The World is Too Much with Us by William Wordsworth-Analysis and Summary

 The World is Too Much with Us by William Wordsworth-Analysis and Summary

thoughtful sonnet written by William Wordsworth. In this famous poem, the post makes a strong case against materialism and its adverse effect on man's mental and spiritual development. Under the lust of materialism, man ignores the charms of Nature. The beautiful scenes and objects of Nature fail to move man's heart. It is because people prefer to keep themselves busy with money matters. The urge to become rich is very strong in people, who have delinked themselves from Nature. Wordsworth himself seems to have visited towns and cities and found people in miserable plight. They are busy spending and wasting much of their energies and precious time in useless pursuits of materialism.

 

The very opening of the sonnet is a sort of poet's complaint. He means to suggest to us that we have become too engrossed with the activities of worldly pursuits. Almost all the time, we are getting too much in “getting and spending” money. Nature has great treasures of vital and beautiful influences to offer to us. To quote Robert Bridges in this context, we may say that we have no time "to stand and stare" at the beautiful objects of Nature.

 Wordsworth calls materialism a ‘sordid boon’ because materialism has enslaved us. Money and matters is a gift because we cannot ignore the physical world, But excessive care for material or worldly pursuits takes man away from Nature and Gao. Man cannot be separated from these entities. Wordsworth also gives us examples of beautiful sights of Nature in this poem He says that on a full moon-lit night, the rise and fall of the sea waves offers a very beautiful scene. The other picture that is created by the poet in our minds is that of the wind that sleeps peacefully like flowers at night after having been furious during the whole day.

 

Wordsworth feels sorry for the modern man who has wasted away his life in earning and spending. money. In this process, he has become blind to the beautiful sights and sounds of Nature. These beautiful sights do not touch our hearts. In a fit of despair, Wordsworth admonishes. the modern man who claims to be a non-believer than to be religious if religion stops him from loving nature.

In that case, he would prefer to be a pagan, who keeps himself always in touch of nature.

As a pagan, he would stand at the seashore and see Proteus, the sea god, rising out of the ocean, and in the same way, he would have a glimpse of Triton with a wreathed horn, another sea god in Greek mythology. Triton could pacify the violent sea waves by blowing his horn. Thus, the poet presents a sharp contrast between the modern man’s love for materialism and a pagan’s love for nature.

Conclusion:

This sonnet exhibits the poet's love for Nature and dislike for materialism. The post also condemns the city- culture which spreads the cult of materialism. He prefers a life of simplicity that is found only by living in close contact with nature. The poem is a proof of the poet's great love for Nature. It also echoes Rousseau’s "Back to Nature" call.

The poem is also vibrant with sound and pictorial, quality, One beautiful image of the sea rising up on a full moon-lit night, to meet the moon, The other one is of winds, that kept howling for the whole day and then sleeping like an innocent child or a flower in mother nature’s lap silently at night.

See the beauty in the line!

"The sea that bares her bosom to the moon”

The poem has been written in a romantic style. It also tells us about romantic poets’ great love for the ancient past. Wordsworth alludes to Greek mythology. It is important to note that Greek pagans were lovers of Nature, They worshipped gods and goddesses who ruled over Nature --- woods, sea, and the sky. The poem is full of imagination. It is also a satire on the materialistic rich people.