CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of The Study
Poetry is a
beautiful art that ever written by human being. It is expressed what the poet’s
feeling at the time the poet writes the poem. As Holman explained it in “A
Handbook of Literature”, poetry deals
with emotion. It presents the emotions of the poet as they are aroused by some
scene, some experience, some attachment. It is often rich in sentiment and
passion. (1985: 341)
The
following quotation is from “Understanding Poetry”; only poetry - in the broadest sense of the word – can help us to answer
such questions, and help us, thus, to an understanding of ourselves and of our
own values. (Brooks&Warren, 1976: 6).
Being
in the group of the intelligent, it is a must to study more intensively about
the poetry. It is very happy to know what the author’s meaning clearly. The
writer has chosen the poem entitled “A Complaint” by William Wordsworth for it
is good and full of metaphors and symbols. To enjoy and love every time reading
the poem is very important for the writer in composing this essay..
1.2 Purpose of The Study
There
are several purposes of composing this essay, which are:
1.
To analyze what kind of intrinsic
elements of poem within the poem itself.
2.
To understand the meaning of the whole
poem written by the poet.
1.3 Scope of The Study
This essay has been
scoped into the important element that is only the intrinsic element. The
intrinsic element is figurative language that is divided into metaphor and
symbol.
CHAPTER II
THE POET, THE POEM, AND
TRANSLATION
2.1.
THE POET
William
Wordsworth (1770-1850) was born in Cockermouth in West Cumberland, just on the northern
fringe of the English Lake District. His mother was died when he was eight. He
was then sent to school at Hawkshead, near Esthwaite Lake, in the heart of that
sparsely populated region that he and Coleridge were to transform into one of
the poetic centers of England.
Wordsworth’s
father, John Wordsworth then passed away when he was thirteen. In
the summer of 1790, he took a walking tour through France and Switzerland.
After receiving his degree in 1791 he returned to France, where he became an
enthusiastic convert to the ideals of the French Revolution (1789-1799). His
lover Annette Vallon of Orleans bore him a daughter in December 1792, shortly
before his return to England. Disheartened by the outbreak of hostilities
between France and Great Britain in 1793, Wordsworth nevertheless remained
sympathetic to the French cause.
In
1795 he met Samuel Taylor Coleridge when he settled in a rent-free house at
Racedown, Dorsetshire, with his beloved sister, Dorothy. Coleridge claimed that
he had detected signs of genius in Wordsworth's rather conventional poem about
his tour in the Alps, Descriptive
Sketches, published in 1793. Now he hailed Wordsworth unreservedly as
"the best poet of the age."
By 1843 he was
poet laureate of Great Britain. He died in 1850 at the age of eighty. Only then
did his executors publish his masterpiece, The Prelude, the autobiographical
poem that he had written in two parts in 1799, expanded to its full length in
1805, and then continued to revise almost to the last decade of his long life. Most
of Wordsworth's greatest poetry had been written by 1807, when he published Poems,
in Two Volumes; and after The Excursion (1814) and the first collected edition of
his poems (1815), although he continued to write prolifically, his powers
appeared to decline.
2.2.
THE POEM
A
COMPLAINT
There is a change—and I am poor;
Your Love hath been, nor long ago,
A Fountain at my fond Heart’s door,
Whose only business was to flow;
And flow it did; not taking heed
Of its own bounty, or my need.
What happy moments did I count!
Bless’d was I then all bliss above!
Now, for this consecrated Fount
Of murmuring, sparkling, living love,
What have I? shall I dare to tell?
A comfortless, and hidden WELL.
A Well of love—it may be deep—
I trust it is, and never dry:
What matter? if the Waters sleep
In silence and obscurity.
—Such change, and at the very door
Of
my fond Heart, hath made me poor.
William
Wordsworth (1770-1850)
2.3.
TRANSLATION
Sebuah Pengaduan
Terjadi sebuah perubahan, dan aku
malang
Cintamu telah ada, tidak lama
diwaktu itu
Sebuah mata air pada pintu hati
yang sangat kucinta
Yang hanya bertugas untuk mengalir
Dan telah mengalir sebagaimana
mestinya, tidak memusatkan perhatian
Dari karunia itu sendiri, atau apa
yang kubutuhkan
Sungguh peristiwa-peristiwa bahagia
yang dapat kuhitung!
Telah memberkahiku dengan semua
keberhakan dari yang di atas
Sekarang, untuk sumber yang suci
itu
Dari bisikan, kilauan, cinta yang
hidup
Apa yang aku punya? Bolehkah aku
berani katakan?
