In the stychic passage of William Wordsworth's autobiographical poem The Prelude, the speaker, representing Wordsworth himself, encounters unfamiliar aspects of the natural world. The song is a coming-of-age novel in verse, a coming-of-age poem that tells of the psychological growth of the speaker. In the passage, Wordsworth deals with two separate streams of consciousness, one prior and one current, to highlight the speaker's changing responses to his experiences in the natural world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Wordsworth sets the passage in a secluded part of nature to isolate the speaker, allowing him to form a sense of consciousness or self-awareness on his own. After finding a boat by serendipity and sailing into the lake at sunset, the beauty of nature transfixes the speaker. The speaker's fascination with the natural world leads him to speak with a tone of reverence, as if he were at the mercy of a force greater than himself. From the first person point of view, Wordsworth creates the speaker who presents the story of Wordsworth's former character. self, giving the reader direct insight into the speaker's thoughts and feelings. This view highlights the development of the speaker's consciousness and his changing responses to his experience in the natural world. Wordsworth structures the passage so that it takes the form of a cycle; first develops the story through diction and imagery, then uses a change in tone to suggest that the speaker encounters a crisis, and finally causes the speaker to recover from this crisis and finally become aware of himself and what surrounds him. The passage goes through a complete cycle before the speaker realizes "[the] problems of [his] dreams" (Wordsworth line 44), which means he becomes self-aware, while at the same time recognizing his relative insignificance in the natural world. The cycle parallels the speaker's consciousness, as he too moves from enlightenment to disenchantment. The irony that comes from this process is that the speaker's disenchantment, not enlightenment, is what ultimately makes him self-aware. Through the use of diction, imagery, and tone, Wordsworth suggests that the speaker's initial admiration for nature comes from the positive impact it has on his developing consciousness both aesthetically and emotionally. Although the speaker encounters unknown aspects of nature, it nevertheless satisfies and transforms him through the sense of unity and fulfillment it brings him. The speaker sees the natural world as a comfort, a place where he can reflect on and transcend his past. As the passage progresses, however, Wordsworth uses a change in tone to suggest that the speaker's attitude toward nature changes dramatically. This duality of meaning - going from one extreme to the other - indicates the speaker's different responses to nature. Wordsworth uses the passage as a whole to indicate that the unfamiliar aspects of nature serve as a metaphor for the speaker's developing consciousness, and that in order for the speaker to overcome his past, he must experience something unknown. After enduring this process, the speaker will realize the true power of the natural world over humanity and will therefore become self-aware. Wordsworth uses diction to convey that the speaker's initial relationship with nature is harmonious, which highlights the fact that he is still naive because he has yet to realize the domination of the natural world over humanity; his arrogance, or excessive pride, blinds him to reality, and through this indication Wordsworth emphasizes the importance that the speaker must isolate himself in order to become self-aware. The song takes place “One eveningin summer” (line 1). During this uncertain time of day, the sky is neither sunny nor dark. Wordsworth indicates that, just like this evening's sky, the way the natural world appears to humans is constantly changing. The transitory world of nature parallels the speaker's changing attitude toward his experience in the natural world. Guided by Mother Nature, the speaker comes across “A little boat tied to a willow tree” (line 2) and decides to take it out on the water. He describes this decision as "an act of stealth / And troubled pleasure" (lines 5-6), revealing to the reader that he is aware of his offense, but does not care because his desire for adventure outweighs the potential risks of stealing the boat . The diction used by Wordsworth - "stealth" and "troubled pleasure" - connotes the speaker's misbehavior. The oxymoron of “disturbed pleasure” creates a paradoxical image in which the reader can see the speaker's contradictory attitude towards the theft of the boat. On the one hand he is aware of his transgression and its possible repercussions, but on the other hand he knows that the natural world will provide him comfort from the real world and therefore he decides to take a risk. Furthermore, as the speaker begins to row the boat, he hears the "voice / Of mountain echoes" (lines 6-7), which serves as a metaphor for his own consciousness. The personification used by Wordsworth highlights the importance of imagery and how it conveys the unfamiliarity of the natural world to the speaker. Nature offers an infinite range of possibilities that the speaker is unaccustomed to, and his description of the “extreme limit of the horizon” (line 15) symbolizes just this. Wordsworth creates an irony in describing the horizon, suggesting that although the speaker speaks confidently and knows what he wants, his goal is elusive and therefore his efforts to reach it will ultimately be futile. The horizon