The World Is Too Much With Us by William Wordsworth

The World Is Too Much With Us

by William Wordsworth

The world is too much with us; late and soon,

Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—

Little we see in Nature that is ours;

We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!

This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;

The winds that will be howling at all hours,

And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;

For this, for everything, we are out of tune;

It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.

"The World Is Too Much With Us" — by William Wordsworth Paraphrased Line by Line 1. The world is too much with us; late and soon, People are overly concerned with material things, it happens later or sooner. 2. Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;— We waste our human abilities and potential in the constant cycle of earning and spending money. 3. Little we see in Nature that is ours; We hardly feel a connection to Nature in us or see it as something that belongs to us. 4. We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon! We’ve given away our emotional and spiritual connection to nature and higher things in exchange for a boon that proved to be something worthless and corrupt. 5. This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon; This sea that opens up her bosom and reveals it to the Moon (in the moonlight). 6. The winds that will be howling at all hours, The winds that howl constantly, will always be active and alive at all times. 7. And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers; But right now, the winds are still and quiet, like flowers closed in sleep. 8. For this, for everything, we are out of tune; Because of our disconnection from nature, we are out of harmony with this scene and everything like that. 9. It moves us not. – Great God! I’d rather be We don't feel emotionally stirred by Nature. Oh God! I’d rather choose to be— 10. A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn; A pagan (a non-Christian worshipper of deities) raised on an old, forgotten belief system; 11. So might I, standing on this pleasant lea, That way, while standing on this lovely field (meadow), 12. Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn; I might catch visions of gods or spirits that would make me feel less lonely. 13. Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea; I might see the sea-god Proteus coming out of the ocean; 14. Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn. Or hear the sea-god Triton blowing his twisted (spiraled) conch shell.

Explanation of the Poem with Critical Analysis

Overview

Theme:

Modern humans have lost their connection with nature due to materialism and industrialism. Tone:

Critical, mournful, and yearning. Form:

Petrarchan (Italian) sonnet. Rhyme Scheme: ABBA ABBA (octave) CDCDCD (sestet)

Explanation Lines 1--4

The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!

The speaker laments that we are sick of this world because we, the modern people are too focused on material things. making ourselves too busy in getting and spending, chasing money and then consuming and using high value things . But in return we get no value except that we lay waste our powers, potentials and our tender spirit, our capacity to feel, imagine, and connect with Nature which is really ours. Thus now we have become emotionally and spiritually disconnected from Nature making ourselves busy in the modern things which seem ours but they are not ours. We have given away our hearts to material things thinking that modern science is a boon but it is a dirty boon which has enslaved our souls taking us away from Nature which is ours.

Literary Devices Used

Alliteration "sordid boon", Creates musical quality

Oxymoron "sordid boon" Contradiction highlights the irony of material “progress”

Explanation Lines 5--8

This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;

The winds that will be howling at all hours,

And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;

For this, for everything, we are out of tune;

Explanation

In this part, Nature is described as alive, beautiful, and ever-changing, but we no longer appreciate it. This sea that has opens up her bosom showing intimacy to the moonlight and creates beautiful sight of Nature which fixes our gaze on it. Winds are wild but calm and still at times . These winds are now calm and still but in both the ways they are soothing to our souls, we don’t notice. The reason is that we have lost our tuning with Nature making us out of harmony with the natural world.

Literary Devices Used

Personification

“Sea that bares her bosom”

Nature is given human traits to show intimacy

Simile

“like sleeping flowers”

Visual image of the calm wind

Explanation Lines 9--14

It moves us not. – Great God! I’d rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn.

Explanation

In this part, the poet exclaims. His outcry is that modern life has left him emotionally and spiritually empty. He addresses God saying that he’d rather be a Pagan (a non Christian worshipper of deities a follower of an old belief system, ancient nature religions) than feel nothing like emotional deadness. in this Paganism, standing on this pleasant lea, we feel less alone and we are able to see Proteus (a sea god who could change shape) rising from the sea and listen to the wreathed horn of Triton (a sea god who blows a shell horn). In other words, although, I am standing on this pleasant lea surrounded by nature yet I feel left alone and unhappy but if I were a Pagan, I would see Proteus rising from this sea and would listen to the blowing of wreathed horn by Triton. This scene would have made me very happy and in union with nature.

