HXE 228: English Poetry

English Poetry: A Comparative Analysis

To the Cuckoo by William Wordsworth and Youth and Age by Samuel Taylor
Coleridge

Imulok Marcus 129036

Lecturer: Dr. Suzana Hj. Muhammad

Date of Submission: 10 April 2017

 During the 19th century, a few poets excelled in expressing their feelings through their

poems. This century was called the Romantic era. Their poetry often includes concepts such

as nature, individuality as well as the past. Hence in this analysis, I will be discussing two

poems which are To the Cuckoo by William Wordsworth and Youth and Age by Samuel

Taylor Coleridge. The two themes I choose are nature and ageing.

To the Cuckoo (1804) by William Wordsworth describes his awe when he hears a

cuckoo singing. Wordsworth (17701850) uses exclamation marks four times in this poem.

The first exclamation mark is used to welcome the bird as a newcomer and followed by

calling its name, Cuckoo. The third is using a metaphor for the cuckoo as the darling of

the Spring and the fourth one is when he states that the mythical earth suits the cuckoo.

There are hints of surprised and pleased tone from these examples. The exclamation mark

shows the intensification of emotion towards the nature (cuckoo) which is felt throughout the

poem. Strong emotion is one of the elements of romanticism. Romantic era stresses the

expression of the artists feelings.

In comparison to Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) in his poem Youth and Age

(1834), there is also intensity of emotion which is shown through the usage of exclamation

marks. His poem is longer than Wordsworths and uses exclamation marks 13 times.

However, instead of praising youth or old age he is reflecting and contrasting youth and

old age. He also reminisces when he was young. Some examples taken from line 5 and line 6

respectively, When I was young! and When I was young?--Ah, woful When! There is a

hint of melancholy tone in these two lines. Thus, Coleridges poem also evokes strong

emotions.

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 The theme is nature for To the Cuckoo. His diction also focuses on nature,

especially the bird itself. This can be seen when common nouns, which usually begin with

lowercase letters, are capitalized. For example, words such as New-comer, Cuckoo,

Bird, Voice, Cry. The capitalisation emphasises the cuckoos importance to the poet.

Throughout the poem, the cuckoo was praised and even mentioned as the darling of the

Spring (line 13). This shows the poet thinks highly of the cuckoo. Our visual sense is also

filled with nature scenery that the poet has painted vividly. The hills, the cuckoo, the flowers,

and the sunshine conjure serenity and sublimity. His actions whereby he is lying or

wandering (rove) stimulates our imagination to imagine him immersing himself in nature.

Hence, Wordsworths poem has a nature theme which is one of the common themes used in

the romanticism period.

In contrast to Wordsworths, Coleridges poem discusses the ageing theme. He does

include nature in his poem but he focuses more on being young and growing old. He also

includes friendship, love, and liberty in relation to the passing of time. In his poem, we can

feel his emotional turbulence. When describing youth, he feels he could do anything. But

when discussing about old age, he gets overwhelmed by it. He also tries to console himself to

retain the youthfulness. This can be seen in line 37 and line 38, Life is but thought: so think

I will / That Youth and I are house-mates still. Coleridge also shows a reaction towards

ageing. This can be seen in line 23, Ere I was old? Ah woful Ere, and line 24, Which tells

me, Youth's no longer here! His longing for youth and his aversion towards old age show his

reaction towards changes. This also shows the inclination to resist changes especially with

age. An ageing theme is often favoured by the romanticists because they can use it to

emphasise youth. They think of youth highly.

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 Wordsworth also touches on the past. This is another element of romanticism

whereby poets usually include the past or fixate on it. The cuckoo singing brings back

memories to him from when he was a boy. He had experienced a similar experience where he

could not see the bird but he had heard it sang. This shows him romanticizing the past. While

remembering the past, the poems mood changes from joyful to nostalgic. The poet rejoices

when the cuckoo enters the setting and then he starts to feel sentimental when he remembers

his boyhood. His memories reminds him of his desire to look for the cuckoo from line 19,

Which made me look a thousand ways, and line 20, In bush, and tree, and sky. And

presently he is entertaining his memories from line 27, And listen, till I do beget and line

28, That golden time again. Through nature, he regained something he used to have in the

past. A sense of glorification of the past and nature are shown in this poem.

Coleridge also uses the past to elaborate more on the youthfulness. This demonstrates

a similarity shared between the two poems. Both poets view youth in a positive light. While

there is a sense of longing for childhood moments in Wordsworths poem, Coleridges poem

believes that with youth, anyone can do anything and be fearless. This can be seen from line

14 and line 15, That ask no aid of sail or oar, / That fear no spite of wind or tide! Coleridge

also uses word such as yore which reflects the past. The word yore means time past and

especially long past and is often used to recreate nostalgia moments. The poet also uses

some words in the past tense form. For example, in line 11, How lightly then it flashed along

and in line 28, It cannot be that Thou art gone! The words flashed and gone are in past

tense form and both words reflect movement. The movements reinforce the notion of youth

being transient. By using the past, he can retrieve the glory of being young. Thus both poems

engage readers to imagine the poets past experiences.

