Ode-to-the-West-Wind-----analysis

OdetotheWestWindPercyB.ShelleyContentsTheRhymeSchemeAnalysisofeachstanzaConclusionTheRhymeScheme•TheOdetotheWestWindconsistsoffivesonnets,whichagainconsistoffourtripletsandafinalcouplet,likeintheEnglishsonnet.•Eachsonnetusestheterzarima.Thatistripletswiththerhymeschemeababcbcdcded.Thefirstandthethirdlineofeachtripletarerhymed,andthefinalwordofthesecond,unrhymed,linesetstherhymeforthefollowingstanza.•Shelleyaddsacoupletwiththerhymeeetothetriplets.Usingthisrhymeisawaytolinktheseparatetripletsandthecoupletofeachsonnet.•Theuseoftheterzarimamakestheodeflowwhilereadingit.Thewholesonnetsequenceiswritteniniambicpentameter.Onlylinethreeofstanzaoneandtwodeviatefromthisthroughbeingananapaest.Shelleytriesontheonehandtofollowthedisciplinedpatternsofanodeandusesarigidstructuralframework.Ontheotherhandheinnovates“intheirregularinterweavingofiambsandanapaests,andinfindingametretofitthesubjectofapoem”.TheRhymeSchemeStanzaⅠLine1OwildWestWind,thoubreathofAutumn'sbeing,•Thefirststanzabeginswiththealliteration‘wildWestWind’.Thismakesthe‘wind’“soundinvigorating”.•Thereadergetstheimpressionthatthewindissomethingthatlives,becauseheis‘wild’–itisatthatpointapersonificationofthe‘wind’intheformofanapostrophe.TheWestWindisamanifestationofspiritualorsupernaturalenergy,associatedwithbreath,respirationandinspiration,withpneumaandanima,theHolyGhostorSpirit,thespiritoflifeitself.•Evenafterreadingtheheadlineandthealliteration,onemighthavethefeelingthatthe‘Ode’mightsomehowbepositive.Line2Thou,fromwhoseunseenpresencetheleavesdeadButitisnot,asthebeginningofthepoemdestroysthefeelingthatassociatedthewindwiththespring.Thefirstfewlinesconsistofalotofsinister（险恶的）elements,suchas‘deadleaves’.Theinversionof‘leavesdead’inthefirststanzaunderlinesthefatality（不幸）byputtingtheword‘dead’attheendofthelinesothatitrhymeswiththenextlines.Line3Aredriven,likeghostsfromanenchanterfleeing,•Thepersonificationbecomesmorevividwhenitissaidthatthewindisan“enchanter”.Thewinddrivesthedeadleavesandmakestheghostsofthepastnaturalyearflee.AtthesametimeShelleygiveslifetotheleavesbymakingthemdrivingandfleeing.Thatcontradictsthefactthattheleavesare“leavesdead”.So,theycannotfleeordrivebythemselvesbutthewindcanmakethemfleeinganddriving.Theyarenoactivebutpassiveelementsofnature.Thesimileofthedeadleavesandghostsshowadeeperconnection.Deadleavesaswellasghostsremainfromlivingorganismswhenthesearedead.Inbothcasesitisnotpossibletoforeseetheirmovementsandtheybothweighverylittle.Line4Yellow,andblack,andpale,andhecticred,Line5Pestilence-strickenmultitudes:Othou,Thesentencedoesnotendatthatpointbutgoesonwithapolysyndeton连词叠用.Thecolorfulcontextmakesiteasierforthereadertovisualizewhatisgoingon–evenifitisinanuncomfortablemanner.‘Yellow’canbeseenas“theuglyhueof‘pestilence-stricken’skin;and‘hecticred’,thoughevokingthepaseofthepoemitself,couldalsohighlightthepaceofdeathbroughttomultitudes.”Thereisalsoacontradictioninthecolour‘black’andtheadjective‘pale’.Line6WhochariotesttotheirdarkwintrybedIntheword‘chariotest’the‘est’isaddedtotheverbstem‘chariot’,probablytoindicatethesecondpersonsingular,afterthesubject‘thou’.Line7Thewingedseeds,wheretheyliecoldandlow,Line8Eachlikeacorpsewithinitsgrave,untilLine9ThineazuresisteroftheSpringshallblowBornebytheair,theseseedsfalltotheearthandliedormant,notdead,untilawakenedbytheclarioncallofSpring.The‘corpsewithinitsgrave’isincontrasttothe‘azuresisteroftheSpring’.azurereferstotheclearblueofthecloudlessskiesofSpring,butthephraseasawholerelatestothegentlewestwindofSpring,morematernalthanAutumn'swind.Atthispointinthestanzathereisadistinctshiftinmood,anticipatingthegentlerandmorepastoraltimeofSpring,withanoticeablymoredream-like,softandgentlemood.10Herclariono'erthedreamingearth,andfill11(Drivingsweetbudslikeflockstofeedinair)12Withlivinghuesandodoursplainandhill:Theearthis“dreaming”,thereare“sweetbuds”and“livinghuesandodours”.So,thereisabalanceinvegetationandalsointhisstanza.Fromlinetwountileightthereisthedarkandcoldimageofautumnanddeathandthenfollowsfromlinenineuntiltwelvetheimageofthefreshspringandtherebirthofthevegetation.Allthisissummarizedinthefinalcouplet.•13WildSpirit,whichartmovingeverywhere;14Destroyerandpreserver;hear,ohhear!•The“WildSpirit”oftheWestWindiscalled“Destroyerandpreserver”.Thewindcanmakethingsdead,destroythem,butitcanalsoawakenthemtonewlife,preservethem.Itisthenaturalcircleofseasonsandoflife,whichisdescribedinthisstanza.•Theforceofthewindisnotonlyexpressedbyimageslikedestroyerandpreserver.Thedynamicforceandpowerofthisstanza,whichwasmentionedbefore,isalsofeltinthestanzaandisemphasizedattheendbyusingtheimperative“hear,ohhear!”.•Furthermore,thedynamicsisexpressedbythefactthatthewholestanzaonlyconsistsofonesentenceandthatthereareenjambments跨行attheendofsomeverses.StanzaⅡ15Thouonwhosestream,midthesteepsky'scommotion,16Loosecloudslikeearth'sdecayingleavesareshed,17ShookfromthetangledboughsofHeavenandOcean,Thisstanzaispredominantlyconcernedwiththeviolenceandterrorofairstorms.Itbeginswithadescriptionwhichexpressesthepowerfulspectacleoffractocumulusturbulence