To My Sister - William Wordsworth

AO1

nature redeems & refreshes

AO2

• direct address, conversational & seemingly casual, but persuasive in form

• quatrains with regular rhyme scheme (ABAB) - regularity adds to the soothing qualities of spring

“March”, “redbreast sings”

• the redbreast symbolises the arrival of spring - march marks new beginnings, constructing a sense of optimism

• Wordsworth highlights his continued appreciation for the sheer beauty and power nature holds

“My sister!”

“Make haste, your morning task resign; Come forth and feel the sun”

• use of exclamation mark highlights the speaker’s enthusiasm for his sister to accompany him.

• creates a sense of urgency, further accentuated by imperative verbs such as “make haste” & “come forth”, as he urges her to break away from daily life & enjoy time in nature

“We’ll give to idleness”

• the phrase highlights the significance of appreciating the qualities of the natural world

• romantic idea of enjoying nature - how we should learn from it & be in harmony with it

• being ‘idle’ is beneficial for our physical & mental wellbeing

“One moment now may give us more/Than years of toiling reason”

• argues that nature is so spiritually enhancing & enriching that spending one moment in it teaches you more than years of reading

• use of assonance underlines how nature is spontaneous & real

“Bare”

“grass in the green field”

• repetition of the adjective ‘bare’ emphasises the sparsity of nature during winter

• it is juxtaposed by the alliteration ‘grass in the green field’ to show how seasons will always change & landscapes will alter, highlighting that spring will come with new life & hope

Comparative poems for relationships

Captain Cook (To My Brother)

Comparative poems for natural world

Sunday Dip

Comparative poems for belonging in the natural world

Peckham Rye Lane (belonging in an urban setting - contrast)