Q: The sublimity of Shelleys poetry lies in its

wonderful lyrical intensity; discuss. Or Write

an essay on the greatness of Shelley as a lyric
poet.
Answer:
Percy Bysshe Shelley is one of the greatest lyric poets in the
field of English literature. Shelley is intense lyricist as Alexander
Pope is an intense satirist. He converts other diverse forms as
drama, prose, romance, satire etc into lyric. Even the narrative
poems of Shelley are stamped by his lyricism. On this regard
Prof. Elton says,

Shelleys genius was essentially lyrical. All his

poetry is really lyrical, for his lyrical impulse
penetrates through even his unlyrical verse.
Shelley combines his passion and simplicity with other
remarkable qualities, as the quality of music and the art of
combining the outward rhythm of the verse with an inner
rhythm of thought and imagery. The most outstanding quality
of Shelleys lyricism is its spontaneity. His lyrics move so
flowingly because they come straight from his heart. Shelley
uses a strong imagery in his poetry goes on producing image
after image, all inspired by the original thought. The imagery in
his lyrics gives the impression of his spontaneous poetic
impulse. Here is an example of his spontaneous writing:

Teach me half the gladness

That thy brain must know,
Such harmonious madness
From my lips would flow
The world should listen themas I am listening
now
Shelleys lyrics always expresses an intensity of feeling or a
deep passion. There is, too, a note of desire and longing in
most of his lyrics. Thats why we find a note of sadness in his
lyrics. In the poem To a Skylark we have the following stanza
expressive of human sadness:

We look before and after

And plea for what is not:
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fraught
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest
thought
Many of Shelleys lyrics have an abstract quality and some of
the best known is ethereal. His poems seem to have been
written by a man living not on earth but in the aerial regions
above. The Ode to the West Wind and The Cloud especially
illustrates this quality. Such poems seem to justify to some
extent. Mathew Arnolds criticism of Shelley as

an ineffectual angel, beating in the void his

luminous wings in vain

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Q: Write a critical appreciation of the poem

Ode to the West Wind.
Answer:
The English romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote the
following ode on a blustery day in 1819, while in a forest near
Florence, Italy. In it he addresses an autumn wind known in the
region as Ausonius. In the final stanzawhich ends with the
now famous line If Winter comes, can Spring be far
behind?Shelley appeals to the wind to help him spread the
moral and political messages of his work
Percy Bysshe Shelley is one of the subtlest and profounder
thinkers among poets. He is the rebel poet of the Romantic
Revival. He was as much revolutionized as Byron. From his
boyhood days he was rebel and he was a radical
nonconformist in every aspect of his life and thoughts.
Shelleys classmates called him Mad Shelley and Eton
Atheist for his nonconformist and revolutionary attitudes.
French Revolution inspired him to be rebel. He hated and

condemned the tyranny of state. Religion and society which

stand for a heavenly blissful life. He longs for a golden age. He
writes many poems to make the people aware. By awareness
of people he can build up a society which will be free from
oppression, precaution and exploitation. Ode to the West
Wind is one of the greatest poems of Shelley. In this poem, he
uses a natural symbol as a vehicle of his revolutionary belief in
the regeneration of the world. The poem Ode to the West
Wind has five sections each of which is an integral part of the
total design of the poem. The theme of regeneration dealt with
the three different levels- natural, personal and universal. The
poem is remarkable for its theme, range of thought,
spontaneity, poetic beauty, lyrical quality and quick
movement. This poem is replete with symbolism, imagery,
myth making and his technical excellences.
Now we will discuss about the critical appreciation of the poem
Ode to the West Wind. The poem was written in the autumn
of 1819 in the beautiful Cascine Gardens outside Florence and
was published with Prometheus Unbound in 1920. Shelleys
own quotation is so important about the composition of the
poem
This poem was conceived and chiefly written in a wood that
skirts the Arno, near Florence, and on a day when that
tempestuous wind, whose temperature is at once wild and
animating, was collecting the vapors, which pour down the
autumnal rains. They began, as I foresaw, at sunset with a
violent tempest of hail and rain, attended by that magnificent
thunder and lightning peculiar to the Cinalpine regions.
This poem along with The Cloud and The Skylark an
abiding monument to Shelleys passion for the sky. Shelley
himself writes
I take great delight in watching the change in the
atmosphere.

