Spring
Nothing is so beautiful as Spring –
When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush;
Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush
Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring
The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing;
The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush
The descending blue; that blue is all in a rush
With richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.What is all this juice and all this joy?
A strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning
In Eden garden. – Have, get, before it cloy,
Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning,
Innocent mind and Mayday in girl and boy,
Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and worthy the winning.
Meanings of Spring
The poem Spring by Gerard Manley Hopkins presents the season of spring in its full bloom and its impacts on nature with the mention of the lord Christ for saving mankind following the sin committed in the Garden of Eden. The poem presents the main ideas of joy, happiness, and pleasure associated with the seasons of spring and its religious linkages with man’s life on this earth.
Meanings of Stanza -1
Nothing is so beautiful as Spring –
When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush;
Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush
Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring
The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing;
The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush
The descending blue; that blue is all in a rush
With richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.
The speaker presents the season of spring, capitalizing its initials to emphasize its importance, saying that weeds become long, lovely, and green in this season. The eggs of the little bird, Thrush, seem as if they are “little low heavens” while its song echoes in the timber woods. It rinses and wrings the ears of human beings. It seems as if lightning is striking. On the other hand, the pear trees become glossy and bloom. They show bluish color in everything, which enhances the beauty and richness of things. The lambs race down and take part in this happiness to have their fair share in this joy of the spring. The speaker not only fully enjoys it but also includes other things, fowl, foliage, flora, and fauna. This stanza shows the main idea of spring.
Meanings of Stanza -2
What is all this juice and all this joy?
A strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning
In Eden garden. – Have, get, before it cloy,
Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning,
Innocent mind and Mayday in girl and boy,
Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and worthy the winning.
The speaker questions what and why of this joy. He questions why everything is full of activity and what everything is enjoying. It seems that this was just a strain of the earth’s start when it was sweet. It reminds the Garden of Eden having its initial richness before the cloud formed and Christ appeared on the scene with the primeval sin of man that has soured the atmosphere. The mind was innocent, enjoying fully like a girl and boy enjoying Mayday. The plea to Christ with the apostrophe of “O maid’s child” shows how it was the choice and victory of Christ to save mankind from that primeval sin. The language becomes grandiose and religious with undertones of prayer in it. The speaker links the arrival of spring with the Garden of Eden and its initial richness and the emergence of Christ to save mankind from that primeval sin. The stanza completes the main idea of the Resurrection, interlinking it with the redemption of mankind by Christ.
Summary of Spring
- Popularity of “Spring”: Written by Gerard Manley Hopkins, one of the greatest poets of the Victorian era, “Spring” is a lyrical Petrarchan sonnet. It speaks about the joy the spring season brings to the world. It shows how people of every age get thrilled and charged when this lovely season arrives. The popularity of the poem lies in the fact that it talks about the joy and happiness the spring season offers to people every year through a theological lens.
- “Spring” As a Representative of Beauty: The poem celebrates the Resurrection of the Lamb of God and the rebirth of foliage, fowl, and flowers. The poem begins with a beautiful description of the spring season. The poet claims that it surpasses the beauty of the rest of the seasons. He provides a catchy description of its qualities, features, and heart-winning activities that bring joy to every eye. Images like “weeds in the wheel”, “birds in little low heavens”, “and the racing lambs”, and “glassy pear tree leaves and blooms” speak about the unparalleled charm of this season. There is no wonder in believing that it enthralls the writer’s heart and reminds him of sacred places. As the poem continues, the speaker wonders how the natural evolution of one season to another provides us with a scene of pure beauty and wonder. The poem ends when he addresses Christ in a subtle prayer and asks for a new resurrection for mankind.
- Major Themes in “Spring”: Beauty, joy, wonder, and amazement are the major themes of the poem. Throughout the poem, the poet sings praise for the lovely spring season. He wonders how seasons change and bring noticeable changes to the world. He talks explicitly about the merriment and delight spring offers to humans. He accounts for every detail that an aesthetic person can note while sighting the bounties of this season. The purity and serenity of the season remind him of the pure Garden of Eden. He develops religious imagery in the poem’s final stanza to make a special prayer. He asks God to save innocent children from sins that doomed the sacred Garden.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Spring
literary devices are effective tools that writers use to make their texts rich and unique. Gerard Manley Hopkins has also used literary devices in the poem, whose analysis is as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /e/ in “When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush” and the sound of /o/ in “ Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and worthy the winning.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession, such as the sound of /l/ in “, shoot long and lovely and lush” and the sound of /t/ in “Through the echoing timber.”
- Anaphora: It refers to the repetition of a word or expression in the first part of some verses. Hopkins has repeated the word “the” in the first stanza of the poem to emphasize the point such as;
“The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush
The descending blue; that blue is all in a rush.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /t/ in “A strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning” and the sound of /r/ in “The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
“The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush
The descending blue; that blue is all in a rush
With richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Hopkins has used imagery in this poem such as “Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush” and “A strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between the objects that are different in nature. The poet has used natural beauty as an extended metaphor to show how it brings pleasure and excitement in the form of changing weather.
- Rhetorical Question: Rhetorical question is a question that is not asked in order to receive an answer; it is just posed to make the point clear. Hopkins has posed rhetorical questions in the second stanza of the poem to emphasize his point such as; “What is all this juice and all this joy?”
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem uses symbols like beauty, prayer, amazement, and wonder.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Spring
Poetic devices such as rhyme scheme, stanza type, and diction are used to embed suitable structure in the simple lines. The analysis of the devices used in the poem is as follows.
- End Rhyme: End Rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Hopkins has used end rhyme in this poem, such as; “wring/sing”, “brush/rush” and “cloy/boy.”
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem uses the ABBAABBA rhyme scheme in the octave and CDCDCD in the sestet.
- Sestet: A sestet is a six-lined stanza borrowed from Italian poetry. The second stanza of the poem is sestet.
- Sonnet: It is a fourteen-lined poem, having an octave and a sestet and following a specific style. This is a Petrarchan sonnet.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful for praying for the betterment of the world.
“Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning,
Innocent mind and Mayday in girl and boy,
Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and worthy the winning.”