How Does Shelley Idealize the Bird Skylark in the Poem “To a Skylark”?

Answer

How Does Shelley Idealize the Bird Skylark in the Poem “To a Skylark”?

Idealization is one of the major imaginative features of the Romantics. As a second-generation romantic poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) successfully idealizes the bird Skylark in his famous ode “To a Skylark” (1820). Shelley’s idealization of this bird is given below.

Immortality and Eternal Joy: At the very outset of the poem, the poet introduces the miniature singing bird not as a bird but as a spirit. From such recognition, the poet means to say that the souls of the real world have been polluted on a deeper level. Since the world is packed with all kinds of negative aspects, this real world has lost its expediency for peaceful and ecstatic living. On the other hand, the world of skylark is authentic because the bird sings very spontaneously.

That from Heaven, or near it,

Pourest thy full heart

In profuse strains of unpremeditated art.

Thus, the poet declares that the world and activities of the skylark are selfless, which is why it is ideal and can ensure a sustainable world of peace and happiness. 

Contrast to Human Suffering: Shelley idealizes the skylark by distinguishing its untroubled presence from human suffering. Amid the poem, the skylark is depicted as unaffected by the pain and sorrow that touches humanity. The poet laments, 

What thou art we know not; 

What is most like thee?

This emphasizes the skylark’s mysterious nature and highlights its separation from the human condition. This distinction upgrades the bird’s level of joy and purity. 

The superiority of Song: The poet does not hesitate to mark the most prestigious institutions as being corrupted. The religious institutions have been futile, that is why the choral hymns have lost their attraction and pure melody. The song of victory is not for humanity; rather, it is the practice of power and authority. However, Skylark’s song is pure and laudable. So, the poet means to say that the song of the bird is for all, like good governance of an ideal state. 

Unseen and Invisible Presence: The skylark’s idealization is also enhanced by its unseen and invisible existence. Unlike concrete and visible objects, the skylark is a mysterious and unattainable creature. Shelley expresses this by saying, 

Hail to thee, blithe Spirit! 

Bird thou never wert.

The repeated statement that the skylark “never wert” highlights its transcendental nature. This also enhances its mystique and idealized status.

Freedom and Unboundedness: The sharpest and most striking contrast between Shelley’s idealism and the world’s realism has been recounted by Skylark’s tension and sin-free world. According to the poet, the skylark knows much more than human beings. It enjoys the deeper knowledge of the mystery of Earth. Human beings are haunted by their thoughts of past and future and pine for what is not. The sweet songs of human beings are those that tell of the saddest thoughts. But the skylark is the embodiment of perennial joy and happiness. 

Better than all measures

Of delightful sound

Better than treasures

That in books are found.

In termination, Shelley, in this poem, skillfully portrays the skylark. This bird surpasses the physical and enters the realm of the metaphysical. Through the use of vivid imagery, contrast, and profound philosophical reflections, he idealizes the skylark as a symbol of eternal joy, inspiration, and freedom. Through this, he creates this poem, a poetic masterpiece that continues to delight readers with its transcending vision of nature.