the prelude Flashcards
who wrote the poem
William Wordsworth
what is the poem about
extract begins on a summer evening when the narrator finds a boat tied to a tree, he unties the boat and takes it out on the lake. Initially the narrator seems happy and confident and he describes a beautiful scene, a mountain appears on the horizon and the narrator is afraid of its size and power. He turns the boat around and goes home however his view of nature is changing.
form
first person narrative using blank verse
structure
first - light and airy tone
then a distinct change - tone becomes darker and more fearful
final - reflects on experience which changed him
language
beautiful - pretty and pastoral images of nature
confident - arrogant in his place in the world, impressive on feeling powerful
dramatic - threatening language becomes more intense after the mountain appears
fearful - less confident, experience is lasting, haunting effect on him
what are the 3 attitudes of the poem
confidence changes throughout the poem
fear of nature
reflection on his thoughts
finish the quote + analysis: ‘led…
by her’
- suggests it’s nature, personified
finish the quote + analysis: ‘a little boat..
tied to a willow tree’
- happy, rural image
finish the quote + analysis: ‘straight’
narrator appears confident
finish the quote + analysis: ‘act
of stealth’
- knows he is wrong, first clue something isn’t quite right
finish the quote + analysis: ‘troubled
pleasure’
- oxymoron, hits at the narrators guilt
finish the quote + analysis: ‘proud
of his skill’
- narrator is confident, contrasts with mood later
finish the quote + analysis: ‘the horizons utmost boundary;
far above was nothing but the stars and grey sky
- emptiness contrasts with line 22 when he looks at the horizon again - makes the mountain appearance more shocking
finish the quote + analysis: ‘she was
an elfin pinnace’
- metaphor of a fairy boat makes the scene seem magical and otherworldly - still not threatening
finish the quote + analysis: ‘like
a swan’
- natural simile shows he is confident and in control - enhances the contrast with the next line
finish the quote + analysis: ‘when’
turning point - introduces a complete change in tone. simple word is is emphasised at the start of the line and the caesura.
finish the quote + analysis: ‘the horizon bound,
a huge peak, black and huge’
- mountain appears - different language - more threatening and dark now
finish the quote + analysis: ‘upreared
it’s head’
- mountain is personified (ugly image)
- contrasts the swans
finish the quote + analysis: ‘I struck and..
struck again’
- as the narrator rows away more and more of the mountain comes into view - mountain gets bigger and bigger
finish the quote + analysis: ‘strode
after me’
- mountain is calm, powerful and in control, narrators fear
finish the quote + analysis: ‘stole’
he’s afraid and guilty - wants to hide away - feels like an intruder
finish the quote + analysis: ‘in a grave
and serious mood’
- event had a long lasting effect on him, reminder of his own mortality
finish the quote + analysis: ‘for
many days’
- impact was long lasting
finish the quote + analysis: ‘there hung a
darkness, call it solitude’
- narrator feels alone and unsettled
finish the quote + analysis: ‘no pleasant..
images of trees’
- no longer thinks nature is pretty - more to it than that
finish the quote + analysis: ‘huge..
and mighty forms’
- nature is described as a powerful, conscious being that can influence or lives
finish the quote + analysis: ‘trouble
to my dreams’
- unseating imagery - emphasis with him - huge contrast in moods from beginning to end
context
romantic poet who explores connection between nature and human emotion, way human identity and character is shaped by experience.
