Whom does the poet address in “Thought of a Briton on the Subjugation of Switzerland”?


8. In “Mutability,” even though all things change, what “fails not”?

9. In “Scorn Not the Sonnet,” list the metaphors used by the poet to describe the sonnet.

10. What is the “sunless land” in “Extempore Effusion upon the Death of James Hogg”?


Wordsworth shows in his “Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood” the journey from childhood to adulthood is accompanied by loss. However, what does one gain as he matures? Does a mature person receive more than he loses with the end of childhood? Also, is childhood as innocent as Wordsworth seems think? Discuss.

5.6 Bonus Thoughts

Personification: “Thought of a Briton on the Subjugation of Switzerland” offers a good example of a poet using personification. As figurative language, personification is the attributing to inanimate objects or abstract ideas with life and human characteristics. Reread this poem, and list the human attributes given to Liberty.

Luiz Vaz de Camoëns (1524–1580): Camoëns is one of Portugal’s greatest writers. The poet was exiled when one of his satires was not well received. During his exile to Macao, Camoëns wrote many sonnets. His most famous work is the epic poem, Os Lusíadas (1572), considered to be one of the world’s great works of literature.


Glossary for Selected Poems of William Wordsworth apparition (²p”…-r¹sh“…n) n. A ghostly figure; a specter; a sudden or unusual sight; an appearance bandy (b²n“d¶) v. To toss or throw back and forth; to give and receive (words, for example);

exchange; to discuss in a casual or frivolous manner chaunt (chônt) n. Variant of chant. A short, simple melody in which a number of syllables or

words are sung on or intoned to the same note; a song or melody; a monotonous rhythmic call or shout, as of a slogan

demure (d¹-my‹r“) adj. Modest and reserved in manner or behavior; affectedly shy, modest, or reserved

draught (dräft) n. A gulp, a swallow, or an inhalation; the amount taken in by a single act of drinking or inhaling

eminence (μm“…-n…ns) n. A rise of ground; a hill; a position of great distinction or superiority espy (¹-spº“) v. To catch sight of something, usually distant, partially hidden, or obscure;

glimpse hurly-burly (hûr”l¶-bûr“l¶) n. Noisy confusion; tumult jocund (j¼k“…nd) adj. Sprightly and lighthearted in disposition or character; jolly lore (lôr) n. Accumulated facts, traditions, or beliefs about a particular subject; knowledge

acquired through education or experience obstinate (¼b“st…-n¹t) adj. Stubbornly adhering to an attitude, an opinion, or a course of action;

obdurate; difficult to manage, control, or subdue; refractory; difficult to alleviate or cure pensive (pμn“s¹v) adj. Deeply, often wistfully or dreamily thoughtful; suggestive of melancholy

thoughtfulness porringer (pôr“¹n-j…r, p¼r“-) n. A shallow cup or bowl with a handle plaintive (pl³n“t¹v) adj. Expressing sorrow; mournful or melancholy quaff (kw¼f) v. To drink a liquid heartily quandary (kw¼n“d…-r¶) n. A state of uncertainty or perplexity; predicament rustic (r¾s“t¹k) adj. Of, relating to, or typical of country life or country people; rural; marked by

a lack of sophistication or elegance sordid (sôr“d¹d) adj. Filthy or dirty; foul; depressingly squalid; wretched; morally degraded sullen (s¾l“…n) adj. Showing a brooding ill humor or silent resentment; morose or sulky; gloomy

or somber in tone, color, or portent sullied (s¾l“l¶d) adj. Defiled; tainted; unclean

Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Vocabulary Quiz

Instructions: Match the word with its definition. A. rustic B. porringer C. lore D. bandy E. hurly-burly F. demure G. quandary H. quaff I. sullied J. draught K. eminence L. espy M. chaunt N. plaintive O. apparition P. jocund Q. pensive R. sordid S. sullen T. obstinate 1. _____ to toss or throw back and forth; exchange

2. _____ a rise of ground; a hill; a position of superiority

3. _____ sprightly and lighthearted in disposition or character

4. _____ a state of uncertainty or perplexity; predicament

5. _____ filthy; depressingly squalid; morally degraded

6. _____ a shallow cup or bowl with a handle

7. _____ to catch sight of something, usually distant or obscure; glimpse

8. _____ stubborn

9. _____ defiled; tainted; unclean

10. _____ morose and sulky; showing silent resentment

11. _____ modest and reserved in manner or behavior

12. _____ expressing sorrow; mournful or melancholy

13. _____ of, relating to, or typical of country life or country people

14. _____ a ghostly figure; an appearance

15. _____ to drink a liquid heartily

16. _____ a song or melody; a monotonous rhythmic call or shout

17. _____ suggestive of melancholy thoughtfulness

18. _____ noisy confusion; tumult

19. _____ a gulp, a swallow, or an inhalation

20. _____ accumulated facts, traditions, or beliefs about a particular subject

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Answer Keys to Selected Poems of William Wordsworth Vocabulary Recognition, Lesson 1 1. lore 2. bandied 3. rustic 4. porringer Lesson 1 1. Two siblings, one sister and a brother, are dead. 2. John died in the winter time, and winter is a symbol of death, because winter is cold, gray,

