The Solitary Reaper - William Wordsworth

Behold her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass!
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.

No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.

Will no one tell me what she sings?--
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?

Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending;--
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more

MEANING OF DIFFICULT WORDS

1.      Binds - to fasten or secure with a band or bond.

2.      Melancholy- a gloomy state of mind, especially when habitual or prolonged; 

depression, sober thoughtfulness

3.      Profound- penetrating or entering deeply into subjects of thought or knowledge; 

having deep insight or understanding: a profound thinker.

4.   Hebrides- a group of islands (Inner Hebrides and  Outer Hebrides) belonging to Scotland.

5.      Plaintive number- the melancholic sad songs which flow from the reapers heart one after another

POETIC/LITERARY DEVICES

1.      Hyperbole

o   Breaking the silence of the seas among the farthest Hebrides- The voice of the girl was so sweet that it broke the silence of the seas and of the far of islands on north-western coast of Scotland. These islands are never disturbed by any storm but the voice of the girl had intruded the silence of these group of  islands   

o   O listen! For the Vale profound is overflowing with the sound – he says that the whole deep valley is echoing with her sweet song

2.       Metaphors

o   In the spring time from the Cuckoo-bird – used as a comparison to the maiden’s voice. The poet says that such a sweet voice was never heard from the cuckoo even in the Spring season

o   The voice of a ‘nightingale’- Nightingale is considered as a sweet-voice bird. The poet says no nightingale has so far sung as melodious a song as the girl sings

3.      Rhetorical questions

o   Will no one tell me what she sings?

o   That has may been, and may be again?

4.      Imagery

o   O listen! For the Vale profound is overflowing with the sound

STANZA BY STANZA ANALYSIS

FIRST STANZA: The poet, William Wordsworth, introduces us to the subject of the poem, the solitary reaper. She is standing alone in the field, reaping and singing. She sings a morose, gloomy song while she cuts and binds the sheaves of grain. It seems to the poet as if the surrounding valley is brimming over with the song of the reaper.

SECOND STANZA: According to the poet, the reaper’s song surpassed, in its beauty, the sweet notes of the nightingale that welcomed tired groups of travellers into an oasis in an Arabian desert.

The voice of the harvester was more breath taking than that of the cuckoo singing in spring in the Hebrides islands.

THIRD STANZA: The poet, however, does not understand the words of the reaper's song. He starts to speculate on the subject of the song. He thinks that perhaps it is about an ancient incident which occurred in a distant land or a battle which may have taken place years ago.

He further wonders, whether the song has something to do with the day to day life of the solitary reaper. He thinks that she might be singing about grief and sadness which has occurred and might return.

FOURTH STANZA: To the poet, it seemed that the song of the solitary reaper would not end. She sang as she worked, bending over her sickle. For a long time the poet listened to the song, enchanted and transfixed. As he moved up the hill, he continued to carry the music in his heart even after he could no longer hear it.

CRITICAL APPRECIATION

The Solitary Reaper is a delightful lyric by William Wordsworth. Wordsworth-known as a great lover and preacher of nature- had impresses us by the imaginative and philosophical quality of his thoughts. This poem talks about a man’s experience when he travelled to a field in Scotland and saw a lady. He was mesmerised by the song she sang. The song captured his attention even though he doesn’t understand what she was singing. He says that the sound is more welcome than any chant of the nightingale to weary travellers in the desert, and that the cuckoo-bird in spring never sang with a voice so thrilling. The poet could not make out the theme of the song. He, however, thinks it is about some unhappy incident of the past or a battle fought long ago or about some misfortunes of our daily life like loss, pain or death. Such a simple incident strikes the reader (this poem is published 2 years after the encounter)

READING MATERIAL
The poem 'The Solitary Reaper' was written by William Wordsworth in the Romantic Era. Most of William Wordsworth poems are filled with his passionate belief in the beauty and power of nature. He described nature not as something beautiful, but as an expression of the 'spirit' and the 'music of humanity'. The poem describes one of Wordsworth's early experiences in nature that is a source of both joy and tranquillity, as the lonely girl reaped corn in the Scottish field.

History of the Poem

This poem can be considered as a lyric, supposed to be written in the year 1807. As you go through the solitary reaper explanation you get to understand that the poem was not inspired by an actual sight, but by the description of a solitary reaper which was given in Thomas Wilkinson’s “Tour in Scotland”.

 More info about the poem

• The journal of a traveller and the diary of his sister remind the poet of such experience and the alacrity that had brought him.
• So he was inspired to write this wonderful poem.
• This is one of the finest lyrics that Wordsworth ever produced.

Explanation of The Solitary Reaper

The poem beautifully sets the atmosphere for introducing the readers with a young lonely reaper who dwells in the highlands, reaping the corn and singing a sad song. 'The Solitary Reaper' is a description of a melodious sound that is heard in the atmosphere. Its mood can be described as one of relaxation, depression and gentleness. The poet might have idealized the solitary reaper as a Scottish maiden. He wonders that her song is more appealing and musically perfect then that of a nightingale or a cuckoo. The poet seems to be highly influenced by the soft melancholy, sadness and wistfulness of the song that he hears. The song has left unforgettable impressions and has dwelled into the innermost chords of the poets mind.

It has to be clarified that Wordsworth has projected a democratic note so far as the theme of this poem I concerned. He preferred a simple familiar girl of a peasant as the subject of his poem. This is something uncommon in the history of English poetry because most of the poets of the eighteen century were concerned in portraying “town life and towns people”. Wordsworth expressed his democratic view towards mankind by bringing forth this simple Scottish maiden, who happens to be the central character and theme of the poem. In his own words, he “loses incidence from humble and common life a themes for his poems”. The central idea of this poem is that the song sung by a forlorn Scottish girl appears more thrilling and enchanting than that of nightingale or the cuckoo. As the poem progresses, one can feel an eerie, sober melody and soft melancholy that continues and blends with the theme of the poem.

I listened, motionlessly and still:

And as I mounted up the hill

The music in my heart I bore,

Long after it was heard n more. 

Salient Features of the Poem

• This poem illustrates Wordsworth’s theory of poetry.
• Wordsworth is able to produce great pieces of poetry when his emotions get recollected in tranquility.
• He and his sister Dorothy had encountered many search reapers singing while at work in remote parts of the highlands of Scotland during their tour.
• This poem presents Wordsworth's democratic view towards life

The poem is simple yet romantic, pure yet serene. There is no art in the poem but imaginary and magical musical tone is sufficient enough to make the readers go into depths of Wordsworth poetry.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

http://www.essencz.com/read.php?id=133

http://www.oppapers.com › Miscellaneous Research Papers

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/311263_summary-of-the-solitary-reaper-by-william-wordsworth