Sebuah kesedihan yang tersembunyi
dengan baik
Sebuah sumur cinta yang mungkin dalam
Aku percaya adanya dan tidak pernah
kering
Kenapa? Jika air itu tertidur
Dalam sunyi dan kabur
Seperti perubahan, dan dalam setiap
pintu
Pada hatiku yang sangat kucinta,
telah membuatku malang
CHAPTER
III
LITERARY
REVIEW
The
poet “A Complaint” contains a lot of intrinsic elements. Here the writer will distinguish
become three sections that most dominant appear in the poem. All of the
dominant elements are figurative language. According to Holman, figurative
language is intentional departure from the
normal order, construction, or meaning of words in order to gain strength and
freshness of expression, to create a pictorial effect, to describe by analogy, or
to discover and illustrate similarities in otherwise dissimilar things.
(1985: 185)
a.
Metaphor
The
first dominant element that mostly appears in the poet is metaphor. In the
Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary, it has been written that metaphor is use of words to show something different
from the literal meaning. (2008: 277). Besides, according to Holman,
metaphor is an implied analogy which imaginatively
identifies one object with another and ascribes to the first object one or more
of the qualities of the second or invests the first with emotional or
imaginative qualities associated with the second. (1985: 264).
The
example can be found in Tennyson’s poem “The Eagle”: He clasps the crag with crooked hands. As Perrine said, Tennyson
substitutes crooked hands with claws. (1992: 65) Another example is in the
“Hope” by Emily Dickinson, the first two lines she mentioned:
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
“Hope”
and “feathers” has no connection at all in literally meaning.
b.
Symbol
A
symbol can be described as way how the author represented their knowledge.
According to Holman (1985: 436), on the
most literal level, a symbol is something which stands for or suggests or means
something else.
What
makes metaphor and symbol different? It
differs from metaphor in that a metaphor evokes an object in order to
illustrate an idea or demonstrate a quality, whereas a symbol embodies the idea
or the quality. Holman (1985: 436). Besides, W. M. Urban said in Holman
(1985: 436); the metaphor becomes a
symbol when by means of it we embody an ideal content not otherwise
expressible.
Example
for symbol is reflected on the Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken”. The
poem tells us that the persona would like to choose both roads, but it cannot
be real because he is unable to do it. “The roads” here is not something real
like a real road in the real life, but the roads here symbolized as a choice.
It means that the persona had to choose an important choice in his life and the
road he takes will make all the differences though his life.
CHAPTER
IV
DISCUSSION
Generally, William Wordsworth’s
poet “A Complaint” tells us about the persona that has lost her/his lover. Here
we will discuss about figurative language aspects that is metaphor and symbol.
1. Metaphor
As
what have been stated by Perrine, a
metaphor means something other than what it is. (1992: 83) William
Wordsworth is the poet that loves to use metaphor. In the poem “A Complain”
itself, there is a several metaphor expressed.
A fountain at my fond heart’s door
The
second line in the first stanza of the poet use metaphor. It analogizes two contradiction
things directly; they are “heart” and “door”. As we know “heart” and “door” are
very different from all sections. “Heart” is part of our body, or it also
something connected with a feeling that we feel, but “door” is something that
was not part of our body and it has no feeling.
Why
“heart” has a “door”? It is more often expressed as a feeling. When we feel
something in our heart, we will feel a vibration in our hearts too. When we are
in love, sometimes we often say, "you knock the door of my heart cause I
am falling in love with you". The same thing also happens in “my fond
heart’s door”. The lines that succeed this also imply
that while the persona’s love was fair and natural.
Whose only business was to flow
This
third line of the first stanza has connection with the line before. The
metaphor here shows with the contradiction between the word “business” and
“fountain”. Business is something connected with work, but the word “fountain”
has no connection at all with work.
What happy moments did I count!
The
first line in the second stanza shows us the metaphor in the word “count” and
“happy moments”. Count refers to number or amount of something but as a normal
human, we know that our happy moments cannot be counted. “Count”
showed that the “happy moments” is rarely and may be a man in this poetry was
just felt happiness in a separate time in his life. Besides, they were indeed
happy and that he or she was grateful for those times.
A Well of love—it may be deep
In
this line, the contradiction objects are “well” with “love”. Love is only
something that can be felt by human being, but here love has a well. Something
that made the writer believe this line is more to be metaphor is because in the
line after the line mentioned above, Wordsworth said “I trust it is, –and never
dry.” Also love is compared to water in a well, and so complains or shows great
sorrow and grief after the love is gone.
2. Symbol
There is a change—and I am poor
This
poet begins with symbol. The word “poor” is not literally meaning as if it is
monetary sense but rather the persona uses the term to suggest the loss of
something that was once very important to him or her. It is also this line,
which sets the tone of helplessness and resignation that is quite resonant in
the poem. Moreover, in this first line, Wordsworth exclaims on the onset that
something has changed, but by immediately following it with “and I am poor”. It
also reflects that nothing more can be done about the situation because the persona
has lost, but it simply lost for good.