symbol represents the speaker's immaterial goal. Just like his goal, no matter how close to the horizon it is, it will always be much further away from him. The speaker's arrogance prevents him from achieving his goal. This arrogance is evident when he says, “With an unwavering line, I set my sight / Upon the summit of a steep ridge” (lines 13-14). The speaker is so sure of himself that his arrogance surpasses his rationality. He is confident in his abilities to overcome the challenges the natural world presents to him. Wordsworth's use of diction, especially the word "unshakeable" (line 13), outlines the speaker's excessive pride and egotism. Wordsworth uses the development portion of the passage to emphasize the speaker's need for adventure and also to indicate that he looks to nature as a source of excitement and comfort. In this part of the passage, Wordsworth associates the speaker with the sense of freedom—the speaker's ability to do what he wishes without outside influence—that the natural world offers him. As the passage progresses, Wordsworth uses a change in tone to suggest that the crisis is imminent; through this crisis Wordsworth indicates that the speaker's arrogance has blinded him to reality and that in order for him to become self-aware, he must experience a crisis that will destroy his arrogance and make him self-aware. Wordsworth writes, “vigorously / I dipped my oars into the silent lake” (lines 17-18) to contrast this tone with the speaker's impending change in tone after encountering the crisis. At this point in the passage, the beauty of the natural world still captivates the speaker. The word “lustily” connotes a sexual reference, as Wordsworth further accentuates the speaker's enchantment with nature through his use of diction. Wordsworth also uses the literary technique of enjambment to delay intentionof the speaker's emotion towards the natural world by splitting the sentence in two. This enjambement gives the phrase a duality of meaning and connects directly to the speaker's developing consciousness, suggesting that he still possesses an innate arrogance. The speaker loses his arrogance, however, when the passage reaches its crucial turning point when the tone shifts from a sense of confidence to uncertainty and trepidation. The speaker describes the ominous figure he approaches as: “The / limit of the ho / rizon, a / huge peak, / black and / enormous” (lines 22). Wordsworth uses repetition to emphasize the omnipotence of the peak. He also uses a caesura to indicate the change in tone; adding this medial pause accentuates the importance of the peak and how it directly alters the speaker's attitude towards the natural world. Furthermore, he adds a terminal half-foot to the verse, which contains five iambs, to once again emphasize the size of the peak and to diverge from the blank verse structure of the passage. This addition of an extra syllable emphasizes the powerful figure of the peak by repeating the word "enormous" and varies the structure of the passage by making this verse eleven syllables instead of the usual ten. Additionally, Wordsworth refers to the horizon with the definite article “the” instead of the indefinite article “a,” signifying that the horizon is a fixed position. This fixed horizon symbolizes the speaker's unrealistic goal. He sees his future only with respect to a single goal, which indicates that his arrogance ultimately prevented him from achieving this elusive goal. To further emphasize his apprehension, the speaker says that the gloomy form "[t]hove / between me / and the / stars, and / again" (lines 25-26). Wordsworth again adds a terminal half foot to this line to alter the structure of the passage and to accentuate the dimensional peak. The verb “tower” personifies the peak in a powerful and intimidating way. He also uses diction when he says “voluntary power” (line 23) and “measured motion” (line 28) to describe the spike. His large stature becomes an adversary that the speaker must overcome. Furthermore, to confirm the change in tone, Wordsworth says, “For so it seemed with a purpose of its own / And the motion measured as a living thing, / Striding after me” (lines 27-29). The arrogance of the speaker has been destroyed. He no longer sees the natural world as conquerable, but rather as the greatest of supernatural forces. His initial sense of pleasure and contentment turns to trepidation, and through the change in tone, Wordsworth suggests that although the speaker thought he could subjugate nature to his goal and that it would yield to him, in reality it would not because of his dominance. on humanity. Wordsworth ends the passage with an overwhelming tone of desolation and despair to indicate that the speaker's initial perception of nature has completely changed; he now views the natural world with fear and contempt, and through this change in perspective, Wordsworth suggests that the speaker is finally self-aware because he realizes that nature dominates humanity. After encountering the crisis, the speaker returns "[b]o the willow hideout" (line 31). Initially, the speaker regarded the willow tree without regard, but following the crisis, the willow tree transforms into a symbol of safety and protection for the speaker. Upon his return to the willow tree, the speaker has time to reflect on his experience in the natural world. He states, “But after seeing / That sight, for many days, my brain / Worked with a vague and indeterminate sense / Of unknown ways of being” (lines 34-37). The way the speaker mediates about his life changes completely following his encounter with the”.