Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802

1
Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3,
1802

• By
• William Wordsworth

2
Structure of the Sonnet

• Meter
• Iambic Pentameter
• Earth has/ not an/y-thing/ to show /more fair

3
Structure of the Sonnet

• Rhyme Scheme
• Italian Sonnet Form
• abba abba cdcdcd

4
Octave

• Commentary on the appearance of the city
• Earth has not anything to show more fair (1)
• Hyperbole
• This view is the best view on earth

5
Octave

• Dull would he be of soul who could pass by/ A
  sight so touching in its majesty (2-3)
• One would have to be practically un-human not to
  be moved by this sight

6
Octave

• Simile
• This City now doth, like a garment, wear/ The
  beauty of the morning (4-5)
• Comparing the beauty of the morning to a
  beautiful garment

7
Octave

• Setting
• The beauty of the morning (5)
• Significance?
• Streets are empty
• No noise
• People are not present
• No crowds

8
Octave

• Setting
• The city is not really acting like a city
• Romantic characteristic?
• Longing for the pastoral

9
Octave

• Setting
• silent, bare/ Ships, towers, domes, theaters,
  and temples lie/ Open unto the fields, and to the
  sky (5-8)
• Again, altering the traditional characteristics
  of the city into a positive experience because of
  the quiet.

10
Sestet

• Volta?
• Diction now centers around a pastoral setting
• Basically, an absence of city imagery in the
  sestet

11
Sestet

• Never did sun more beautifully steep In his
  first splendor, valley, rock or
  hill Neer saw I, never felt, a calm so
  deep! The river glideth at his own sweet
  will (9-12)

12
Sestet

• Hyperbole
• The poet has never before experienced the
  intensity of these feelings.
• Connection between nature and the city
• In this peaceful setting within the city, nature
  is at its finest.
• Potential for co-existing?

13
Sestet

• Dear God! the very houses seem asleep/ And all
  that mighty heart is lying still! (13-14)
• Personification
• Houses are asleep
• Suggests inner peace and happiness of the entire
  city