Romantic Literature:London 1802

 This Blog-post is a response of a task on Romantic Literature, given by our professor ma'am Yesha Bhatt.

“The best portion of a good man's life: his little, nameless unremembered acts of kindness and love.”

💮William Wordsworth💮

London,1802

MILTON! thou shouldst be living at this hour:

    England hath need of thee: she is a fen

    Of stagnant waters: altar, sword, and pen,

Fireside, the heroic wealth of hall and bower,

Have forfeited their ancient English dower

    Of inward happiness. We are selfish men;

    Oh! Raise us up, return to us again,

And give us manners, virtue, freedom, power!

Thy soul was like a Star, and dwelt apart;

    Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea:

    Pure as the naked heavens, majestic, free,

    So didst thou travel on life's common way,

In cheerful godliness; and yet thy heart

    The lowliest duties on herself did lay.

This poem is written by Wordsworth which present eulogies of John Milton.Composed in 1802, "London, 1802" was published for the first time in Poems, in Two Volumes. 

This sonnet is dedicated to John Milton by William Wordsworth. The speaker addresses the soul of the dead poet John Milton, saying that he should be alive at this moment in history, for England needs him. England, the speaker says, is stagnant and selfish, and Milton could raise her up again. 

• Literary Type: Petrarchan sonnet
• Rhyme scheme :abba abba cdd ece
• Written in : iambic pentameter
• Written in 1802
• The poem begins with the cry: “Milton!
• the altar (representing religion), 
• the sword (representing the military), 
• the pen (representing literature),
• the fireside (representing the home)has lost touch with “inward happiness,” 

The speaker says that Milton could give England “manners, virtue, freedom, power,” for his soul was like a star, his voice had a sound as pure as the sea, and he moved through the world with “cheerful godliness,” laying upon himself the “lowest duties.”Here also we can see"she is a fen"that Wordsworth use metaphor for England as a Woman.  

" The lowliest duties on herself did lay."

Last line described the humble nature of Milton,that how's pure Milton's heart was.