She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways by William Wordsworth (1770-1850)

is a Romantic poem by one of the founders of English Romanticism. The

poem celebrates an admired girl or young woman (a Maid) by associating
her with the beauties of nature. Both in its topic and its method, the poem is a
prototypical representative piece of Romantic writing. Other common
Romantic traits of this work include its relatively simple, straightforward
language; its emphasis on the personal, emotional expression of a particular
speaker; its concern with rural life; its freedom from references to classical
mythology (such as were often used in earlier poetry); and its short, lyric form.
Right from line one, the speaker introduces She, his subject of affection.
Only much later in the work, however, do we discover that this She has a
specific name: Lucy (10). She is less important, though, as a particular,
precisely individualized person than as a symbol of any beloved female.
Although this poem is part of a series of lyrics by Wordsworth involving Lucy,
she remains more a type of character than an individual with a highly
specific personality of her own. She is more important as the object of the
speakers feelings than as a complicated subject in her own right. The poem,
as it turns out, is indeed as much about the speaker as it is about the woman
he praises.
No sooner is the womans presence established by the poems first word than
we immediately sense that something has changed. No sooner, that is, do we
read She than we read dwelt (past tense). Why is she no longer dwelling?
Has she moved? Has something bad happened to her? We later learn, of
course, that she is dead, but, for the moment, the word dwelt merely raises
questions.
The fact that the woman dwelled among untrodden ways is significant. Her
surroundings, apparently, were rural; she was a figure of the country rather
than the city. Romantic poets in generaland Wordsworth in particularoften
saw the country as a place of virtue and the city as a place of vice, and so we
can expect that the speaker will be sympathetic toward (rather than dismissive

of) a young woman living in the countryside. Presumably she was not only a
rural woman but a woman of relatively modest circumstances, and it is partly
the fact that she represents the common folk of rural England that will make
her attractive both to the speaker and to Wordsworth.
Wherever it was that she dwelt in the countryside, it was in a place (or
places) not frequently visited. Notice, then, what this fact implies about the
speaker: he, somehow, has visited her dwelling place; he, somehow, has had
the chance to know and appreciate her, and now he shares that privilege with
the reader. The poem will imply that she was somehow a particularly intriguing
person, but the poem will also imply that the speaker himself was capable of
valuing a human being who might easily have been overlooked or ignored by
others.
The fact that the Maid dwelled Beside the springs of Dove (2) is intriguing
for several reasons. First, the word springs immediately associates her with
life and puritywith freely running, clear water emerging from the earth. Thus
in all these ways she is associated with the beauty and vitality of nature.
Secondly, springs once again emphasizes the remoteness of her...
(The entire section is 1410 words.)
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Lucy Stands for the Ideals of Wordsworth's Romanticism
Wordsworth wrote "She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways" in 1798, the year he and Coleridge
published Lyrical Ballads (the same year, incidentally, that Jane Austen was composing Pride
and Prejudice). He wrote it while he was staying in Germany with his sister Dorothy but
without the company of his close friend and collaborator, Samuel Coleridge. While in Germany,
Wordsworth wrote four of the five Lucy poems during the short time of 1798 to 1799.
The fifth Lucy poem was written in 1801. In 1799, he, Dorothy and Coleridge moved from
Germany back to England and took a cottage called Dove in the coastal Lake District of
northwestern England, to the northeast of the more southerly Midlands Peak District.
Scholars note that during their German stay, Wordsworth was growing wearied of his sister
Dorothy and feeling the strain of her dependence upon his finances. He had a modest income that
contrasted with Coleridge's ample income. What was enough for Wordsworth to live on and
travel alone on in Coleridge's company was not sufficient to the living and traveling expenses
needed for both himself and Dorothy. The absence of his friend Coleridge and the strain of
straitened finances had a negative effect on Wordsworth emotionally and psychologically.