In the first stanza of this poem Shelley describes the manner in

which the West Wind affects the earth. He addresses it as the
very spirit of autumn. He presents it as a tremendous force or
power, which drives leaves before it leaves rush away from it
just as ghosts run away from a magician or enchanter. So, he
starts his poem by addressing the West Wind like that O
wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumns being,
Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves the dead
Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing.
Shelley uses the wind as a power that carries the seeds to their
beds, where they lie in their beds. Just as dead bodies lie in
graves. But when spring comes, they grew into flowers of
different colors and fragrance. The west wind destroys dead
leaves and preserves useful seeds. He says
Wild Spirit, which art moving everywhere;
Destroyer and preserver; hear, oh, hear!
In the second stanza the poet describes the influence of the
west wind upon the air and the sky. The surface of the west
wind is covered with pieces of cloud that fall upon it. Just as
leaves fall from the trees and cover the earth. The west wind
scatters the clouds in the sky. The clouds seem like leaves of
the intertwined branches of the trees of Heaven and Ocean.
The stormy sea and the sky seem to be meeting. The clouds
floating on the surface of the west wind are compared to the
frenzied flowers of Baccus with disheveled hair. These clouds
are the signals of the coming storm and the sound of the wind
is like the funeral song of the year. The year is dying. The last
night is like the dome of the grave of the dying year. The
members of the funeral procession are vapor, hail, rain and
lightning. In the third stanza, Shelley turns to the effect of the
west wind on the seas and oceans. The west wind wakes up
the blue Mediterranean, which sleeps calmly in summer. It was
put to sleep by the soothing music of its dear stream and its
sleep it had dreamt of old palaces and towers reflected in it

water. The west wind creates furrows on the smooth waters of

the Atlantic Ocean. At the bottom of the Atlantic grow plants
and vegetation. These plants are dry, without sap though they
live in water. When the west wind blows in autumn, the plants
on the land wither the plants that grow at the bottom of the
sea. He can imagine the effect of the west wind upon them.
Besides, he has personified the Mediterranean Sea and Ocean.
In the fourth stanza the poet creates bond between the
personality of west wind and his own personality. From this
point onwards, the poem takes on an autobiographical note.
He wishes that he himself were dead leaves and the clouds. He
remembers his own boyhood when he was as fast and
tempestuous as the west wind. So, the poet to appeal to the
wind to save him from his present plight:
Oh lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!
I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!
Another pessimistic quotation:
A heavy weight of hours has chained and bowed
One too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud
The last stanza turns personal to universal. He appeals to the
west wind to treat him as its lyre. Again, we find a natural fact
turned into a poetic form. The wind blows through the jungle
and produces music out to the dead leaves. Shelley requests it
to create music out of his heart and to inspire him to write
great poetry, which may create a revolution in hearts of men.
He wants the west wind to be his guiding spirit and to help him
in the propagation of his thoughts through the universe:
Drive my dead thoughts over the universe
Like withered leaves to quicken a new birth!
And, by the incantation of this verse
Thus he wants to the west wind scatters his revolutionary
message in the world just as it scatters ashes and sparks from
a burning fire. His thoughts may not be as fiery as they once

