the cuckoo poem summary

The Cuckoo Poem Summary

To The Cuckoo is a poem written by William Wordsworth who was a popular romantic poet and played a significant part during the Romantic Age in English literature. He believed that nature plays an important role in the development of an individual and should be learned from. 

To The Cukoo Poem Summary And Analysis 

The cuckoo is welcomed by the poet, who praises it as a joyful bird while he is in a valley, amidst the beauty of nature. The cuckoo, which sings wherever it travels and fills every nook with its wonderful melody, strikes him as having a wandering voice. The poet heard the cuckoo’s sound when he was lying on the grass. The tune spread across the valleys and appeared to be there all at once.

The poet hears the cuckoo, which appears as if singing to that of the valley of sunshine and flowers, and it inspires vivid stories as well as memories of his schooldays and scenic aspects of nature. As the spring’s darling, the poet refers to the bird as the most mysterious as he could only hear the bird’s song and is unsuccessful to see the one singing, from his own eyes.

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He is carried back to his childhood when he used to hear the cuckoo’s song and try to find the bird that was the source of the tune. He looked for the bird in the sky, the trees, and the bush in hopes of catching sight of it. He would explore the forests in search of a glimpse, the cuckoo, however, was never spotted.

The poet loves the music and the recollections of the past so much that he can’t help but want to lie down and travel back in time.  He requests the bird’s emergence in this hollow universe and calls it a miracle on the land.

Theme Of The Poem To The Cuckoo

In the poem To The Cuckoo, the poet talks about the nostalgic feeling when he remembers his childhood and his admiration for mother nature. The melodious voice of the cuckoo takes him back to when he would listen to the beautiful songs of the bird and would search for the singer all over. Just like when he was young, he is still unable to find the bird who makes the environment even more exciting with its voice but for him, the bird is no less than a blessing and a miracle in this hollow world where the only thing that matters is material love. 

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For the poet, the voice of the Cuckoo bird is significant as it travels him to the past where he had some beautiful time spent in the laps of nature. William Wordsworth is known well for his admiration of nature and the miracles of nature, like the cuckoo bird in this case and he is able to present it well with this poem. There are several such incidents and situations that make one remember those beautiful memories of their childhood when everything was beautiful and the nature was highly appreciated and admired for its beauty.

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Final Words

William Wordsworth is a popular poet and many of his works in poetry and literary theories and criticism is admired all around the world. In this poem, he talks about the cuckoo bird whom he believes to be a blessing on this land, and how the enchanting melodies of the bird take him back to his childhood when he admired nature and its creation. You can visit our page for more such summaries and analyses on poems, novels, literary theories, and more and we welcome suggestions on more topics you would like to have summaries of.

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