Solitude in Ode to Solitude and The Solitary Reaper

李栖

Abstract：Ode to Solitude and The Solitary Reaper are two famous poems written by renowned poets Alexander Pope and William Wordsworth respectively in different time. Notably，solitude is one of the themes of the two poems from the title. On the surface，they seem to talk about the presentation of the solitude，nevertheless，the implicit information and thoughts behind them are various. Therefore，this thesis takes the differences and similarities of the solitude as the highlight of the two poems. The performance of solitude in the two poems would be interpreted from several respects：language，images，rhythm scheme and theme. In this way，there is a better understanding for the solitude in the two poems so that Alexander Pope and William Wordsworth could be understood as well.

Keywords：Ode to Solitude;The Solitary Reaper;Solitude;Similarities;Differences

Introduction

Alexander Pope is an outstanding enlightener and a master in the art of poetry. Ode to Solitude conveys his longing and expectation for the pastoral life. William Wordsworth is the leading figure of the English romantic poetry. The most important contribution he has made is that he changed the course of English poetry by using ordinary speech of the language by advocating a return to nature. The Solitary Reaper expresses the speakers joy for the attractively natural music and disappointment failing to capture the content of music.

According to history background，Pope and his families were imposed to village far from cities and towns because of political reason in that time. Facing the scene of the countryside，Pope wrote this poem to express his compliments for nature beauty. Pope is free and joyful for keeping away from the inauthentic and hypocritical environment. Therefore，the solitude of the poem is positive. Compared with Popes poem，the meaning of Wordsworths The Solitary Reaper，which was wrote after the poet and his sister had a trip to Scotland，has double meanings：delighted to the peace and harmony of nature，and upset to be unsuccessful to apprehend the content by using suitable form. The emotion and mind of solitude are complicated. Between the two poems，the solitude has some differences and similarities. And the poems themselves could give the best evidences to explain.

I.Similarities of Solitude in Ode to Solitude and The Solitary Reaper

1.1 Language

In Ode to Solitude，from the title，“Ode” is a kind of celebration and compliment for something. Therefore，as the title suggests，this feels like a veritable celebration of solitude. Poet yearns for solitude. Besides，there are four stanzas with four lines in each stanza. The number of words is simple and concise. In the last line of each stanza，the poet just uses less than four words to convey his feeling. For instance，“In winter fire”（Pope line 8）and “Quiet by day”（line 12）just as the mood and emotion of poet，plain and relaxing. And in The Solitary Reaper，the diction is also easy to understand. The poet uses common language rather than obscure ones to compose and express his emotion. “Behold her”（Wordsworth line 1），“O listen”（line 7），“Will no one tell me what she sings？”（line 17）and so on are the cases in point.

From the respect of language，the two poets express their pursuit and eagerness for the relaxing and simple pastoral life. For them，without complicatedly political and economic trouble is a kind of enjoyment.

1.2 Image

In the two poems，every nook and corner both tell the image of nature. Peaceful and wonderful nature always makes people quite and relaxed keeping away from the sophisticated city life and the noise of the crowed. Nature is the synonyms of countryside unmarred by factories，mines，railroads or even the hypocritical political relationship（Walker）.

In Ode to Solitude，flocks and plants are filled with his fields，fresh air and vivid warble surround his hovel. Everything is closely connected with nature. Due to the charm of nature，the poet feels “ Blest，who can unconcernedly find Hours，days，and years slide soft away，In health of body，peace of mind，Quiet by day”（Pope Stanza 3）. In The Solitary Reaper，the traces of nature are also full of the poem. “ Filed ”（Wordsworth line 1），“ brain ”（line 5），“ nightingale ”（line 9），“ Cuckoo-bird ”（line 14）and so on are the symbol of nature. All of them manifest the compliments and love of the poet for nature.

The two poems both includes the image of nature. The poets yearn for the beauty and solitude of nature. In nature，they could fin and improve themselves. Furthermore，in the state of the nature，they could reflect on themselves and know what they want to own and change. Pope is eager to live a peaceful life with healthy body and peace of mind. On the contrary，the speaker in The Solitary Reaper immerses the beautiful and plaintive music. In a word，the solitude from the nature makes them become clam and carefree，with forgetting other trivial things.

II.Differences of Solitude in Ode to Solitude and The Solitary Reaper

2.1 Image

In Popes poem，the text is full of confidence，self fulfillment，and joy at being solitary（Walker）. For Pope，the solitude is a kind of enjoyment and could cultivate himself. He is just “content to breathe his native air”（Pope line 3），without needing other luxury things. The native air and the land inherited by himself only belong to himself. Furthermore，“milk”（line 5），“bread”（line 5），“trees”（line 8），“flocks”（line 7）and so on are ordinary and plain things in life，and the poet is satisfied with them. He could be self-sufficient，even if he lives alone. In short，the solitude is the blessed thing of life（Rachael）.

Oppositely，in Wordsworth poem，besides the positive attitude for solitude，more loneliness from solitude could be presented from the poem. Firstly，the maiden is the best evidence. In the poem，the poet always emphasizes the loneliness of the highland girl. “ ...single in the field，A Yon solitary Highland Lass！ Reaping and singing by herself;Stop here，or gently pass！ Alone she cuts and binds the grain”（Wordsworth lines 1-5），and so on，these words indicate the loneliness of the girl in this stanza. Whats more，although the speaker does not perceive what the girl sings about，he considers her song is more beautiful than the sound of nightingale and cuckoo-bird. As we all know，nightingale and cuckoo-bird are the representatives of sadness and seclusion. In this point，the lonely state could be conveyed. In this poem，solitude is loneliness. The sort of loneliness is harsh，punishment，a deficiency state，a state of discontent marked by a sense of estrangement，an awareness of excess aloneness（Guihui Niu，Xiang Guo）.

