She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways

by William Wordsworth

She dwelt among the untrodden ways
Beside the springs of Dove,
A Maid whom there were none to praise
And very few to love:

A violet by a mossy stone
Half hidden from the eye!
—Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.

She lived unknown, and few could know
When Lucy ceased to be;
But she is in her grave, and, oh,
The difference to me!

Summary of She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways

Popularity of “She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways”: William Wordsworth, a great English poet, wrote ‘She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways’. It is an elegy about life and death. The poem speaks about the speaker’s deceased lover. It illustrates how her demise inflicts a never-ending pain upon him. This short poem explains the tragedy of death and its impacts on human life.
“She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways” As a Representative of Loss: The speaker introduces us the setting where her beloved once lived. He says that she lived in a magnificent and idyllic place. Sadly, there was no one to praise her magnificent beauty and love her. He compares her with beautiful natural objects like violet by a mossy stone and a fair/bright star, which indicates that the lady was an epitome of beauty. Despite her magnificent appearance, she could not escape death. Leaving the speaker in despair, the beautiful lady died and her death brought a great sense of loss for him. What, however, stays in the minds of the readers is the way he expresses his extreme love for his late beloved.
Major Themes in “She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways”: Transience of life, death, and loss are the major themes of this poem. The poem centers on the idea that death is unavoidable; every living creature has to taste it. The poet describes and appreciates his dead lover. This beautiful piece expresses the grave loss and acute pain of the speaker who has lost his beloved. He appreciates her beauty by comparing her with beautiful natural objects. However, no matter how beautiful a person is, one day he has to die. Although her death has not brought any change in the cycle of the universe, yet, to the speaker, her death makes a big difference as he loves her.

Analysis of Literary Devices in “She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways”

literary devices are very important elements of a literary text. Their use not only brings richness to the text but also makes the readers understand meanings. William Wordsworth has also made this poem superb by using figurative language. Here is the analysis of some literary devices used in this poem.

Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /ee/ in “When Lucy ceased to be”.
Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession. For example, the sound of /h/ in “Half hidden from the eye”.
Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /r/ in “A Maid whom there were none to praise”.
Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it continues in the next line. For example,

“She dwelt among the untrodden ways
Beside the springs of Dove,
A Maid whom there were none to praise
And very few to love.”

Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. For example, “Beside the springs of Dove”, “Half hidden from the eye” and “But she is in her grave, and, oh.”
Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects different in nature. There is only one metaphor used in the first line of the second stanza where he compares her to a violet.

“A violet by a mossy stone
Half hidden from the eye.”

Simile: It is a figure of speech used to compare something with something else to make meanings clear to the readers. The speaker has compared her with a shining star in the second stanza. For example,

“Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.”

Symbolism: Symbolism is a use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by giving them symbolic meanings different from their literal meanings. Here, “star” and “violet” symbolize beauty.

Analysis of Poetic Devices in “She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways”

Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

End Rhyme: End Rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Wordsworth has used end rhyme in this poem. For example, “ways/praise”, “Dove/love”, “eye/sky” and “be/me.”
Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-lined stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Here each stanza is a quatrain.
Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows the ABCB rhyme scheme and this pattern continues till the end.
Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are three stanzas in this poem with each comprises four lines in it.

Quotes to be Used

The lines stated below are useful when talking about the glorious beauty of nature and precious stones.

“A violet by a mossy stone
Half hidden from the eye!
—Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.”