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In Wordsworth's poem titled "The Tables Turned An Evening Scene on the Same Subject," the significance of Nature is quite obvious. The speaker in the poem is "giving advice" to his friend Matthew. Matthew is reading a book, and the speaker tells him to stop reading the book - there's so much more that the world is offering. Nature is in a way compared to books because books provide you with knowledge, and the speaker says that nature is a greater source of knowledge. Books are dull and boring, while experiencing the outside world and all of it's beauty is so much better for the mind. Nature is so beautifully written about in this poem, and almost every stanza describes a new aspect of the outdoors. A more detailed comparison I see is in the third stanza. The words in a book are like the songs of a linnet. The music from the bird just flows out and is filled with such great "wisdom." Knowledge is not only gained through reading and this poem is a great example of that. "Let Nature be your teacher." Nature has so much more to offer; you learn more about the world by interacting with nature. All you need is an open mind and "a heart that watches and receives" and you will learn a lot more about humanity in this way rather than by reading a book. Green Finch and Linnet Bird Song
William Wordsworth's poem "We Are Seven" is written in a dialogue form. The speaker is talking with an eight year old cottage girl, questioning her about her siblings. Even though two of them have died, the little girl declares that there are still seven of them. Eventually, she explains to the speaker how little Jane and her brother John were "forced to go," and he keeps questioning her "how this may be?" She is only eight years old; she realizes that her siblings are gone since she talks about their graves, but to her, they are still there and there is no way they can't be counted as a part of her family. Sh
e still communicates with them whether it's by knitting, singing, sitting, or eating her supper by them. They are all connected through nature by the green of the graves that are just steps away from the door. The girl's persistence to the fact that there is still seven of them is so rousing and awakening. Death is a tragic event, but she has accepted Jane's death and sees it as "God releasing her of her pain." I understand it as being a way of healing Jane and that's why she is still included in the count of seven. Her brother John on the other hand was forced to go so that he would lay by Jane's side. Whether her siblings are physically there or not, they are all family and will never be forgotten. It's a beautiful, inspirational poem portraying the true meaning of love and family. No matter what happens, no matter what people tell her, the little girl will always respond, "we are seven!"
Samuel Taylor Coleridge admires the nightingale's song in his conversational poem, but he also says goodbye. He does this through the use of the word "farewell" on a few occasions. "Farewell, O Warbler! till to-morrow eve, And you, my friends! farewell, a short farewell!" At the end of the poem he writes, "Once more farewell, Sweet Nightingale! once more, my friends! farewell." Not only does he bid farewell to the nightingale, but he is also addressing his friends. By doing so, he is making it clear that both are equally important to him. In other words, nature and humanity are of equal value. Coleridge hopes to see his friends and the nightingale again, and that's why he says goodbye to them in such a warm way. He could have not said anything and just left, but as a sign of respect and appreciation, he bids them "farewell" in hopes of seeing them soon. It's important that he chose the word "farewell" rather than something more casual because once again this points out the importance and respect that he has for his friends and the nightingale and this way, Coleridge is leaving in a "civil" way.
As to the meaning of the word, the Oxford English Dictionary defines it as "a parting salutation, formal leave-taking" which is how Coleridge used it in his poem. If you were to separate the word into two words (fare and well), it would also have a significant meaning. One way that the American Heritage Dictionary defines the word "fare" is "to get along." The definition of "well" came up as "in a close or familiar manner" or "with care and attention." As you can see, this confirms Coleridge's proper word choice (diction) because if you put the definitions together, you could infer that Coleridge was close with the nightingale and his friends and he cared about them.
Farewell Song
Samuel Taylor Coleridge tells a story of a long sea voyage through this poem. I found it to be very exciting and interesting. There are so many aspects to chose from the poem and I wasn't sure what to write about, but I came across a picture on the internet which is especially related to the first part of the poem. It is a statue in England which actually portrays the Ancyent Marinere which shows how well known Coleridge's poems are. In the statue, the Ancyent Marinere is holding the bird that he shot in line 80. "Why look'st thou so?-with my Cross-bow I shot the Albatross." The Albatross (bird) is significant in the poem because it did in fact help the sailors find their way out of Antarctica after some strong winds and bad weather. You can see how much happiness and excitement the bird brought the sailors and this represents the value that nature holds. When the marinere shot the bird, he killed a part of nature, and even though it was just one element of nature, ther
e was still sorrow, gloom, and misery that came with it's death. Once again, the importance of the bird (or nature) was emphasized when the sailors had the marinere wear the albatross around his neck as a punishment for killing it. So what it basically comes down to is that the bird (the albatross) is a representation of nature and its importance is emphasized by the crew on the ship.
