Wordsworth's Westminster Bridge: Analysis and Appreciation

Composed Upon Westminster Bridge - William Wordsworth

Biography

William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic era in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads. Wordsworth's magnum opus is generally considered to be The Prelude, a semi-autobiographical poem of his early years which he revised and expanded a number of times. It was posthumously titled and published, prior to which it was generally known as "the poem to Coleridge." Wordsworth was Britain's Poet Laureate from 1843 until his death in 1850.

Summary

The first eight lines present a view of the city as it wears the sunlit morning like a garment, and its edifices glitter beneath the sky. The last six lines then boldly declare that this man-made "formation" is just as beautiful in the sunlight as any natural formation, such as a valley or hill. Moreover, it is just as calming to the observer, for even the houses seem to sleep, like the people in them.

Mood

The mood of the poem is admiration.

Topic

The topic of the poem is the beauty of the morning in London. Wordsworth reflects on the poet’s love of nature and describes the magnificent sunrise over London. ‘Upon Westminster Bridge’ is a poem of great optimism, marrying the beauty and splendor of the natural world with man’s creative potential in a deceptively simple sonnet about a view familiar to millions of Londoners.

Voice

The poem is written in the first person (though nobody speaks), which is appropriate as it suggests that the poet is involved and lets us hear his opinions and thoughts.

Meter and Form

Wordsworth's thoughts and feelings are displayed in the form of a Petrarchan sonnet, with the “abba abba cdc dcd” rhyme scheme, and the eight-lined octave which sets the scenario of the poem, and the six-lined sestet which responds and contains a bit of his opinion. By using the Petrarchan rhyming pattern, the poet is able to emphasize his feelings of love and beauty for that morning.

This poem is written in Petrarchan sonnet form. This scheme divides the poem into two parts: the first eight lines (octave) and the next six (sestet). Between these two is a break called a Volta, which emphasizes the traditional change in mood or subject between the octave and sestet. In the first eight lines, Wordsworth describes early morning London in detail, and then goes on in the final six to compare the city in that moment to natural wonders. The rhyme scheme is ABBAABBA CDCDCD, as is fairly common for a Petrarchan sonnet. ("Majesty" in the third line of this poem is changed to sound like "by" in the second line, by the poet himself in order to fulfill the ABBAABBA rhyme scheme of a Petrarchan sonnet.)

Theme

Seeing the City in a New Light.