Appreciation of the Poem “Ode to the

West Wind”

Class Name Student Number

1 0801 Zhao Xiaoning 2008030112

Abstract... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...( 3) 摘要... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...( 4)

1. Introduction... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ( 5)

2. Appreciation to the Ode to the West Wind… … … … … … … ( 5 )

3. Conclusion… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ( 6)

4. Bibliography… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ( 7 )

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Abstract:

Ode to the West Wind is the most classical works of Shelley The poet came up with the thought when he is walking in a forest and a strong storm seemed to come soon. And the storm came together with wind and hails. In such weather Shelley thought of many things of the society. Under this atmosphere he wrote the poem “Ode to the West Wind”.

Key Words:

Lyric image aesthetics the west wind

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摘要：

《 西风颂》是雪莱最为经典的作品. 当诗人漫步于森林中，一场暴风雨即将来临，此时此景，诗人深有感触，当时正处于欧洲的革命风暴中，于是，千古名篇《西风颂》诞生了。

关键词

抒情诗

意象 美学 西风 4

1.Introduction

Ode to the West Wind is written by Percy Bysshe Shelley(1792～1822) , the famous British democracy poet, to express revolutionary enthusiasm and victory faith . The poem was written in 1819 when he was living in Italian. It conveyed the spirit of the times.

It is safe to say that anyone who read the poem will be inspired an influenced by it. As Shelley wanted the belief of reform and revolution to be heared, the wind became the horn to call people to fight for their freedom. Meanwhile the poem is also a lyric poem which the poet use many symbols to express his belief.

2.Appreciation to the Ode to the West Wind

It consists of five cantos . The poem Ode to the West Windcan be divided in two parts: the first three cantos and a The last two cantos The three can to scribing the wind's effects upon earth, air, and ocean. The last two cantos are Shelley speaking directly to the wind, asking for its power, to lift him like a leaf, a cloud or a wave and make him its companion in its wanderings.

In the first canto,west wind crushes dry weeeds and smashes rotten woods on land, sweeps the seeds into earth at the same time, and the poet highlights it as the destroyer and preserver. The withered leaves and the west wind are the main images. However, one must not think of this ?Ode’ as an optimistic praise of the wind; it is clearly associated with autumn.

In the second canto, the west wind sweeps the residual cloud in the air , and brings out the storm clouds.The second canto of the poem is much more fluid than the first one. Shelley employs the following images : cloud、rain、and lighting. Angels of rain and lighting is rightly the storm of revolution brought by the west wind，here by employ personification, it express the majestic momentum of the west wind.

In the third canto，the poet mainly chants the west wind, carefully describes the 5

power of the west wind in land, sea and air. Here, the blue Mediterranean symbols the rulers of the time，but they are sleeping in the beautifully scenery，in the crystalline streams, in the azure moss and flowers. Therefore, this part further shows the powerful strengths of break of the west wind. From the last two rows, we can see the old power will perish. This part, the poet combine the main images,the west wind ,with seawater, huge waves and old palace to express that the old world must be replaced by he new world.

In the forth canto, with turning the point, Shelley turn from ode to the west wind to express emotions, to convey his willing to dance with the west wing. The poet express his yearning for meeting the windstorm as the flying withered leaves in the wind, floating clouds and tumbling waver did. The poet makes preparation for the theme: longing for fighting, hoping for the future.

The last canto is the high tide of the poem, in it Shelley furtherly express the wind will destroy everything. “What if my leaves are falling like its own” express the poet resolution to sacrifice for the revolution. In this canto, by using Subjunctive mood again, Shelley express his strong disire -- Be thou,Spirit fierce,My spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one! The last sentence"if winter comes, can Spring be far behind?" is known by everyone. It pronounce to people the result of the west wind as a destroyer and preserver，which is that dark will soon pass,light is in sight. This canto fully express the poet's firm faith in revolution and optimism of revolution.

3.Conclusion

Generally speaking, this is a very great poem. From the surface the poet seems to praise the west wind but actually he is expressing his view of the revolution. The poem is hard for us to understand thoroughly， so I just show a little thing about my understands. In 'Ode to the West Wind,' Percy Bysshe Shelley use the power of the west wind to express his beliefs, to inspire his soul, to wake up people to fight. Especially this sentence " If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?" has always be the slogan of the revolutioners.

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4 Bibliography

[1] 李志斌、苏文菁《外国文学作品选》长江文学出版社，2012.

[2] 覃先美,李阳. 英美修辞学概论. 长沙:湖南师范大学出版社, 2006.

[3] 辛中华，雪莱《西风颂 》主题探索，内蒙古工业大学报.