were, but they still have the power to inspire man. Before
finishing the poem he tells the west wind to take the following
message to the sleeping world
The trumpet of a poetry! O, Wind
If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
Symbolism: Most of Shelleys poetry is symbolic. Shelley
makes use of symbolism by means of his normal use of images
including the personified force of nature and filled in it various
symbolic meanings to suit the purpose of the poem. The West
Wind appears to him as a symbol of change of the old
destroyer and the preserver of the new. The wind also
symbolizes Shelleys own personality. When he was a boy was
one like the wind tameless and swift, and proud. He still
possesses these qualities but they lie suppressed under a
heavy weight of hours. At this hour of distress the poet can
look upon the wind as a competent savior, a symbol of aid and
relief. Finally, the west wind is treated by the poet as
representing the forces that can help bring about the golden
millennium when the miseries and agonies of mankind will be
replaced by all round happiness.
Imagery: In the poem Ode to the West Wind the image of the
west wind, its appearance and action, has been shown through
three vivid images:
(i) Vapor rising from the Ocean to form clouds,
(ii) The stormy wind in the image of the dancing Maenad in
intoxication and
(iii)The image of the dome formed out of Clouds.
Myth-making: Shelley holds a unique place in English
Literature by virtue of his power of making myths out of the
objects and forces of Nature. Shelleys myth-making power as
revealed in the Ode to the West Wind.
Technical excellence: Technically this poem is one of the most
perfect of Shelleys lyrics. It is nearer to music than to painting,

and yet it gives us a more vivid sense of experience than we

could get from any pictorial description. The metre, which is
terza rima devided into short periods is managed with
complete mastery. The verse pattern each stanza of Ode to
the West Wind is joined to the one following by a common
rhyme: aba, bcb, cdc, ded, ee. Shelley has made the heroic
lines move swiftly so as to give the impression of the irresistible
and fast movement of the wind. Idealism is a part and parcel of
Shelleys temperament. He is not only a rebel but also a
reformer. He wants to reconstitute society in keeping with his
ideals of good, truth and beauty. According to Compton RickettTo renovate the world, to bring about utopia, is his constant
aim, and for this reason we may regard Shelley as
emphatically the poet of egar, sensitive youth; not the animal
youth of Byron, but the spiritual youth of the visionary and
reformer. Shelley is pessimistic about the present, but
optimistic about the future. In Ode to the West Wind, his
prophetic note is present, and present the greatest intensity of
expression:
If winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
After the whole analysis of the poem Ode to the West Wind,
now we can come to the conclusion. This is universally
accepted as one of the best poems of Shelley. Shelley, it has
become clear greatly expended the metrical and stanzaic
resources of English versification. He uses West Wind here as a
symbol of very spirit. As the West Wind scatters and destroys
the dead leaves, the poet wants to expel useless customs and
conventions; as the Wind helps the growth of new flowers in
spring, the poet too wishes to bring about a new order
beneficial to mankind. He believes that regeneration always
follows destruction and that a new and utopian order is certain
to come when the present degenerate system is ended.

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Q: Write a critical appreciation of the poem To a Skylark
Answer: Percy Bysshe Shelley is the highly intellectual poet of
the Romantic Revival. He was a dreamer and visionary. He had
a great passion for reforming the world by the power of his
writing. His idealism is best reflected in his poem To a
Skylark. Shelleys To a Skylark is a remarkable masterpiece.
If Shelley had died composing it only, he might have been
regarded as a great poet in English Literature. Skylark is an
imagery bird, which is invisible in the sky. It is a source of poetic
inspiration. This poetry stands as a distinguished achievement
because of some particular characteristics such as spontaneity,
lyrical quality, audibility or music, series of imagery,
personification and idealism etc.
To a Skylark perhaps the most famous Shelleys poem was
written in July 1820 and published with Prometheus Unbound
in the same year. At the time of its composition
The Shelleys were staying in Grisbornes house who was on a
visit to England. The idea of the skylark singing in the sky to
represent a spiritual power that can spread its influence
through the world may have come from Plato. The skylark is
not a earthly bird, it is the embodied spirit of ecstasy of
absolute delight, joyous. Wordsworths poem on the same
describes the skylark as
Ethereal minstrel! pilgrim of the sky!

