The Prelude by William Wordsworth

Question 1

The Prelude
Person?
Structure?
Structure?

Answer 1

1st, autobiographical, nostalgic reflections
Unrhymed iambic pentameter, rhythm of nature and ice skating
3 parts, melancholic ending, loss of childhood & innocence

Question 2

The Prelude
Context?

Answer 2

-Born in Lake District, romantic poet
-Inspired by memories and place in natural world
-Worked on this for all of his life

Question 3

The Prelude
5 quotes

Answer 3

‘It was a time of rapture’
‘We hiss’d along the polish’d ice’
‘not a voice was idle’
‘an alien sound/Of melancholy’
‘orange sky of evening died away’

Question 4

The Prelude
‘It was a time of rapture’

Answer 4

-Past tense, nostalgic reminiscence
-Hyperbolic expression of joy, ecstasy, time of celebration

Question 5

The Prelude
‘We hiss’d along the polish’d ice’

Answer 5

-Collective pronoun, unity, agreement
-Sibilance & onomatopoeic verb, sound of skates, sense of freedom
-Beauty and perfection of natural world

Question 6

The Prelude
‘not a voice was idle’

Answer 6

-Overwhelming sound of children joined with natural sounds
-Sense of community and togetherness

Question 7

The Prelude
‘an alien sound/Of melancholy’

Answer 7

-Ominous, unknown sound
-Impinging sadness, temporary happiness
-Wistful tone, yearning for simpler times of youth

Question 8

The Prelude
‘orange sky of evening died away’

Answer 8

-Final foreboding image, temporal progression from childhood to adulthood
-Loss of light & hope at end of day, time moves on
-Decline in energy and vibrancy of youth, ageing process begins