"Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802" Analysis: Part 2

Peter F. Morgan states that "[t]he panoramic view which Wordsworth presents is similar to that of Laurence Binyon in his London Visions of 1908, but this poet looks down and around over the city from 'the Golden Gallery at Saint Paul's'" (132). This view which Wordsworth describes in his poem is certainly breathtaking; I looked upon it myself during the same month (July), only two hundred nine years later. Another critic, Burke, suggests that "[b]efore the vastness of the sun, contemplated by the vastness and variety of the city in the prospect before him, Wordsworth gets a sense of the power of God" (Morgan 137). A sense of spirit is certainly here; I have reiterated this in each blog post, and will continue to do so in order to affirm this. A sense of sacredness, or tranquility, came from his reflection upon a love for his country, England. As I stated in my last blog: "Although it is certainly important to the poem, it is not just about the history, or architecture, of England itself." I also stated that "[h]e reflects upon these buildings as  sentiment, or glorification of his country: a separate entity." According to Peter Ackroyd in his book London: The Biography, Westminster Bridge is depicted as being constructed in 1750, which changed the interrelation of London, and "this City" became an entity in itself (511-12). "This City['s]" square mile is the City of London, which has a separate government, its own administration, etc. (Bibbee); "this City['s]" square mile is the reason for its capitalization within the poem itself (4).

Having said this, lines 6-7 are appropriate here:

Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;

These places which he does not specifically name in his poem are amongst nature (6-7). Since he does not choose to name them, I assert that the poem is not just about these historical places; although important, it also brought a glorification of England (myth of England as an island nation) back to the literature as well. My visit to Westminster Bridge early on a July morning, much like Wordsworth, confirms this, which I will discuss at the end of this blog.

According to Peter F. Morgan, he could see Westminster Abbey, which is one of the towers that he references in his poem (145). My reflection includes: "[My] site visit of Westminster Abbey was one filled with emotion. William Wordsworth said that “[e]motions [are] recollected in tranquility,” during his lifetime, which relates to myself ("Introduction"). I am now recollecting my emotions toward this place.  I am not quite certain what my preconceived notions of this particular location were.  I have never traveled; however, I imagined Westminster Abbey to be an exceptionally religious place, perhaps one which appeared ancient throughout its interior walls.  My general knowledge of this site is that kings, queens, as well as monarchs are buried within the Abbey.  I also know that William Wordsworth, perhaps, saw the Abbey from his view of Westminster Bridge when he composed his poem, “Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802.”  As far as my expectations of Westminster Abbey, I envisioned it to be quite beautiful, as well as sacred; otherwise, my expectations were open to suggestion.  I realized that I was going to observe a place where many had gone before, and where memorable events had taken place, such as Princess Diana’s funeral, and more recently, the marriage of her son, Prince William, to Kate Middleton. Westminster Abbey was a sacred place; my analysis of why he chose to include that in his poem is that it provided a place of refuge for him in a time of confliction.  I experienced emotions such as this within the Abbey, although in a different way, or is it?  No one really knows how Wordsworth felt on that day but the man himself; however, the London that he saw was a place of peace in his unsettled life, which is why he reflected upon the Abbey itself. 

In front of Westminster Abbey. London, England. July 2011.

My reflection upon Westminster Abbey shows the glorification of a place, much like I reflected upon during my visit to Hyde Park, which compared to Wordsworth's revisit to Tintern Abbey. The expectations which I brought to Westminster Abbey were those of an England which compares with the myth of an island nation: I glorified it because of royalty, Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton. The love which I had for Princess Diana, William's mother, brought me to this place; although, when I entered, it not only became about the Royal wedding, but the religious sentiment itself. Wordsworth chose to view places (towers) in his poem (6) figuratively, not necessarily in a historical sense. I have already stated that he does not name them specifically. Of course, I can delve into the actual places through maps, or books; I will even list a few of them in this blog post; however, he reflects upon an England which brought him tranquility in a time of unsettled peace.                                                                                            

Peter Morgan lists some of the places which Wordsworth might have seen so that we, as readers, can envision Wordsworth's view of England. Some of the places which he names are: Tower of London, "tower of St. Clement Danes," St. Paul's Cathedral, "the utilitarian Water Tower at Charing Cross," "tower of the Bridewell prison," "Drury Lane and Covent Garden" theatres, "ancient Temple district by the Thames," as well as "the steeple and towers of the churches dotted about the city" (Morgan 145). "Thomas Malton [observes the following places which Wordsworth might have seen:] . . . the towers and pinnacles of Westminster Abbey . . . the steeple of St. Margaret's," "Lambeth church and the venerable Palace of the Archbishop of Canterbury on the east shore," "the four turrets of St. John's Church in Westminster," "Somerset place," and "the temple buildings and gardens [which] terminate the distance" (Morgan 146). The significance of this list of buildings is to show how they relate to one another. Wordsworth looks to these as a kind of religious sacrament, much like I did to Westminster Abbey, as well as my visit to St. Paul's Cathedral.                                                                             

The St. Paul's site visit was emotional as well. As I sat through the service, I noticed the interior dome. I pondered my thoughts as to why Wordsworth mentions these places, such as "domes" within his poem (6). These places of England revive his spirit for England; it even keeps it anew; therefore, he glorifies England as an island nation when he looks upon them.

Me in front of St. Paul's Cathedral. London, England.

 According to Peter F. Morgan, "[s]ocial history is more concretely present, since Wordsworth is describing an ancient, but rapidly growing and changing city" (142). The next lines of the poem, "All bright and glittering in the smokeless air," reflect on this (8). "It is also present in the comparisons that he suggests between the normal pollution of the air  and of the river Thames itself," as stated by Peter F. Morgan (142). David Perkins states the "[e]ven the city, the specific haunt of human stress ad passion, can be contemplated with tranquil serenity from the vantage point of Westminster Bridge, particularly since, with its 'smokeless air' it has not yet awakened and become a city" (41). 

