Poetry Analysis: William Wordsworth's "Solitary Reaper"

William Wordsworth's "The Solitary Reaper" is one of the most loved ballads in the corpus of English Literature. The poem "The Solitary Reaper " was first published in Poems, in Two Volumes in 1807.The poem was written after the publication of his Lyrical Ballads and is in iambic tetrameter. The poem bears testimony to his theory how poetry ought to focus on the mundane and the commonplace. His subject here is a Scottish Highland lass who sings while reaping. Dorothy Wordsworth tells us in her diary how solitary reapers were a common phenomenon in the Scottish scenario. Wordsworth expresses his gratitude to Thomas Wilkinson for his manuscript that pertains to a tour of Scotland.

The reaper is defined by her cutting and binding. She is described with the adjective 'solitary'. Nevertheless, it is this solitariness that sets her apart. Wordsworth often dealt with solitary characters to exemplify that they were the sole companions of Nature and were in total communion with the same. Her tremulous voice haunts the distances. The valley seems to be significant, primarily for this enchanting music that envelops it. The poet implores to: stop here or gently pass. He requests to stop to listen to the song; or gently pass so as to not disturb the smooth flow of the song.

The metaphor of the Nightingale at once points to her commonness and exclusiveness. It also underlines the power and purity of the voice of the lass that rouses the poet from his reverie. Like some soothing balm to weary travelers, they act as shade to wanderers overcome with fatigue traversing the deserts. The voice was hitherto the most thrilling one he had heard. The voice of the cuckoo-bird in the spring-time, pales in comparison. Its pervading presence breaks the silence of the seas among the farthest of the Hebrides. 'Hebrides' refers to the North-Western coast of Scotland where reeds are abundant.

"Will no one tell me what she sings?-"makes obvious that the poet catches only the tone of the melody, but not the lyrics. The poet catches the plaintive emotion the song encompasses and speculates whether the song is in quest of something long-lost, is out of nostalgia or grieves for heroes (of battles) unsung. Or does it pertain to any domestic problem that is a daily routine, and may occur yet again:"Some natural sorrow, loss or pain." The poet's here musings echo Keats' speculations regarding the stories behind the engravings on the Grecian Urn.

Whatever the song dealt with, the maiden sang as though there was no end to it. The beauty of the song lay in its melody, and its haunting quality that continued to enchant the poet long after he was out of earshot. The theme of the poem actually bears testimony to the power of poetry that if true to the aesthetic feel, endows the reader with an experience to retain, long after the poem is read.