A fountain at my fond heart’s door
As
the words “my fond heart’s door” has been explained in metaphor, here will be
“a fountain” that contains symbol. “A fountain” could be mentioned too as one
of central images used throughout the poem and it appears to represent the
beloved. In literally meaning “a fountain” is a supply of water for public, but
then it comes to symbolize the “magnanimity and thoughtfulness” from Lord who
gives a grace for enough supply. Thus the fountain was not only an ornament but
was also a lifeline for the people as it gave them access to an extremely
important element, water.
Now, for that consecrated fount
Of murmuring, sparkling, living
love,
“Consecrate
fount” has a meaning of a love. In the second line, the words are using as three
adjectives to describe “consecrate fount”: murmuring, sparkling and living. This
creates multiplicity in meaning as it could mean that the persona has gotten
used to the presence of the “fountain”. The words murmuring, sparkling, and
living sound that it creates has become familiar to the persona. In the other
side, it could also mean that the persona is perfectly aware of the beloved’s
unhappiness.
A comfortless and hidden well
In
the following lines can be concluded that the persona is being leaving with “a
comfortless and hidden well.” Why the persona is being leaving? The persona is
being leaving because the beloved (the fountain) is something that easy to find
before then the persona explained that he was in the “a comfortless and hidden
well.” The highly accessible fountain as it implies that the water held within
in is no longer within the persona’s reach. What remain from the persona and
the beloved’s relationship is hidden somewhere deep and far way.
I trust it is, –and never dry
This
second line in the last stanza has a meaning that the persona begins to deal
with the situation of the beloved’s leaving. He/she believes that the fountain
of love is never dry; it means that the fountain of love that used to flow will
always flows although it may be gone far away or lost deep down in the well.
What matter? If the waters sleep
As
the waters represented a love, the word sleep is not a meaning as it means
sleep and then has a dream. The word sleep symbolized a leaving. The persona
realized that he/she cannot force his/her beloved to stay. As the analogy of
the waters, they will continue to flow to places further away. The love has
ended and it is ready to go, but it will still remain in the well as it called
memories.
In silence and obscurity
The
line symbolized that the persona finally understand that the beloved have to
go. The love when they were together will find a way to disappear “in silence
and obscurity.” The persona gave up to the beloved in case that the beloved had
gone without saying a word or the beloved ended up the relationship in
obscurity.
–Such change, and at the very door
Of my fond heart, hath made me poor
The
last two lines reinforce the persona’s helplessness and resignation to his/her
separation with the beloved. He/she will back to the where they are.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION
2.1.
Conclusion
William
Wordsworth’s “A Complaint” has three elements which is metaphor,
personification, and symbol. The metaphor consists of 4 lines; while the symbol
consists of
After all “A
complaint” is a poem that tells us about the experience of the persona about
her/his former love that left her/him. The first stanza tells us about the
persona’s feeling about her beloved. William Wordsworth has made it clear with
symbol in the very first line. The second stanza tells us that the persona
started to realize that his/her beloved is ready to leave expressed by the
symbol in the second and third line.
In the last stanza,
the persona finally gave up to the beloved though with a heavy heart because
the beloved is leaving without any explanation. The persona realized that what
still remains in their relationships is only memories.
This poem gives
us a lesson that when you fight alone, when there is no more left in a
relationship, you should let go even though it makes your heart breaks. At the
end, William Wordsworth has delivered a poem within metaphors and symbols beautifully.
2.2.
Suggestions
From the
conclusion above, the writer have some suggestions for readers who want to
translate literary works in the form of a poem:
1. To
collect a lot of sources of reading literature, especially poetry
2.
To increase the vocabulary, because the
translation of poetry need a literary translation not only literal translation;
3.
To enjoy every second you read the poem,
because without love you cannot feel and you cannot reach the author’s meaning.
CHAPTER VI
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abrams., Ford., Daiches. 1890. The Norton Anthology of English Literature
Volume 2. England: W. W. Norton and Company.
Brooks, C, & Warren, R. P. 1976. Understanding Poetry. New York: Holt, Rinehart
and Winston.
Echols,
John M., Hassan Shadili. 2000. Kamus
Inggris Indonesia. Jakarta: Gramedia.
Holman,
C. Hugh. 1985. A Handbook to Literature.
Indianapolis: ITT Bobbs-Merrill Educational Publishing Company, Inc.
Oxford. 2008. Oxford
Learner’s Pocket Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Perrine,
Laurence., Thomas R. Arp. 1992. Sound and
Sense: An Introduction to Poetry. United States of America: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College
Publishers.
--. Poems,
In Two Volumes. Vol.2. By William Wordsworth. An Electronic Classics Series
Publication. http://www2.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/wordsworth/poems-2vol-2.pdf. Accessed in Saturday, December
27, 2014.
This paper is written by Ikhtiarina Putri Shalehah