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第二篇：西风颂 赏析

<西风颂>赏析

一个秋日的午后，诗人雪莱在意大利佛罗伦萨近郊的树林里漫步。突然狂风大作，乌云翻滚。到了傍晚，暴风雨夹带着冰雹雷电倾盆而下，荡涤着大地，震撼着人间。大自然威武雄壮的交响乐，触发了诗人的灵感，他奋笔疾书，谱写了不朽的抒情短诗《西风颂》。这是1819年的事情。

当时，欧洲各国的工人运动和革命运动风起云涌。英国工人阶级为了争取自身的生存权利，正同资产阶级展开英勇的斗争，捣毁机器和罢工事件接连不断。1819年8月，曼彻斯特八万工人举行了声势浩大的游行示威，反动当局竟出动军队野蛮镇压，制造了历史上著名的彼得卢大屠杀事件。雪莱满怀悲愤，写下了长诗《暴政的假面游行》，对资产阶级政府的血腥暴行提出严正抗议。法国自拿破仑帝制崩溃、波旁王朝复辟以后，阶级矛盾异常尖锐，广大人民正酝酿着反对封建复辟势力的革命斗争。拿破仑帝国的解体也大大促进了西班牙人民反对异族压迫和封建专制的革命运动，1819年1月，终于响起了武装起义的枪声。就在武装起义的前夕，雪莱给西班牙人民献上了《颂歌》一首，为西班牙革命吹响了进军的号角。在意大利和希腊，民族解放运动方兴未艾，雪莱的《西风颂》发表不久，这两个国家也先后爆发了轰轰烈烈的武装起义。面对着欧洲山雨欲来风满楼的革命形势，雪莱为之鼓舞，为之振奋，诗人胸中沸腾着炽热的革命激情。这时，在一场暴风骤雨的自然景象的触发下，这种难以抑制的革命激情立刻冲出胸膛，一泻千里，化作激昂慷慨的歌唱：

你怒吼咆哮的雄浑交响乐中，

将有树林和我的深沉的歌唱，

我们将唱出秋声，婉转而忧愁。

精灵呀，让我变成你，猛烈、刚强!

把我僵死的思想驱散在宇宙，

像一片片的枯叶，以鼓舞新生；

请听从我这个诗篇中的符咒，

把我的话传给全世界的人，

犹如从不灭的炉中吹出火花!

雪莱在歌唱西风。他歌唱西风以摧枯拉朽的巨大力量扫除破败的残叶，无情地把那“黑的、惨红的、铅灰的，或者蜡黄，患瘟疫而死掉的一大群”垃圾扫除干净；他歌唱西风“在动乱的太空中掀起激流”，搅动着“浓云密雾”，呼唤着“电火、冰雹和黑的雨水”，“为这将逝的残年唱起挽歌”；他歌唱西风唤醒沉睡的浩翰大海，波涛汹涌，把一丛丛躲藏在海底深处的海树海花，吓得惊恐色变，“瑟瑟地发抖，纷纷凋谢”。雪莱歌唱西风，同时也在歌唱席卷整个欧洲的革命风暴。他歌唱革命运动正以排山倒海之势，雷霆万钧之力，横扫旧世界一切黑暗反动势力。革命运动风起云涌，一顶顶皇冠随风落地，一群群妖魔鬼怪望风逃遁，这正是当时欧洲革命形势的生动写照。

雪莱在歌唱西风。他歌唱西风“是破坏者，又是保护者”。他歌唱西风不仅扫除了残枝败叶，而且“送飞翔的种籽到它们的冬床”。待到来年春天，西风的妹妹——东风驾临大地，就会“蓓蕾儿吐馨”，“漫山遍野铺上了姹紫嫣红”，出现一个春光明媚的新世界。雪莱歌唱西风，同时也在歌唱革命。他和那些资产阶级凡夫俗子不同，他没有把革命简单地看作消极的破坏力量。他看到了革命一方面在扫除腐

朽，无情地摧毁旧世界，另一方面又在“鼓舞新生”，积极地在创建着美好的新世界。尽管雪莱对新世界的理解还比较空泛，还不可能突破空想社会主义的水平。 雪莱在歌唱西风。但他不是冷眼旁观的歌者，他强烈地热爱西风，向往西风，他以西风自喻，西风是他的灵魂，他的肉体，诗人和西风合而为一：

如果我是任你吹的落叶一片；

如果我是随着你飞翔的云块；

如果是波浪，在你威力下急湍，

享受你神力的推动，自由自在，

几乎与你一样，啊，你难制的力!

再不然，如果能回返童年时代，

常陪伴着你在太空任意飘飞，

以为要比你更神速也非幻想；

那我就不致处此窘迫的境地，

向你苦苦求告：啊，快使我高扬，

像一片树叶、一朵云、一阵浪涛!

我碰上人生的荆棘，鲜血直淌!

时光的重负困住我，把我压倒，

我太像你了：难驯、迅速而骄傲。

这是雪莱在歌唱西风，同时在激励和鞭策自己。雪莱是一个热情的浪漫主义诗人，同时又是一个勇敢的革命战士，他以诗歌作武器，积极投身革命运动，经受过失败和挫折，但始终保持着高昂的战斗精神。他早年就赴爱尔兰参加民族解放斗争，回到英国后继续抨击暴政，鼓吹革命，同情和支持工人运动。因而受到资产阶级反动政府的迫害，不得不愤然离开自己的祖国。在旅居意大利期间，他与意大利“烧炭党”人和希腊革命志士来往密切，同情和支持他们的革命活动。在《西风颂》里，熔铸着雪莱坎坷的人生道路，倾注着雪莱对反动统治者的满腔愤恨，洋溢着雪莱不屈不挠的战斗精神，表达了雪莱献身革命的强烈愿望。

