修辞学角度分析西风颂analysis-on-ode-to-the-west-wind-from-the-stylistic-perspective.doc

。Stylistics题 目： Analysis on Ode to the West Wind From the Stylistic Perspective 班 级： 学 号： 姓 名： 时 间：_ _ _ _ Analysis on Ode to the West Wind from the Stylistic PerspectiveAbstract: Ode to the West Wind is masterpiece of Shelley and it is world-renowned especially the last line. From the stylistic perspective, this paper discusses this poem from these three aspects: image, sound and figures of speech to better understand Shelley idea to reform just like the west wind.雪莱的代表作西风颂世界著名，尤其是最后一句，“当冬天来的时候，春天还会远吗？”脍炙人口。而本文旨在从文体学角度讨论了该诗的意境，音律和修辞三方面来充分了解雪莱的这首西风颂。Key Words：image，sound，figures of speech, west wind. Introduction to the General Poem Analysis Introduction to Ode to the West WindOde to the West WindO wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumns being,Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves deadAre driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red,Pestilence-stricken multitudes: O thou,Who chariotest to their dark wintry bedThe winged seeds, where they lie cold and low,Each like a corpse within its grave, untilThine azure sister of the Spring shall blowHer clarion oer the dreaming earth, and fill(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)With living hues and odours plain and hill:Wild Spirit, which art moving everywhere;Destroyer and preserver; hear, oh hear!Thou on whose stream, mid the steep skys commotion,Loose clouds like earths decaying leaves are shed,Shook from the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean,Angels of rain and lightning: there are spreadOn the blue surface of thine aery surge,Like the bright hair uplifted from the headOf some fierce Maenad, even from the dim vergeOf the horizon to the zeniths height,The locks of the approaching storm. Thou dirgeOf the dying year, to which this closing nightWill be the dome of a vast sepulchre,Vaulted with all thy congregated mightOf vapours, from whose solid atmosphereBlack rain, and fire, and hail will burst: oh hear!Thou who didst waken from his summer dreamsThe blue Mediterranean, where he lay,Lulld by the coil of his crystalline streams,Beside a pumice isle in Baiaes bay,And saw in sleep old palaces and towersQuivering within the waves intenser day,All overgrown with azure moss and flowersSo sweet, the sense faints picturing them! ThouFor whose path the Atlantics level powersCleave themselves into chasms, while far belowThe sea-blooms and the oozy woods which wearThe sapless foliage of the ocean, knowThy voice, and suddenly grow gray with fear,And tremble and despoil themselves: oh hear!If I were a dead leaf thou mightest bear;If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee;A wave to pant beneath thy power, and shareThe impulse of thy strength, only less freeThan thou, O uncontrollable! If evenI were as in my boyhood, and could beThe comrade of thy wanderings over Heaven,As then, when to outstrip thy skiey speedScarce seemd a vision; I would neer have strivenAs thus with thee in prayer in my sore need.Oh, lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!A heavy weight of hours has chaind and bowdOne too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud.Make me thy lyre, even as the forest is:What if my leaves are falling like its own!The tumult of thy mighty harmoniesWill take from both a deep, autumnal tone,Sweet though in sadness. Be thou, Spirit fierce,My spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one!Drive my dead thoughts over the universeLike witherd leaves to quicken a new birth!And, by the incantation of this verse,Scatter, as from an unextinguishd hearthAshes and sparks, my words among mankind!Be through my lips to unawakend earthThe trumpet of a prophecy! Oh Wind,If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? Analysis on Ode to the West Wind1 ImageIn the first canto, the main image was the wild west wind and the leaves dead. The canto mainly portrayed the scene that the wind west wind swept the dead leaves in the forest and brought the seed of life. The dead leaves were blown like ghost from an enchanter fleeing and the winged seeds were sent by the wind to their dark wintry bed. In second canto, the poet used these images like clouds, vapour, rain, black rain, lighting, fair and hail to display the strong momentum of the west wind. Especially this line “black rain and fire and hail will burst” fully reflected that how destructive the force of west wind was and the west wind made the lightening and rains. In third canto, the images, the blue Mediterranean, waves and old palaces and towers and west wind, were combined to create the atmosphere that the west wind would blew everything down and it indicated the coming of the groundbreaking reform. Then, everything belongs to the old world would suddenly grow grey with fear and trembled and despoiled themselves. Thus, the west wind became the maker of all the commotion. The first three cantos created the three levels: sky, land and sea, but the main purpose was to praise that the west wind removed all the wired and bad things and to encourage the strong power of the new-born. After the portray of the sky, land and sea, the poet put himself into the main imagewest wind in fourth canto and hoped that he could face the coming of the reform just like the deaf leaves, swift clouds and waves. Now, the poet openly gave his ideaeager to struggle and reform. In the last canto, he hoped that he could be with the west wind to reform and struggle just like the line “be through my lips to unawakened earth”. The last line “if winter comes, can spring be far behind?” is world-renowned. It declared that the ending of the reform made by the west wind was that the dark age would become the past and the hope was ahead.2 SoundPoem is said to be the thoughts with music. In Ode to the West Wind, the poet adopted the iambic pentameters and the rhythm scheme is “aba, bcb, cdc, ded, ee”. Besides, the poet uses a series of special syllables to produce the special audible and visionary effect. For example, O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumns being,Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves deadAre driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,It is opening part in first canto. The first pronunciation w in wild west wind sounds like the blowing of the wind. On one hand, this sound indicated the fierceness and destructive forces of the wind; on the other hand, it sounds serene and serious and makes the solemn atmosphere of the autumn with the stops b and d.The sound s and f vividly imitate the sound of the wind and show the swiftness and fast speed of the coming and sweeping of the wind.3 Figures of speechA SymbolizationThe use of symbolization is one of the features of Shelleys poetry. The main image in Ode to the West Wind is the symbol of the unknown power to encourage life and a kind of great endless power to rule the world. Shelleys wind is both the destroyer and the protector. It symbolizes not only the dying autumn but also the vigorous spring full of vitality. the changes of leaves, clouds and sea caused by the wind reflect the social backgrounds and the dead leaves symbolize the the uneasy power in British. The richness of colors in “Yellow and black and pale, and hectic red pestilence-stricken multitudes” gives us a solemn and depressed picture. “a vast sepulcher” symbolizes the ending of the corrupted dark power. In conclusion, the poet uses dozens of symbols to express his enthusiasm and passion for reform and then to affect and move the readers.B PersonificationPersonification is a good way to make the image vivid. Shelleys wind is the capitalized “Autumns being” which is associated with “human being”. From this, we can see that poet personified the wind and give it life, but for the west wind in spring, the poet called it “Thine azure sister of the Spring” and it gave people the youth and vigorous feeling and meanwhile, it associates with the scene of revivification. In “Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air”, the spring wind becomes the sheepherder. In the third canto, the poet uses a series of phrases of personifications such as “where he lay”, “lulled by the coil of his crystalline streams”, “saw in sleep”. the poets use “lay” “lull” “saw in sleep” to portray the peace and serenity of the sea and them makes a strong contrast with the following action “quivering”, thus wholly reflects the destructive force of the west wind.C Metaphor and SimileMetaphor and simile are the most frequently used figures of speech. In this poem, there are a lot of metaphors and similes. For example, in the second canto, “Loose clouds like Earths decaying leaves are she