Theory question 112
Non-African PoetryLiterature 2, Section D. Non-African Poetry
Discuss the use of imagery in “Ode to the West Wind”.
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Shelley addresses the wild West Wind of autumn as 'destroyer and preserver'.
Stanza 1: dead leaves driven like ghosts fleeing an enchanter, 'pestilence-stricken multitudes'; seeds lying like corpses in the grave until spring.
Stanza 2: clouds like loose leaves; the wind as the hair of a fierce Maenad; the dirge of the dying year.
Stanza 3: the Mediterranean sleeping and the Atlantic's waters parting before the wind.
Stanza 4: the poet wants to be a leaf, a cloud, a wave; he has fallen 'upon the thorns of life'.
Stanza 5: 'Make me thy lyre'; scatter his thoughts like ashes and sparks; 'If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?'
Effect: images of death and rebirth express the poet's despair and hope of renewal.
Group the images and explain their effect.