and lifeless. 3. Edward liked Kilve because there was no weather-cock there. 4. This could be an allusion to Peter’s denial of the Lord Jesus Christ. 5. The one prop was his wife. 6. The speaker cuts the root of the tree that Simon Lee was trying in vain to cut. 7. The poet sees a contrast in the natural order of Nature with its beauty and joy and the

wickedness and corruption of mankind. 8. Matthew states that William should be drinking “the spirit breathed / From dead men” by

reading their books. 9. We may choose to enrich our minds with “a wise passiveness.” Vocabulary Recognition, Lesson 2 1. Demure 2. hurly-burly 3. quaffs 4. quandary Lesson 2 1. Betty’s friend had an unknown sickness, and Betty was sending her son, Johnny, to get the

doctor. 2. Johnny was to come home again and not to stop at all. 3. The noise is the sound of “burr.” 4. Johnny has yet to arrive at 12 o’clock; therefore, Betty does not know whether to leave

Susan and get the doctor, or to stay with Susan and hope Johnny arrives with the doctor soon.

5. The doctor goes back to bed. 6. The deadly sin is suicide; in this case, drowning. 7. Johnny and the pony were by the waterfall. 8. The pony, Johnny, and Betty are met by Susan Gale, the woman who was sick. 9. Johnny confused owls with roosters and the sun with the moon. 10. The poet can reflect about nature whenever he is in the city amidst its hurry and noise. 11. The poet describes himself as fleeing away from what he dreads (the city), rather than one

who is fleeing towards the thing he loves.

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12. The poet hears the “still, sad music of humanity.” 13. The poet prays for his sister. Vocabulary Recognition, Lesson 3 1. espy 2. eminence 3. sullied 4. droughts Lesson 3 1. In order to harvest the nuts, the poet bends the bough of the tree down until it breaks. 2. The moon was thought to cause insanity. A “Lunatic” would have “fits.” 3. The poet is speaking to England. 4. The poet repeats this idea by having the girl being a carefree fawn and a storm (impulse)

and by having the girl being a breathing balm and floating clouds (law). 5. The overall tone is one of sadness and resignation. 6. In the first stanza the poet is reflecting upon the past, but in the second stanza Lucy is now a

part of Nature, which is in the present. 7. The foot prints stopped in the middle of the wooden bridge. 8. The poet believes that men have a piety that is innate within them. Also, men should

reverence, or show piety, towards Nature. 9. The ways of men are vain and melancholy. 10. The old man would go pond to pond in search of leeches, that is, he was a leech-gatherer. 11. More than likely, the old man was selling his leeches to medical doctors, who used them for

bleeding patients. Vocabulary Recognition, Lesson 4 1. chaunt 2. jocund 3. Apparition 4. plaintive Lesson 4 1. The verb is “glide.” 2. The friends are exultations, agonies, love, and man’s unconquerable mind. 3. According to the poet, “Plain living and high thinking are no more.” 4. The English have become selfish men (due to the sacrifice of manners, virtue, freedom, and

power to materialism.) 5. These words include “single,” “solitary,” “by herself,” and “alone.” 6. The poet remembers the music in his heart whenever he later recalls and reflects upon the

scene. 7. The bliss of solitude is characterized by a vacant or pensive mood when reflections “flash

upon that inward eye.” 8. The son is a sailor (stanza VIII). 9. The woman has not heard from her only son in seven years, and she is afflicted by thoughts

of what may have happened to him.

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10. Flowers are dutiful to appear from the soil, yet offer a fragrance to delight everyone, and the stars remain in their courses, thus remaining fresh and strong.

11. The painting reminds the viewer that while he may suffer and mourn in this life, it is not without hope.

12. The warrior rises in rank by open means (not backroom politics) and by honorable terms. Vocabulary Recognition, Lesson 5 1. obstinate 2. sordid 3. pensive 4. sullen Lesson 5 1. Wordsworth is defending the use of the sonnet. 2. We waste our powers by getting and spending (materialism), and we are out of tune with

nature, because materialism is not compatible with nature. 3. Wordsworth uses allusions from Greek mythology (Proteus and Triton). 4. There are several possible answers here. The poet could be referring to England, or to

nation’s in general, or to each individual. 5. Youth are the priests of Nature. 6. The best philosopher is the little child. 7. The poet addresses Liberty. 8. Truth does not fail. 9. The sonnet is a key, a lute, a pipe, a myrtle leaf, a firefly (glowworm), and a trumpet. 10. The sunless land is the grave, or death.

Wordsworth’s Poetry

1. D 2. K 3. P 4. G 5. R 6. B 7. L 8. T 9. I 10. S

11. F 12. N 13. A 14. O 15. H 16. M 17. Q 18. E 19. J 20. C

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