The world is too much with us by William Wordsworth At first glance, the title of this poem might produce the feeling of harmony. That is, a sense of attunement between the world and us, humans. However, soon after reading the poem, one will find that the title: The world is too much for us, would have been more fitting with its message. Indeed, a closer look at the connotations of the word “too” in this context, reveals the tone of excessiveness found through this Italian sonnet. Yet, as condemning as the overture might seem, the poem does offer a solution or a response to the ailments of the Earth, which Wordsworth believes began with “us” and will end with “I”, greatly emphasizing the passage of time and the duality of ideas; these premises
…show more content…
A closer look at the words Wordsworth chose for the end-rhymes can reveal hidden meaning. Soon, boon; powers, ours; these rhymes in the beginning of the poem seem to imply that we still have the ability to reverse the damage done with speed. Moon, tune; hours, flowers, these rhymes go along with the imagery produced in the bulk of the poem. The following rhymes be, lea, and sea are the most interesting because they allude to the fact that the speaker wishes to become more like nature, which he isn’t currently as seen in the octave: “Little we see in Nature that is ours” (line 3). The final set of rhymes outworn, forlorn, and horn refer to the antiquated yet amiable beliefs of polydeist cultures, in this case Greek. Thus, something as structured as rhyme can also be used to convey a message about the ancient counterparts to modern ideas. After analyzing this sonnet, the title: The world is too much with us, might seem like a contradiction. How can the world be with us, if we do not see a reflection of our qualities in nature? (see line 3) How can the world be with us, if we pillage and desecrate everything in our path? (see line 2) The world is too much with us because we take from nature without restraint, we think the world is our serf, yet no equal exchange takes place. As time goes on, ideas change. “We are out of tune” (line 8), the sovereignty of nature has been forsaken for the gods of the new
A closer look at the words Wordsworth chose for the end-rhymes can reveal hidden meaning. Soon, boon; powers, ours; these rhymes in the beginning of the poem seem to imply that we still have the ability to reverse the damage done with speed. Moon, tune; hours, flowers, these rhymes go along with the imagery produced in the bulk of the poem. The following rhymes be, lea, and sea are the most interesting because they allude to the fact that the speaker wishes to become more like nature, which he isn’t currently as seen in the octave: “Little we see in Nature that is ours” (line 3). The final set of rhymes outworn, forlorn, and horn refer to the antiquated yet amiable beliefs of polydeist cultures, in this case Greek. Thus, something as structured as rhyme can also be used to convey a message about the ancient counterparts to modern ideas. After analyzing this sonnet, the title: The world is too much with us, might seem like a contradiction. How can the world be with us, if we do not see a reflection of our qualities in nature? (see line 3) How can the world be with us, if we pillage and desecrate everything in our path? (see line 2) The world is too much with us because we take from nature without restraint, we think the world is our serf, yet no equal exchange takes place. As time goes on, ideas change. “We are out of tune” (line 8), the sovereignty of nature has been forsaken for the gods of the new