Tintern Abbey : Literary devices
Tintern Abbey is a notable literary work by William Wordsworth. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, to various questions of Tintern Abbey.
Literary devices
Symbols
The Five Years: Wordsworth mentions the five years since his last visit to Tintern Abbey. These years symbolize the passage of time and the changes in his life and the natural world.
Tintern Abbey Itself: The abbey’s ruins represent the passage of time and the transience of human existence. They also symbolize a place of spiritual and emotional significance to the poet.
Nature: Nature, particularly the Wye Valley and the River Wye, serves as a symbol of beauty, solace, and spiritual inspiration. Wordsworth finds a deep connection with nature and sees it as a source of comfort and renewal.
The Rural Landscape: Throughout the poem, Wordsworth describes the rural landscape in detail, including fields, groves, and pastures. These elements symbolize the simplicity and purity of rural life.
Memory and Imagination: Wordsworth explores the role of memory and imagination in shaping one’s perception of the world. These faculties are symbolized as a source of strength and emotional sustenance.
Figure of speech
Imagery: Wordsworth uses vivid and descriptive imagery to depict the natural surroundings, such as the “steep and lofty cliffs” and the “green pastoral landscape.”
Simile: The poem contains similes, like “like a roe” and “like a weasel.”
Metaphor: Wordsworth uses metaphors to compare nature to various entities, such as “Nature never did betray the heart that loved her” and “a sense sublime of something far more deeply interfused.”
Personification: Wordsworth personifies nature, giving it human qualities and emotions. For example, he speaks of the “still, sad music of humanity” and “The dreary intercourse of daily life.”
Alliteration: Alliteration is used, like in the line, “Five years have passed; five summers, with the length of five long winters!”
Symbolism: The abbey can be seen as a symbol of memory, contemplation, and the passage of time.
Repetition: The poem uses repetition for emphasis, such as the repetition of the word “wild” in the line “And I have felt / A presence that disturbs me with the joy / Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime / Of something far more deeply interfused, / Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns.”
Oxymoron: Wordsworth employs oxymorons when he describes “joy” and “sadness” as being “entwined” in the memories of the landscape.