Literary Devices Used

Mythological Allusion Proteus, Triton Represents a lost spiritual and imaginative connection 

Metaphor “We have given our hearts away” Suggests emotional/spiritual loss

Apostrophe “Great God!” A passionate outcry that adds emotion

Summary of the Poem "The World Is Too Much With Us"

The poem "The World Is Too Much With Us" by William Wordsworth laments the disconnection between humanity and nature due to materialistic pursuits. We have become too worldly and are involved in worldly affairs too much. The speaker criticizes the relentless pursuit of material wealth earning and spending, which drains our energy and alienates us from the natural world. The poem expresses the idea that people have lost their connection to the beauty and significance of nature. They are not after the beauty of nature. Instead they have given their hearts to trivial, self-serving and worldly pursuits. The worldly progress based on science and technology is boon but it is immoral and corrupt. We are so busy in our worldly pursuit that we are not concerned with the beauty of the world around us, the beautiful sea in the moonlight appears as if it had bared its chest to the moon and the wind on the seas blows all the time. People are like sleeping flowers collected together in a bunch. There are crowds of people but they are lifeless, without happiness and vigor. People are out of tune with nature. The speaker longs for a simpler time when people were more in tune with nature and spirituality, even suggesting that he would prefer to be a Pagan of old, connected to a forgotten belief system. We are not able to see the Sea God in the sea blowing its horn. We believe this cult to be pagan but it makes people less lonely because we can talk  to nature. The closing lines evoke a desire for a deeper connection with nature, symbolized by the sea and mythical figures like Proteus and Triton, as a means to find solace and restore a sense of wonder and harmony with nature and the world.

Short Summary

Wordsworth is upset that people in his time (and ours too) care more about money and possessions than about the natural world. He feels that we’ve lost something very deep and important: our ability to feel wonder and connection with nature. He even says he’d rather be a pagan and believe in old gods like Proteus and Triton if it would help him feel in harmony with the world again.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does the poet feel that the world has overwhelmed us with material progress?

Ans. The world has overwhelmed us because ……………

1. We are always busy earning and spending.
2. We take so many leaves.
3. We have no time for the beauties of nature.
4. both 1 and 3

Correct answer is 4.- both 1 and 3.

2. What is the problem of the materialistic world according to the poem?

Ans. The problem of the materialistic world is that ……………

1. it is disconnected from nature and humanity.
2. people are not happy.
3. people are selfish.
4. people earn money dishonestly.

Correct answer is 1. - It is disconnected from nature and humanity.

3. Where do people drain their energy?

Ans. People drain their energy ……………..

1. in their materialistic pursuits.
2. in drinking wine.
3. in watching films.
4. in playing cricket.

Correct answer is 1. - in their materialistic pursuit.

4. How can people compensate for their loss of energy and vigor according to poem? 

Ans. People can compensate for their energy and vigor by………………

1. drinking milk.
2. taking vitamins.
3. connecting themselves with nature and enjoying it.
4. taking rest.

Correct answer is 3. - connecting themselves with nature and enjoying it.

5 To whom have people given their heart?

Ans. People have given their hearts to ……………..

1. watching movies.
2. playing cricket.
3. heroes and heroines.
4. materialistic pursuits.

Correct answer is 5. - materialistic pursuits.

6. Why is material pursuit a sordid boon?

Ans. Material pursuit is a sordid boon because……….

1. it makes people corrupt
2. it makes people unhappy
3. it gives us progress but it is corrupt and immoral
4. it makes people very busy.

Correct answer is 3. - it gives us progress but it is corrupt and immoral.

7. What does poet mean by upgathered sleeping flowers?

Ans: Poet means that ……………

1. People sleep too much.
2. unhappy people have formed a crowd.
3. people can be seen in crowds but without happiness and vigor.
4. People are sleepy and tired. 

Correct answer is 3. - people can be seen in crowds but without happiness and vigor.

8. Why does the poet want to be a pagan?

Ans. The poet wants to be a pagan because …………….

1. a pagan lives in the lap of nature.
2. a pagan's life is better than the materialistic life of cities.
3. a pagan worships gods of nature. 
4. both 2 and 3.

Correct answer is 4. - both 2 and 3.

9. Who is Proteus?

Ans: Proteus is ……….

1. a sea god.
2. an old man of the sea.
3. merman.
4. a sea god known as old man of the sea.

Correct answer is 4. - a sea god known as old man of the sea.

10. Who is Triton?

Ans: Triton is …………

1. trumpet blower.
2. a conch blower.
3. a merman
4. both 2 and 3

Correct answer is both 2 and 3.