Wordsworth insisted upon keeping the origin, true inspiration and identity behind the Lucy
poems a great secret all his life, never volunteering any biographical notes to accompany the
publication of the poems. Scholars have speculated and put forth many theories as to what lay
behind and within the Lucy poems. Some speculate that Wordsworth used the anonymous Lucy
as a vent or a catharsis for his pent up annoyance toward Dorothy. Some speculate that Lucy is
the personification of his Muse and the poems explore the Poet/Muse relationship. Coleridge
himself speculated that perhaps Wordsworth was envisioning Dorthy's death in the Lucy poems.
In any event, Wordsworth himself identifies the poems asexperimental. They share
characteristics of the poems that Wordsworth was publishing in collaboration with Coleridge
as Lyrical Ballads (1798), which also present his Romantic theory of poetry, which was
elucidated in detail in the later (1801) Preface to the Lyrical Ballads. The characteristics they
share are:

They are in simple language.

They express simple ideas.

They have pastoral settings.

They idealize simple pastoral people and life.

It is possible that these Lucy poems are just what Wordsworth identified them as: They
were experimental attempts at successfully illuminating the characteristics of his new poetic
aesthetic. Nonetheless, there are three tangible externals that may have influenced Wordsworth
for at least "She Dwelt": the actual location of the "Dove" river; the specific violet flower
referred to; and the connection of Lucy with Wordsworth.
Line 2 identifies Lucy, unnamed until the third quatrain (stanza of 4 lines), as being beside
the "springs of Dove." The imagery immediately calls forth a vision of "springs" originating a
mountain creek or river: The springs well up and a river or creek is born. "Dove" as a physical
location has meaning for Wordsworth because of the proximity of the Dove-Elbe to where he
was staying in Germany; the proximity of the originating source of River Dove in the north
Midlands of England; the cottage name at the Lake District in England to which he, Dorothy and
Coleridge returned after departing Germany.
The Dove-Elbe river runs through the part of Germany Wordsworth stayed in during his time in
Germany. He and Dorothy stayed in Ratzeburg while the Dove-Elbe was to the west at Hamburg,
about 66 miles from Ratzeburg. The Dove-Elbe river shares etymological origins with the bird
name, making it a dual-symbol of the peacefulness and safety of the dove.
Wordsworth had had wonderful childhood experiences at England'sLake District, so he and
Dorothy were particularly delighted to go back there again where they could try to reclaim their
lost youthful experiences with nature, lost following the death of their father after which Dorothy
was separated from her four brothers and sent to be raised apart from them. The cottage they and
Coleridge took as a residence in Grasmere was called Dove Cottage. Formerly it had been an inn
called the Dove and Olive Branch Inn.

The coastal Lake District of England is around one hundred miles north of the Midlands Peak
District located to the southeast of the Lakes. It is here in Hartington that the River Dove
originates, where are the source "springs of Dove." Since Wordsworth was in Germany but
dreamed of returning to Grasmere's lakes, which he did do in December of 1799, it might have
been any one of these three locations that exerted inspirational influence on Wordsworth's
composition of "She Dwelt."
Another question that arise from the Lucy poems is what kind of love does Wordsworth
express for Lucy in these lyrical ballads, or does he express any love at all? In "She Dwelt,"
there is no clear expression of love at all, although scholars assume the expression of romantic
love because of the ending lines:
... and, oh, / The difference to me!
Yet if that constitutes an expression of love, it constitutes a veryweak expression. From just this
Lucy poem, it might be argued that the poet is expressing no love for Lucy. In this case,
the differenceher death makes to him is of an unexplained importance. Thus it may be that the
poetic speaker is a distant admirer, a father, a brother. It may be that the speaker is an objective
observer who is chronicling death, and the difference to him that her death makes is that he has
witnessed it in all its simplicity, thus marking his life forever.
It can be argued further that the Lucys of I. "Strange Fits of Passion" and II. "She Dwelt" are not
the same "Lucy's" since the speaker projects a different persona in each and since the Lucys
fulfill very different functions/roles in each.
I. Strange Fits
When she I loved look'd every day
Fresh as a rose in June,
I to her cottage bent my way,
Beneath an evening moon.
Upon the moon I fix'd my eye,
All over the wide lea;
With quickening pace my horse drew nigh
Those paths so dear to me.
II. She Dwelt
SHE dwelt among the untrodden ways
Beside the springs of Dove,
A Maid whom there were none to praise
And very few to love:
A violet by a mossy stone

Half hidden from the eye!

Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.
The poetic voice in I is energetic, almost frenzied. Lucy's role is as a dream object and a
romantic love interest. The poetic voice in II is subdued, objective, distant. Lucy's role is
merely to be silently remembered in a symbolic death dirge.
Explication of Symbols
Some of the symbols used in "She Dwelt" add clarity to our understanding of the poem when
they are correctly described and have their meanings explicated.
"untrodden ways": Pathways that are remote and lack populace travelers; untrodden pathways
are in remote pastoral areas.
"springs of Dove": The originating source of either the River Dove in Hartington, Derbyshire,
England, or the Dove-Elbe running about 66 miles west of Ratzeburg.
"none to praise": There were no well-wishers who gave her laurels for what she produced; she
was a work-a-day lass who toiled without praise for her labor.
This description fits with locating "springs of Dove" in Hartington because it was, at that time, a
village producing dairy, cheese and other products. In such a setting, Lucy could easily be seen
as an unpraised dairy- or cheese maid.
"very few to love": Laborers typically have restricted sets of loved ones and friends because the
dominant emphases of their lives are labor and restoring sleep.
"a violet": Violets come in many colors and shades; the predominating and most popular violet
flower shades are not dark, ominous colors but rather transparent, fresh violets, light hued
purples and yellows.
The violet is important in this lyrical ballad for its floral symbolism as well as for its potential
color (color is never specified). Firstly, "violet" can easily be misconstrued as "purple." To help
distinguish violet from purple, keep in mind that the color violet is present in the
electromagnetic spectrum in the visible light frequency range while purple is not. Purple comes
into being only when red and blue are mixed and produces a darker, more intense color than that
of violet. Secondly, wild violets that would grow along rivers or in woods are many different
colors: The "blue" or "violet" violet flower is but one color of many wild violet varieties, with
colors ranging from yellow to white to violet to bi-colors and many others. Thus to immediately
interpret "violet" as symbolizing a "dark" death-like hue of "purple" would be incorrect.
The violet flower symbolizes many qualities including: gentle appearance, love that is delicate,
humility and faithfulness, retiring modesty, harmony of the mind and emotions, selfless love. In

addition, since the color violet has the highest vibrational frequency in the visible light
spectrum, the violet flower symbolizes death and resurrection and is associated with
achieving balance between physical and spiritual energies. Additionally, violet flowers of
different colors were used in eighteenth century "flower language" (secret messages conveyed
between sweethearts through the kind and color of flower given) to communicate a range of
ideas. Wordsworth has presented modern day readers--who don't often wander in untouched
English and European woods--quite a challenge in trying to understand the violet in "violet by a
mossy stone."
JoellesSacredGrove.com, "The Forgotten Language of Flowers" -- Flower Messages
Violet, Blue: Faithfulness; Modesty, modest love; I will remain faithful; I'll always be true
Violet, Dame: Watchfulness; You are the queen of coquettes
Violet, Purple: You occupy my thoughts
Violet, Sweet: Modesty
Violet, White: Purity; Candor; Modesty; Innocence; Let's take a chance on happiness
Violet, Yellow: Modest worth; Rural happiness
"mossy stone": Stones covered in moss, or "mossy stones," often collect near rivers or streams,
such as near "the springs of Dove"; they also are found in sheltering, shaded woodland areas.
When trying to piece together Wordsworth's juxtaposition of "violet" and "mossy stone," we
need to consider the nature of the violet he is most likely describing. This may also help us
choose which "Dove" river inspired him: The one in the grass-covered Peak District of England's
Midlands or the lush forestation of the Hamburg area of Germany.
While most of us know violets as cultivated flowers intentionally gracing gardens, Wordsworth
and Coleridge--who identified Natureas the source of the eighteenth century
poets' inspiration (differing from past poets who found inspiration in Greek and Roman Muses
or, later, in Divine Truth)--would also know violets as wild flowersgrowing in shaded areas, like
in mossy forests or by mossy-stoned rivers. Wild violets of the European and English forests
might have been a yellow variety or a blue or violet colored variety. Some possible varieties that
Wordsworth may have had in mind--may have seen and used as the inspiration for his poem--are
the violet coloredViola odorata of European/English forests; the violet colored Viola
reichenbachiana also of European/English forests; the yellow Viola biflora called the yellow
wood violet and also found in European/English woods; or the yellow and white bi-colored Viola
arvensis called the field pansy and found in European fields. Incidentally, the yellow field
pansy /violet in flower language symbolizes "rural happiness," which suggests one of the
pastoral tenets of Wordsworth's romanticism.

