The sounding cataract Haunted me like a passion; the tall rock, The mountain, and the deep and gloomy wood, An appetite; a feeling and a love that had no need of a remoter charm by thought supplied, nor any interest Unborrowed from the eye.
Interpretation
The quote expresses a deep, passionate connection to nature, highlighting the intrinsic beauty and emotional resonance it holds.
In this quote, William Wordsworth reflects on the overwhelming emotional influence that nature exerts on him. The imagery of a 'sounding cataract' and the 'tall rock' evokes a sense of awe and reverence, suggesting that the beauty of the natural world captivates the soul without the need for external justification or intellectual reasoning. It emphasizes how nature can evoke profound feelings of love and desire, appealing directly to our senses and emotions.
In practice
In a speech about the importance of preserving the environment, one might evoke this quote to highlight the emotional power of nature.
For mightier far_x000D_ _x000D_ Than strength of nerve or sinew, or the sway_x000D_ _x000D_ Of magic potent over sun and star,_x000D_ _x000D_ Is love, though oft to agony distrest,_x000D_ _x000D_ And though his favourite be feeble woman's breast.
By all means sometimes be alone; salute thyself; see what thy soul doth wear; dare to look in thy chest; and tumble up and down what thou findest there.
There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,_x000D_ _x000D_ The earth, and every common sight,_x000D_ _x000D_ To me did seem_x000D_ _x000D_ Apparelled in celestial light,_x000D_ _x000D_ The glory and the freshness of a dream.
Books are yours, Within whose silent chambers treasure lies Preserved from age to age; more precious far Than that accumulated store of gold And orient gems, which, for a day of need, The Sultan hides deep in ancestral tombs. These hoards of truth you can unlock at will.
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 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.
Shalt show us how divine a thing A woman may be made.
Nature has given us two ears but only one mouth.
The _x000D_ Earth would die_x000D_ If the sun stopped kissing her.
Everything we personally own that’s made, sold, shipped, stored, cleaned, and ultimately thrown away does some environmental harm every step of the way, harm that we’re either directly responsible for or is done on our behalf.
The spacious firmament on high,_x000D_ _x000D_ And all the blue ethereal sky,_x000D_ _x000D_ And spangled heavens, a shining frame,_x000D_ _x000D_ Their great Original proclaim.
My work is the world. Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird - equal seekers of sweetness. Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.
All creatures must learn to coexist. That's why the brown bear and the field mouse can share their lives in harmony. Of course, they can't mate or the mice would explode.
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