"Tintern Abbey"

This poem is spoken in the present; however, in "Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey," Wordsworth revisits the Abbey to return to his past (1-18). This is done so because he continuously references his need to return to a place which gave him peace whether in present, past memories, as well as in future tense (1-65). The poem was composed after his revisit to Tintern Abbey in August 1793 ("Note 1"); therefore, he is reflecting on his past. The opening lines of the poem reveal this aspect:


         Five years have past; five summers, with the length
         Of five long winters. and again I hear
         These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs
         With a soft inland murmur.-Once again
         Do I behold these steep and lofty cliffs,
         That on a wild secluded scene impress
         Thoughts of more deep seclusion; and connect
         The landscape with the quiet of the sky,
         The day is come when I again repose
         Here, under this dark sycamore, and view
         These plots of cottage-ground, these orchard tufts,
         Which at this season, with their unripe fruits,
         Are clad in one green hue, and lose themselves
         Mid groves and copse. Once again I see
         These hedge-rows, hardly hedge-rows, little lines
         Of sportive wood run wild: These pastoral farms,
         Green to the very door; and wreaths of smoke
         Sent up, in silence, from among the trees! (1-18)

These lines of the poem reveal that Wordsworth is reflecting upon Tintern Abbey, and more particularly nature itself. Nature provides him a place of refuge, or escape from a world which he does not reference specifically in the poem itself. It is not until his later poem, "Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802" that this is revealed. Wordsworth knows that he does not have to actually be in nature physically, but he can revisit nature in his mind (22-31). By doing this, his peace is restored, as well (30), which compares to his restoration of peace in his unsettled life in his later poem, "Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802."
         
          If this
          Be but a vain belief, yet, oh! how oft-
          In darkness and amid the many shapes
          Of joyless daylight: when the fretful stir
          Unprofitable, and the fever of the world,
          Have hung upon the beatings of my heart-
          How oft, in spirit, have I turned to thee,
          O sylvan Wye! thou wanderer thro' the woods,
          How often has my spirit turned to thee! (49-57)


These lines further convey the restoration of his peace when he states: "and the fever of the world; / Have hung upon the beatings of my heart-" (53-54), which explain his unsettled life in a chaotic world (OED). He returns to the river (Wye) in his memories, as well as now, physically, to remember a time when he felt a sense of tranquility (55-57). This is the England which was the most tranquil for him; therefore, he returns to it again and again.


The following lines depict his past, present, and future relationship with nature:


          And now, with gleams of half-extinguished thought,
          With many recognitions dim and faint,
          And somewhat of a sad perplexity,
          The picture of the mind revives again:
          While here I stand, not only with the sense
          Of present pleasure, but with pleasing thoughts
          That in this moment there is life and food
          For future years, And so I dare to hope,
          though changed, no doubt, from what I was when first (57-66)


These lines also describe the tranquility of the water, which contrasts with his later poem, "London, 1802," in which Wordsworth refers to the "stagnant waters" of England (3). In "London, 1802," however, he is speaking figuratively of the waters referring to what England has become (OED), whereas "Tintern Abbey" references waters quite literally. Although he experienced England as a tranquil place when he revisits Tintern Abbey, he experiences a dissimilar view in his poem, "London,1802."


Later in the poem, he references the following lines:


          In nature and the language of the sense,
          The anchor of my purest thoughts, the nurse,
          The guide, the guardian of my heart, and soul
          Of all my moral being. (108-11)

"The anchor of my purest thoughts . . ." (109) refers to nature as a person, or thing, that can be relied on for support, stability, or security (Minor "Tintern Abbey"). Also, religious connotations come into focus in the poem when he states: "and soul / of all my moral being" (11). 


Instead of glorifying England as an island nation, Wordsworth glorifies nature (151-52). His need to return to nature signifies this.


I will delve into this more in my next blog post.

Minor, Lisa. "Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey." EN 212. University of North Alabama, Florence, Alabama. Spring 2011. Lecture.

"Note 1." "Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey." Wordsworth, William. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8^th ed. Vol. D: The Romantic Period. Eds. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams, Jack Stillinger, Deidre Shauna Lynch. New York: Norton, 2006. 258-62. Print.

"Fever." OED. 14 July 2011. Web. 15 July 2011.

“Stagnant.” OED. 16 July 2011. Web.

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

Wordsworth, William. “Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8^th ed. Vol. D: The Romantic Period. Eds. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams, Jack Stillinger, Deidre Shauna Lynch. New York: Norton, 2006. 258-62. Print.

Wordsworth, William. “London, 1802.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8^th ed. Vol. D: The Romantic Period. Eds. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams, Jack Stillinger, Deidre Shauna Lynch. New York: Norton, 2006. 319. Print.