If we try to piece together the symbol Wordsworth offers in "violet by mossy stone," we can rule
out the yellow field pansy as the identifier for "violet" since it is not as likely there will be moss
covered stones in a field. That elimination leaves one or two violet wood varieties as candidates
and one yellow wood variety as a candidate. One might suspect that one of the violet colored
candidates was the source of Wordsworth's inspiration but, either way--violet or yellow--the
"violet" by the stone provides characterization for Lucy and paints her as humble, modest rural
person whose death equates with resurrection because of inner spiritual balance as symbolized
by the violet. This perfectly reflects the Romantic tenets with which Wordsworth was, in his
own terms, experimenting. To clarify, when resurrection and inner balance are combined with
death, the gloom and darkness of it are done away with. This, again, presents part of the spiritual,
Nature message of Romanticism.
In addition, the discussion of violets draws us toward the speculative conclusion that the "Dove"
river might easily be Germany's Dove-Elbe (one of the sub-branches of the Elbe)--which
Wordsworth might have seen near Hamburg--because the River Dove of England's Midlands
Peak District originates in a land that is open and grassy and without forestation, rendering the
presence of mossy stones and forest violets rather improbable. Since Wordsworth wrote "She
Dwelt" while in Ratzeburg, Germany, our speculative conclusion that he was inspired by
Germany's Elbe gains more strength.
"half hidden": Lucy is herewith symbolically "half hidden" from the wisdom of city dwellers
who do not know of or possess the qualities "violet" ascribes to rural, pastoral Lucy.
"Fair as a star, when only one / Is shining in the sky": This "star" is generally thought to be
the planet Venus, the symbol of love, that arises first in the evening sky in the Northern
Hemisphere; this reinforces the love symbolism represented by "violet" and ascribed to pastoral
Lucy.
"She lived unknown": With Lucy positioned as a rural worker--possibly a Hartington dairymaid
if England's River Dove added to Wordsworth's inspiration--"lived unknown" represents living
without fame or renown such as that which city dwellers seek and measure their lives by; Lucy
would have lived a quiet rural existence meeting her own and others basic love and survival
needs.
"few could know / When Lucy ceased to be": Quite logically, if Lucy had no fame, she could
have no great heralding of her passing; none would know her life, none could know her passing.
"But she is in her grave": Lucy has died; Wordsworth is aware of it for one reason or another.
Perhaps he was nearby at the time of her death. Perhaps he saw her simple gravestone while
wandering through a village graveyard either in Ratzeburg or earlier in England. Perhaps he is
imagining Lucy as a symbolic Everywomanrepresentative of tenets of Romanticism.
"and oh, / The difference to me!": Usually understood as his proclamation of romantic love for
Lucy, justified by the allusion to Venus--the first star of evening and the harbinger of love--there
is actually no concrete suggestion of romantic love in Wordsworth's remark. What might be more
probable in light of the tightly crafted representation of Romanticism that Lucy's symbolism

and characterization offer, is that her death is important to Wordsworth's poetic persona
because Wordsworth finds in her theillustration and proof of his beliefs as set forth in his
Romantic poems and in the Preface to the Lyrical Ballads.