《西风颂》是秋天的歌，是时代的声音。19世纪初叶，科学社会主义还没有诞生，欧洲各国的工人运动还处在自发阶段，封建贵族和资产阶级的反动势力还很强大，“神圣同盟”的魔影正在到处游荡着。大地还没有苏醒，寒冬还在后头。所以，《西风颂》不免带有“婉转而忧愁”的调子。但作为社会主义思想的先驱，雪莱对革命前途和人类命运始终保持着乐观主义的坚定信念，他坚信正义必定战胜邪恶，光明必定代替黑暗。从总的倾向来看，《西风颂》的旋律又是“猛烈、刚强”的。诗人以“天才的预言家”的姿态向全世界大声宣告：

如果冬天来了，春天还会远吗?

《西风颂》是欧洲诗歌史上的艺术珍品。全诗共五节，由五首十四行诗组成。从形式上看，五个小节格律完整，可以独立成篇。从内容来看，它们又熔为一体，贯穿着一个中心思想。第一节描写西风扫除林中残叶，吹送生命的种籽。第二节描写西风搅动天上的浓云密雾，呼唤着暴雨雷电的到来。第三节描写西风掀起大海的汹涌波涛，摧毁海底花树。三节诗三个意境，诗人幻想的翅膀飞翔在树林、天空和大海之间，飞翔在现实和理想之间，形象鲜明，想象丰富，但中心思想只有一个，就是歌唱西风扫除腐朽、鼓舞新生的强大威力。从第四节开始，由写景转向抒情，由描写西风的气势转向直抒诗人的胸臆，抒发诗人对西风的热爱和向往，达到情景交融的境界，而中心思想仍然是歌唱西风。因此，结构严谨，层次清晰，主题集中，是《西风颂》一个突出的艺术特点。

其次，《西风颂》采用的是象征手法，整首诗从头至尾环绕着秋天的西风作文章，无论是写景还是抒情，都没有脱离这个特定的描写对象，没有使用过一句政治术语和革命口号。然而读了这首短诗以后，我们却深深感受到，雪莱在歌唱西风，又不完全是歌唱西风，诗人实质上是通过歌唱西风来歌唱革命。诗中的西风、残叶、种籽、流云、暴雨雷电、大海波涛、海底花树等等，都不过是象征性的东西，它们包含着深刻的寓意，大自然风云激荡的动人景色，乃是人间蓬勃发展的革命斗争的象征性反映。从这个意义上说，《西风颂》不是风景诗，而是政治抒情诗，它虽然没有一句直接描写革命，但整首诗都是在反映革命。尤其是结尾脍炙人口的诗句，既概括了自然现象，也深刻地揭示了人类社会的历史规律，指出了革命斗争经过艰难曲折走向胜利的光明前景，寓意深远，余味无穷，一百多年来成了人们广泛传诵的名言警句。

Analysis of Percy Shelley?s “Ode to the West Wind”

In 'Ode to the West Wind,' Percy Bysshe Shelley tries to show his desire for transcendence, by explaining that his thoughts and ideas, like the 'winged seeds' are trapped. The West Wind acts as a force for change and forward movement in the human and natural world.

Shelley sees winter not just as the last season of vegetation but as the last phase of life. Shelley observes the changing of the weather from autumn to winter and its effects on the environment. Shelley is trying to show that a man?s ideas can spread and live on beyond his lifetime by having the wind carry his 'dead thoughts' which through destruction, will lead to a rebirth in the

imagination, and in the natural world. Shelley begins his poem by addressing the 'Wild West Wind'. He then introduces the theme of death and compares the dead leaves to 'ghosts'. The imagery of 'Pestilence-stricken multitudes' makes the reader aware that Shelley is addressing more than a pile of leaves. His claustrophobic mood is shown when he talks about the 'wintry bed' and 'The winged seeds, where they lie cold and low/ Each like a corpse within its grave, until/ Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow'. In the first line, Shelley used the phrase 'winged seeds' which presents i

. . .

The 'closing night' is used also to mean the final night. The 'pumice' shows destruction and creation because when the volcano erupts it destroys. This acts as an introduction and a foreshadow of what is to come later. ' also helps the reader prepare for the climax which Shelley intended. It seems that it is only in his death that the 'Wild Spirit' could be lifted 'as a wave, a leaf, a cloud' to blow free in the 'Wild West Wind'. The 'pumice' is probably Shelley's best example of rebirth. As the rising action continues, Shelley talks about the

'Mediterranean' and its 'summer dreams'. Again, he uses soft sounding words

to calm the reader into the same dream-like state of the Mediterranean. He then writes like a mourning song 'Of the dying year, to which this closing night/ Will be the dome of a vast sepulchre/ Vaulted with all they congregated might'. Percy sees his ?dome? as a volcano and when the 'dome' does 'burst,' it will act as a 'Destroyer and Preserver' and creator. In 'Ode to the West Wind,' Shelley uses the wind to represent driving change and a carrier for his ideas.