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"To a Skylark" is a poem completed by Percy Bysshe Shelley in late June 1820 and published accompanying his lyrical drama Prometheus Unbound by Charles and James Ollier in London. [ 1 ] It was inspired by an evening walk in the country near Livorno , Italy, with his wife Mary Shelley , and describes the appearance and song of a skylark they come upon. [ 2 ]
Learn More. One of Percy Bysshe Shelley's most famous poems, "To a Skylark" describes the powerful grace and beauty of the skylark's song. Shelley wrote "To a Skylark" in 1820 after hearing the bird's distinctive calls while walking through the port city of Livorno, Italy. The poem's speaker addresses the bird directly and praises the purity of ...
- Summary
- Themes
- Structure and Form
- Literary Devices
- Detailed Analysis
- About Percy Bysshe Shelley
- Similar Poetry
‘To a Skylark’ by Percy Bysshe Shelleyis an ode to the “blithe” essence of a singing skylark and how human beings are unable to ever reach that same bliss. The poem begins with the speaker spotting a skylark flying above him. He can hear the song clearly. The bird’s song “unpremeditated” is unplanned and beautiful. Shelley is stunned by the music p...
Throughout ‘To a Skylark,’ Shelley engages with themes of nature and the human spirit. The lines of this piece tap into both of these themes as the speaker explores the beauty of the skylark and its surrounding habitat. They are enlivened by its sound and the way it changes their experience of the natural world. The poem is a clear celebration of n...
‘To a Skylark‘ by Percy Bysshe Shelley is a twenty-one-stanza ode that is consistent in its rhyme scheme from the very first to the last stanza. The piece rhymesABABB, with varying end sounds, from beginning to end. This strictly formatted pattern is also consistent in the meter. The first four lines of each stanza are written in trochaic trimeter,...
Throughout ‘To a Skylark,’ Shelley makes use of several literary devices. These include but are not limited to: 1. Imagery: can be seen when the poet makes use of particularly interesting descriptions. For example, “Like a cloud of fire; / The blue deep thou wingest.” 2. Apostrophe: occurs when the poet’s speaker addresses something or someone who ...
First Stanza
“To a Skylark” begins with the speaker, Percy Bysshe Shelley (as was detailed in the introduction), pointing out a skylark in the sky. He calls out to the bird, not in greeting, but in reverence, “Hail to thee.” He is amazed at the sight, and as the reader will later discover, the song of the bird. He refers to the bird as “blithe Spirit,” meaning happiness or joy. More details will follow, but Shelley sees this bird as the epitome of joy. It is less a bird and more an essence, a “Spirit.” It...
Second Stanza
In the second stanza of ‘To a Skylark,’ Shelley makes some additional observations. The bird is not stopping its ascent. It is flying “Higher still” as if it has sprung up from the earth. He compares the skylark to “a cloud of fire.” It is powerful and unstoppable. Perhaps the bird is returning to the “Heaven” from where it first came. Even though the bird is still ascending, it also keeps up its song. It does the two simultaneously. It “still dost soar,and soaring ever singest.”
Third Stanza
The bird is ascending up towards the “golden lightening” of the sun. The sun is “sunken” or low on the horizon, a most likely settingfor the day, giving the scene a greater ambiance as sunrise and sunset have always been seen as magical times. It flies up over the clouds that are closest to the sun. It is as if the bird is “float[ing] and run[ing].” Behind the skylark is the power of “unbodied joy” that does not run out of energy. It’s “race is just begun.”
Percy Bysshe Shelley was born in 1792 in Broadbridge Heath, England. He was raised in the countryside and was educated at University College Oxford. While in school, Shelley was well known for his liberal views and was once chastised for writing a pamphlet titled, The Necessity of Atheism. His parents were severely disappointed in him and demanded ...
Readers who enjoyed ‘To a Skylark’ should also consider reading other Percy Bysshe Shelley poems. For example: 1. ‘Ozymandius‘ – an important piece that features how a great ruler like Ozymandias and his legacy was buried in the pages of history. 2. ‘England 1819‘ – contains a description of England in 1819 through the poet’s liberal lens. 3. ‘A La...
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- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
To a Skylark. Hail to thee, blithe Spirit! In profuse strains of unpremeditated art. And singing still dost soar, and soaring ever singest. Like an unbodied joy whose race is just begun. Until we hardly see, we feel that it is there. The moon rains out her beams, and Heaven is overflow'd.
Popularity of “To a Skylark”: This poem was written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, a great English poet. ‘To a Skylark’ is an ode about nature and joy. It was first published in 1820. The poem speaks about the poet’s sentiments regarding the melodious song of the skylark. The poet also compares skylark with mankind and man versus nature.
In this poem, his speaker highlights the beauty of birdsong, showing how it transcends human understanding. While the skylark is the focus of the poem, it is also full of other images from nature ...
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Oct 22, 2024 · Annotations: “To a Skylark” by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley directly addresses the skylark, treating it as a mystical entity rather than a mere bird. The alliteration in “blithe Spirit” emphasizes the joyous nature of the bird, while “unpremeditated art” suggests the skylark’s song is spontaneous and natural.
