PERCY BISSHE SHELLEY

Shelley was a revolutionary thinker;he was original and a man of great culture,who
could read and translate Greek,Latin,Spanish,German and Italian works.
In his essay”A Defence of Poetry” he presented a strong defense of poetry as an
expression of Imagination,that has a revolutionary creativity,capable of changing the
world.
In “Prometheus Unbound” ,the poet identifies himself with the hero of the myth :by
stealing fire from the gds Prometheus allowed men to find civilisation and to free
themselves;like Prometheus ,Shelley hopes that his fire,a liberal philosophy,will free
humanity from intellectual and moral prison.
NATURE
Nature is,in Shelley’s view,not the real world;it is a beautiful veil that hides the
eternal truth of the spirit;Nature i salso a shelter from the injustice of the ordinary
world,the expression of his dreams and of his hopes for a better future.Nature
provides him with images and symbols.
THE POET’S TASK
The poeti s a prophet and a titan challenging the world.His task is to help mankind to
reach an ideal world where freedom and love will replace tyranny.
STYLE
Shelley was a master of traditional verse forms,such as the couplet,the blank
verse,Dante’s “terza rima”.He moved from the ballad to the elegy but he is best
remembered for his short lyrics.
ODE TO THE WEST WIND
The “Ode” is a lyric composition ,with an elevated tone,full of archaisms and
invocations and personifications.
This poem is in the form of an invocation to the supernatural spirit of the autumn
west wind ,blowing from the Mediterranean.
The west wind is the symbol of the radical change that poetry and the figure of the
prophetic poet can bring to the world.
It is made up of five parts,each one consisting in four three-line stanzas and a final
couplet.
It is written in Dante’s terza rima :the first and the third lines rhyme and the second
line provides the rhyme for the first and third of the following stanza.
In the first stanza the poet addresses the wind as a destroyer and a preserver and he
describes its effects on the earth:the wind preserves the seeds and destroys the dead
leaves; in the second and third stanzas the poet goes on to describe the renovating
effects of the wind in the sky and the sea: the storm stimulates the cycle of death and
renewal in nature.
In the fourth and fifth stanzas the poet asks the wind to affect him in the same way,to
lift him and drive him forward as it does with the clouds,the leaves and the waves so
that his voice will have the samed invincible power and will change the world.
The last line expresses hope for the future since winter,symbol of death,is always
followed by spring,a symbol of renewal.
ANALYSIS
4.What are the things that the poet says he is not but he would like to be?
He says “If I were….a dead leaf……a swift cloud…..a wave…..”He would like to be
like all these natural elements to share the wind’s strength .
How would you describe the poet’s state of mind?
The poet is nostalgic and in a deep spritual crisis;he is,at the same time ,optimistic
and firmly believes in a future redemption of mankind.
What request does he make to the wind?
He asks for union with the wind so that his message can be carried with the same
power to all mankind.
The poet is addressing the wind as an agent of re-generation and of constant
change;he is asking the wind to give him its same strength in order to awaken
mankind to a new spiritual life.
In the fourth stanza the poet imagines being a dead leaf,a cloud or an ocean
wave,sharing the wind’s force.
He wishes to be lifted up by the wind to avoid being trapped by the “thorns of
life”,because he feels he shares his being “tameless,and swift and proud” with the
wind.
In the last stanza he asks the wind to play him like an istrument ,to inspire him to
write poetry which the world would read and by which it would be spiritually
renewed,just as the rebirth of nature,that is spring,comes after the death of winter.
The poet is a “lyre” because the society needs a prophet.The “withered leaves” are
compared to the poet’s “dead thoughts”,caused by his present sufferings;their being
decayed and their consequent destruction is a prelude to a spiritual re-birth.
“Ashes and sparks” are the words of the poet that must be scattered everywhere and
bring the message of freedom to all men.
What is the wind symbol of?
It is the symbol of freedom and of the revolution that will change the world.
Who does the poet identify himself with?
The poet identifies himself with the wind “One too like thee”