2.2 Rhythm Scheme

Ode to Solitude has four stanzas，and regular rhythm scheme ABAB runs through the whole poem. It uses iambic tetrameter，with exceptions in the fourth line of each stanza. The structure is used often by the knowledgeable and elite，and Pope is a representative of Enlightenment Movement，which focuses on the reason and education. In the poem，Pope pays more attention to his feeling，and his creation is just for pleasing himself. In brief，the solitude of recreating by himself is an opportunity to renew himself. In other words，it replenishes Pope.

The Solitary Reaper is different from Ode to Solitude. The poem，made up of four octaves，follows a rhyme scheme of ABABCCDD with a variation in the first and fourth stanzas. Iambic tetrameter lines intersects the poem. As the rhyme scheme，the poet wants to use ballad to capture the content and emotion of the music song by the maiden at first，however，he finds he fails to describe the song that he heard a young woman singing as she cuts grain in a Scottish field，so that his rhyme scheme changes into heroic couplets，a high form used by the educated. For the poet，he feels his ability not equal to his ambition. Therefore，he argues that the traditional ways of English poetry have been cliches，and that such poetry cannot capture this lovely but unpretentious rural scene. A new kind of language and a new kind of poetry will be necessary，the poem suggests（Driver 59）. Confronting the helplessness，the poet feels that he is missing something，so the loneliness arises.

2.3 Theme

From the discussion above of the language，images，and rhythm scheme，they could convey the theme of the solitude with some differences.

In Ode to Solitude，the tune is quite lively，very bold. The poet expresses his love for nature and hated for cities as well as gives birth to his longing for a pastoral life. Foe his part，the solitude is the best way of life，without concerning and bounding with the social rules and keeping away from the problematic social relationship（Bialostosky 34）. In countryside，the poet is able to enjoy himself and do what he want to. In this place，he could “Sound sleep by night;study and ease，Together mixed;sweet recreation”（Pope lines 13-14）. In short，he is satisfied with the peaceful and quiet life.

For the speaker in The Solitary Reaper，the solitude has two kinds of implications. The poem speaks about the hidden sorrow of a young girl who sings while working in the field. On the one hand，it also illustrates how that sweet melody captures the speakers heart and provides him with a never-ending bliss. From the unpretentious music，the speaker cannot comprehend the content and implication，but he immerses and enjoys the beautiful melody so that “ I listen'd，motionless and still;And，as I mounted up the hill”（Wordsworth lines 29-30）. Although the maiden is a lonely girl，singing and binding by herself，and the speaker is lonely as well without noise troubling him，the speaker loves the solitude，which is an opportunity for him to enjoy the nature and music. On the other hand，the poet is pained，incapable to capture the content of the poem and write it by words. For the poet，the best existing state of poem should combine with the music. But he has no ability to do that. About the point，the solitude is loneliness，with something missed and sad.

Conclusion

Ode to Solitude and The Solitary Reaper are two poems by different poets in different time. They both more or less present similarities and differences in the aspect of solitude. By the performance of language，images，rhythm scheme and theme，the similarities and differences could be found. Pope is positive for the countryside life. Solitude of the life is happy and warm. In The Solitary Reaper，the sad and negative loneliness takes more proportion. Firstly，the speaker feels more disappointed for his loneliness and the sorrowful music sang by the maiden. Secondly，for poet William Wordsworth，he is depressed with being not able to record the music using a king new form of the poetry. For Wordsworth，in the modern society，which is filled with noises，depression and fury，seeking for loneliness is particularly eager and crucial. In the quiet state，people could reflect on themselves and enrich their minds. In this point，the loneliness is valuable. Listening to Wordsworths lonely soul，as well as listening to the sound of ones own heart，and facing the world calmly are the essence of Wordsworths philosophy of loneliness（Manning 62）.

Works cited

[1]  Alexander，Pope. “Ode to Solitude.” httpps//：poets.org. Google. 20 Jun. 2020.

[2]  Walker，Andrew. “Ode to Solitude By Alexander Pope.” https//：poemanalysis.com . 1 Apr. 2016. Google. 20 Jun. 2020.

[3]  Bialostosky，D. H.（1992）. Wordsworth，Dialogics and the Practice of Criticism. Cambridge：Cambridge University Press.

[4]  Driver，E.（2001）. The Poetry of William Wordsworth and an Imaginary Life by David Malouf. Glebe，N.S.W.：Pascal Press.

[5]  Manning，P. J.（1990）. Reading Romantics：Texts and Contexts. New York：Oxford University Press.

[6]  Guohui Niu，Xiang Guo. “The Sense of Loneliness in The Solitary Reaper.” https//：www.researchgate.net. 3 Apr. 2015. Google. 20 Jun. 2020.

[7]  Norris，Rachael. “Featured Poem：Ode on Solitude by Alexander Pope.” https//：www.goodreads.com. 9 Mar. 2020. Google. 20 Jun. 2020 .

[8]  William，Wordsworth. “The Solitary Reaper.” httpps//：poets.org. Google. 20 Jun. 2020.