Dost thou despise the earth where cares abound?

The poet starts his poem with an address or apostrophe like
Hail to thee, blithe spirit!
It is the endless source of pleasure. The song of skylark is
heard from the lost point of vision. The poet refers to the
spontaneous flow of music, which comes from the skylark. The
music overflows profusely from the heart of skylark; there is
nothing artificial. The skylark flies higher and higher. It never
backs to this world. Like a club of fire it rises. The singing and
soaring of the bird are simultaneous. In it for him a joyful spirit
that begins its upward flight at sunrise and become at evening
an invisible song just like star in the day light. The poet
describes the overflow of the skylarks song over the earth and
in the heaven. He says in his poem
All the earth and air
With thy voice is loud,
As, when night in bare
From one lonely cloud
The moon rains out her beams and heavens over flowed.
The poet is at loss to know what the bird really is! Its song may
be compared to the bright rain droops from rainbowed clouds.
The bird lost in the sunlight may be compared to a poet like
Like a poet hidden
In the light of thought,
Singing hymns unbidden,
Till the worlds wrought
To sympathy with hopes and fears it heeded not

The poets world is secret world of thoughts and fancies, which

is hidden from men. The poets song flows out from his heart
with great spontaneity. The poets unbidden songs move the
world to sympathy and hopes, which it would not otherwise
have known. Next, the poet compared the skylark to a
highborn maiden who is imprisoned in lonely tower. She sings
sweet love song to soothe her love-laden heart and her sweet
music overflows her bower. Now, the skylark is compared to a
glow-worm. The glow-worm is hidden in a valley scatters its
light without being. The light which is shed by the glow-worm
in soft and elusive. The glow-worm is hidden and screened
from view by the flowers and grass among which it lies. The
skylark is also compared to the rose which sheds its fragrance
abroad, though it is hidden from view. The warm wind scatters
the petal of the rose, and spreads its fragrance everywhere.
The song of the skylark is an idealism of Shelley. It remains
ever fresh and ever perfect. No earthy dirt and filth can touch
it. The sound vernal shower cannot even surpass it. When we
recite this poem we feel that the skylark itself is singing. But
again Shelley is not sure whether the skylark is a spirit or bird.
The poet wonders from where the skylark got its inspiration for
its harmony. So he raises his voice like
Teach us, Spirit or Bird,
What sweet thoughts are thine:
I have never heard
Praise of love or wine
That panted forth a flood of rapture so divine.
The poet says that skylarks songs do not stand any
comparison with things that we know. When it is compared
with all gay; clear and fresh things pale into insignificance.
Marriage and triumphed songs dwindle into nothingness in

comparison with the skylarks song. The poet wonders about

the unknown source of inspiration of the birds song.
What objects are the fountains
Of thy happy strain?
What fields, or waves or mountains?
What shapes of sky or plain?
What love of thine own kind? What ignorance of pain?
The skylarks song is full of joy. Its love knows no satiety. On
earth love becomes after some time insipid and cloying.
Skylark knows more of life and death than we mortals can ever
know. We cant imagine how could the skylark pour forth such
a clear stream of music. The source of the songs of skylark is
not known to us because we are crude. Men never know any
moment of un allowed joy. Sorrow is ever present in human life
and the most beautiful songs are those inspired by some
sadness. So the poet introduces us with universal truth:
We look before and after
And pine for what is not;
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fought:
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought
Sorrow is mingled with the very best of human joys. Even if
men are free from hate, pride, fear and sorrow, they cant think
of attaining such joy as that of the skylark. Our knowledge is
saturated with pangs and our joy is never a match with that of
the skylark. The poet wants to experience half the gaiety of the
bird
Teach me half the gladness
That thy brain must know,