The next lines of the poem: "Never did sun more beautifully steep / In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill; / Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep! / The river glideth at his own sweet will:" convey the glory of nature which he sees. The sun rises and gives him peace in this time of unsettled peace (9-12). 

The last two lines of the poem are:

Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!

According to Peter F. Morgan, "[t]he last word to comment on is 'still'" (176). Morgan "disagree[s] with the reading that 'still' means 'dead,'' [and, instead]  "prefer[s] John Beer's comment that Wordsworth is more interested in presenting 'the experience of trance' than that of death' (177). He compares it to the "'still, sad music of humanity' in "Tintern Abbey"" (Morgan 177). I do not assert that "still" means dead (Morgan 176), nor do I think Beer's criticism is correct. Instead, for me, the lines of the poem, "the very houses seem asleep; / And all that mighty heart is lying still!" simply means that the spirit of England is there: it "seem[s] asleep, not conveying that it actually is asleep (13-14). (Notice the use of "seem," which is a simile.) According to Florence Marsh, the city is personified by Wordsworth's language, "mighty heart" (21). This is the heart of England, which is neither dead, nor in a trance (Morgan 17), it is very much alive. "'Mighty" is the key word here in this last line of the poem (14); it relates back to "still," meaning that the spirit of England is still there (14).  

Ultimately, this poem conveys that "[t]his City," this country of England, which he overlooks on this July day brings him tranquility (1-14). The England that he sees is his first view. It is an entity all in its own for Wordsworth. He glorifies it, personifies it, and according to Peter Morgan, his " . . .  view from the centre of the bridge enables the poet to experience, again momentarily "'a holy calm (Prelude, ii, 367) like that gained from the 'jutting eminence (362) from which he had looked out on another morning'" (144). This "holy calm" is the tranquility that it brought Wordsworth in a time of unsettled peace. The view he got from nature in "Tintern Abbey," as well as that from Westminster Bridge, were the same.

My visit to Westminster Bridge at 6:30 am was worth the trip. I traveled alone, unlike Wordsworth; however, I wanted to be able to see clearly for myself the city in all its majesty. My preconceived notions and expectations of this place were great since I had read the poem many times, as well as did a lot of research on it, and the author himself, before I came to London.  I had envisioned this place without traffic for some reason, perhaps because I was delving so much into the research.  I had looked online at photographs of Westminster Bridge, which focused upon the foot traffic.  I had considered using an online photograph for my research blog; however, I decided against it because it seemed more appropriate to take one for myself, as well as one with me in it.  These expectations and preconceived notions are very dissimilar to the quiet morning view from Westminster Bridge which I encountered when I finally arrived, however.  Much like the July day when Wordsworth composed his poem, the sky was gray (however, in the poem the sun is referenced (9-10)), the air was cool, crisp, and the water glideth . . . (12).  It was a restful feeling, particularly since I awakened at four a.m. this morning. The traffic was already busy when I arrived on the morning of July 19, 2011; people were running, walking to work, etc.. However, I was only thinking about William Wordsworth, and what possibly he could have seen on that July day in 1802 that inspired him to write his poem, “Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802.”  I got out my map, and looked at each angle to figure out which buildings that he could have seen, contemplating upon how I could figure out what he saw, especially without knowing all of London’s history.  In the poem, he speaks of temples, which were located in red on the map: these refer to places of law, perhaps, such as Inns of Court, as well as Parliament (6). As I stood on the bridge watching the dismal clouds and dimmer light on the beautiful, cool, morning that I beheld, I realized that it was not just about these buildings, or even their historical, or geographical location, I also felt that it was the spirit of England which brought him tranquility in a time of unsettled peace.  I felt inspired by a city, a country that I have grown to love so dearly in such a short time.  His unsettled peace was that he was going to close relationships ("Footnote 1").  This pause upon Westminster Bridge brought him that tranquility: a peace that cannot be gotten from just anywhere.                                                                                          

(I wrote this in the moment; therefore, I felt that it should be left in present tense). As I leave this bridge, I wonder if I will ever be standing on it again in my lifetime on a morning like this.  Many thoughts race through my head . . .; I cannot even write them all down; however, I know that this feeling, this experience, this moment, has changed me forever, and much like William Wordsworth, I stop to compose my thoughts.



Me at Westminster Bridge. London, England. If I could only preserve this moment forever.

Ackroyd, Peter. London: The Biography. New York: Anchor Books, 2003. Print.
Bibbee, Jeffrey. "City Square Mile of London" Study Abroad Trip, London, England. University of North Alabama, Florence, Alabama. July 2011. Lecture. 
              

“Footnote 1.” Wordsworth, William. "Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8th ed. Vol. D: The Romantic Period. Eds. Stephen Greenblatt, M.H. Abrams, Jack Stillinger, Deidre Shauna Lynch. New York: Norton, 2006. 317. Print.

                            

"Introduction." Wordsworth, William. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8th ed. Vol. D: The Romantic Period. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams, Jack Stillinger, Deidre Shauna Lynch. New York: Norton, 2006. 243-45. Print. 

Marsh, Florence. Wordsworth’s Imagery: A Study in Poetic Vision. London: Yale UP, 1952. Print.

Morgan, Peter F. The Poetic and Pictorial Elements in Works by Five Writers in English: Milton, Pope, Wordsworth, Ruskin, Pound. Lewiston; Lampeter: E. Mellen P, 1992. Print. British Library. 25 July 2011. 

Perkins, David. The Symbolism of Wordsworth, Shelley, and Keats. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard UP, 1959. Print.