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 There is also an emphasis on individuality in Wordsworths poem. Individuality is

one of the romanticism key aspects. Romanticists were against the Industrial Revolution that

promotes herd mentality. Thus, they often look inwardly to recapture the essence of ones

truest individuality. The individualism is exemplified through his personal expression he

admired the cuckoo. The individuals experience whereby only focusing on the cuckoo

instead of praising all birds for making sounds. His appreciation has made the cuckoo a

special kind of bird. The poem also uses a first person perspective which depicts the

importance of subjective experience. The I illustrates the uniqueness of an individual.

Furthermore, he is able to tell a story of his childhood because he heard the bird. His boyhood

experience brings out a good memory to him as seen in line 28, That golden time again.

While the others might think that the cuckoo only make incoherent noises, he feels it has a

story to tell. Line 9, Though babbling only to the Vale and line 11, Thou bringest unto me

a tale depicts this.

In contrast to Wordsworth, Coleridge expressed individuality through his personal

reflection. The reflection is based on his own life experience. His life experience is portrayed

through the personification of youth which can be inferred from line 17, When Youth and I

lived in't together and line 38, That Youth and I are house-mates still. He uses

unconventional ways to show his favouritism towards youth. The poet gave Youth plenty of

human attribution making it as if it was a human being. An abstract idea is being turned into a

physical creature. This engages readers to look at youth from a different angle. Moreover,

despite the poems title Youth and Age, he still includes liberty, friendship, and love. This

enriches the poem and showcases the uniqueness of an individuals belief. The poem suggests

a self-reflection entailing a belief that life has plenty to offer.

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 Both Wordsworth and Coleridge have their own ideal regarding their subject matter.

In the poem To the Cuckoo, from line 31, An unsubstantial, faery place; and line 32, That

is fit home for Thee! These two lines suggest Wordsworths ideal that the cuckoo is a bird

that deserves to exist in a mystical earth. The idealization of nature is shown in his poem.

Another perspective suggested in the poem is the poet taking a stance against the reality. The

persona was lying down when his memories returned to him. He entertained the memories

instead of brushing them off. This suggests the cuckoo (nature) works as a reminder of our

memories. Hence Wordsworths ideal is to be closer to nature.

While Coleridges ideal is shown in line 37, Life is but thought: so think I will. This

encapsulates his take on life after long deliberation between youth and old age. This line

gives him a purpose to dismiss his negative view on being old. His ideal would be to not lose

hope in ones life. The whole final stanza showcases how devastating it would be if one loses

hope. Without hope, life would be a grieving process. This can be seen in the final stanza

from line 42 to line 44:

Where no hope is, life's a warning

That only serves to make us grieve,

When we are old:

That only serves to make us grieve

These lines also suggest the poet is making a reflection. The repetition of That only serves to

make us grieve brings out the sombre tone to the poem. In addition the final line, line 49,

And tells the jest without the smile also indicates the solemnity of his reflection. This in

turn serves as a call to not lose hope in life.

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 To conclude, both poems have included nature concept to express their emotions.

However, the tones of both poems are different. While the other one is praising nature

through a bird and reminiscing a fond memory, the other one is contemplating youth and old

age. Thus, the key theme is different nature theme versus ageing theme. Despite the

differences, there are some similarities in both poems. Intense emotions were conveyed and

both yearn for the past. Both poems also champion that youth is the golden age. The

individualism and idealism aspects also help to substantiate the different themes, nature and

ageing. The use of strong emotion reflects the individuals personal experience is

demonstrated in both of the poems. Both poets do feel strongly about their ideals. Hence it is

best to sum romantic poetry using Wordsworths own words, All good poetry is the

spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.

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REFERENCE

"Introduction To Romanticism". Uh.edu. N.p., 2017. Web. 20 Mar. 2017.

"Romanticism". Academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu. N.p., 2017. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

"RPO -- Samuel Taylor Coleridge : Youth And Age". Tspace.library.utoronto.ca. N.p., 2017.

Web. 17 Mar. 2017.

"To The Cuckoo By William Wordsworth". Poetry Foundation. N.p., 2017. Web. 17 Mar.

2017.

"William Wordsworth". Poetry Foundation. N.p., 2017. Web. 20 Mar. 2017.

"Yore." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Marshall, Bridget M. "Gothic V. Romanticsm". Faculty.uml.edu. N.p., 2015. Web. 4 Apr.

2017.