Such harmonious madness

From my lips would flow
The world should listen then-as I am listening now
Theme: In To a Skylark Shelley records the thoughts evoked
in him by a singing skylark.
He finds a contrast between the skylarks easy movement and
fluent song and mans clumsiness in these spheres. The poet is
led to feel that the skylarks superiority over man lies in his
superhuman talents. Despond King-Hele writes,
The theme is thus a conceit, not an eternal truth; but Shelley
contrives the faction so persuasively that we gladly suspend
disbelief.
The keen joyance of the skylark is contrasted with the pains
and agonies of mankind. Like the Ode, this poem too ends on a
not of yearning, this time not for energy and intellectual
powerful, but for pure rapture and unbounded joy.
Spontaneity: To a Skylark like Shelleys other lyrics, shows
spontaneity typical of the poet. The flow of the poem is as
effortless as that of a stream. The emotion that has inspired
the poet is genuine and has come from first hand experience.
The joyful singing of the skylark has indeed inspired in the
poets mind an over flowing yearning for ecstasy. This intensity
of passion has added considerably to the lyric spender of the
poem. The poem is melodious because it is not just a poem but
the skylarks song itself translated the poet into stanzas.
Symbolism: Most of Shelleys poetry is symbolic. The poem To
a Skylark bears strong testimony of the poets use of
symbolism. The poet employs skylark as a symbol of musical
ecstasy. Skylark is an invisible bird, source of music
symbolizing the romantic poet, Shelleys poetic soul. Again, the

skylark symbolizes perfect or ideal happiness. Here, the

happiness of the bird is contrasted with the sorrows and
sufferings of mankind. The abundance of symbols makes the
poem obscure. A common reader will find it difficult to
understand the theme of the poem. Shelleys symbols are
vague. In some cases, the reader should go beyond the
surface level to find out the meaning of the symbols clearly.
Lyricism: Shelley is one of the greatest lyric poets in the field of
English literature. The most outstanding quality of Shelleys
lyricism is its spontaneity. Shelleys lyrics come straight from
his heart. Here is an example of his spontaneous writing
Teach me half the gladness
That thy brain must know,
Such harmonious madness
From my lips would flow
The world should listen then-as I am listening now
Shelleys lyrics always express an intensity of feeling, or a deep
passion. There is too a note of desire and longing also sadness
through most of his lyrics. In the poem To a Skylark we have
the following stanza expressive of human sadness:
We look before and after
And pine for what is not;
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fought:
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought
Shelleys lyrics are surprising musical and sweet. Some of
Shellys lyric are highly embellished composition. They have a
glittering quality because of the ornamental imagery in which

they abound. The most striking example of this quality is To a

Skylark the striking phrases are: The golden lightening of
sunken sun, A star of heaven, Rainbow cloud. Melancholy
is found to be the dominant note in most of Shelleys lyrics.
Shelleys melancholy is never depressing. Shelley never allows
morbidity to overcome the enjoyment in his lyric. He has deep
faith in future.
Imagery and Figures of Speech: The poem contains series of
images and figures of speech that have added to the beauty
and charm of the poem. The skylark is described as a blithe
spirit that pours its heart from heaven or near it. It is linked
to a cloud of fire and it singing still dost soar and soaring
ever singest the skylark floats and runs like an embodied joy
whose race is just begun. It remains unseen Like a star of
Heaven. In the broad daylight. The bird is then compared to a
poet hidden in the light of thought, a high born maiden in a
palace tower, a golden glow worm scattering its aerial hue
unseen among the flowers and grass and an unseen rose
giving out its sweet smell. Each figure of speech used in the
poem is a picture in itself and contributes to the charming
sensuousness of the poem. Shelleys pessimism as well as
optimism is exposed in this poem. With reference to the song
the poet laments over the crude and impure emotions of
human beings. Corrupted society can never give us pure
pleasure. So, the poet is keening over the present condition of
human life. But, he talks of the future he becomes joyous. Thus
he turns into a optimist.