JH@Quelpr

May 3, 2020 4 min

CSEC English B: Sonnet

Composed Upon
Westminister Bridge by
William Wordsworth
Analysis
Updated: Nov 15, 2021

Sonnet Composed Upon Westminister Bridge,

September 3, 1802
William Wordsworth

Earth has not anything to show more fair:

Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
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:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!

Summary
In this 14-lined Italian sonnet, the persona is
crossing the Westminister bridge and sees a sight
that he never has before. The city before him now
seems to be more beautiful than he ever had
considered it to be before, in the early morning air.
He notices the small details all around him, and is
awed by the stillness and beauty all around. The
sonnet overall is an expression of the persona's
admiration of the world around him. The theme is
natural beauty, and the tone is reverent and
somewhat celebratory of the beauty of nature. The
mood could be described as amazement, serenity or
wonder.

Analysis
" Earth has not anything to show more fair:"
This is a hyperbole used by the poet to show
exactly how incredibly 'fair' the sight before him is.
He thinks that this must be the greatest that the
world has to offer simply because of how he feels in
this moment observing it.

" Dull would he be of soul who could pass by a

sight so touching in its majesty:"
The persona continues on his admiration of the sight
before him by remarking that anyone able to simply
walk past the beautiful sight would be "dull... of
soul." The persona also indicates how elevated
above the ordinary this scene is by using the word
'majesty.' The persona feels genuinely touched by
the majesty of the scene.

"This City now doth, like a garment, wear the

beauty of the morning; silent, bare,"
Using simile
simile, the city is said to wear the morning's
beauty like a garment. This gives the impression of a
dress or similar item of clothing settling smoothly
over a person's body. Hence, the beauty of the
morning settles over the city perfectly, the silence
and emptiness of the morning being ascribed to the
city signalling the beginning of the new day.

"Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples

lie open unto the fields, and to the sky; all
bright and glittering in the smokeless air."
The structures of the city, though manmade and
different from the natural elements, seem equally
beautiful and sublime when adorned by the glory of
the morning air. All is beautiful. Even the air is clear,
since factories and vehicles haven,'t begun to spit
smoke into the air yet.

"Never did sun more beautifully steep in his

first splendour, valley, rock, or hill; "
The persona continues with his hyperbole in
expressing his adoration, stating that the sun has
never looked this beautiful, and makes the
magnificence of the valleys and hils more apparent.
He uses the word 'steep,' which usually describes
how a teabag is left to soak in boiling water when
making tea. However, here, it seems to describe the
sun at sunrise, and how it seems to be soaking
slightly under the horizon like a teabag.

"Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!"

The persona's admiration seems to reach its highest
point here, where the wonder of seeing the allure of
the world around him is overwhelming. He says (in
what could be considered hyperbole) that he has
never felt such a deep calm before.

"The river glideth at his own sweet will"

The poet personifies the river to describe how it
seems so casual and tranquil in its slow flow. The
river, usually disturbed by boats and vessels, is now
free to glide at his own leisurely pace.

"Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;"

The persona is overwhelmed and exclaims, likely
acknowledging the presence of God in such a
serene scene. Even the houses, who he personifies
to say they are sleeping, seem at peace- quiet, with
the people in them unmoving.

"And all that mighty heart is lying still!"

This line of the poem likely refers to the heart of the
city, or the constant throb and stir of people that
would occur later in the day is absent- all is still,
restful and silent.

Figurative Devices

Personification
Line 12- "The river glideth at his own sweet
will"
The poet personifies the river to describe how it
seems so casual and tranquil in its slow flow. The
river, usually disturbed by boats and vessels, is now
free to glide at his own leisurely pace.

Line 13- "Dear God! the very houses seem

asleep;"
The poet personifies the houses to say they are
sleeping, seeming at peace- quiet, with the people in
them unmoving.

Simile
Lines 4-5-""This
"This City now doth, like a garment,
wear the beauty of the morning; silent, bare,"
Using simile
simile, the city is said to wear the morning's
beauty like a garment. This gives the impression of a
dress or similar item of clothing settling smoothly
over a person's body. Hence, the beauty of the
morning settles over the city perfectly, the silence
and emptiness of the morning being ascribed to the
city signalling the beginning of the new day.

Composed Upon Westminster Brid…

English B Poetry

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