The Chambered Nautilus

The Chambered Nautilus

  • Submitted By: sheila
  • Date Submitted: 03/02/2009 6:23 PM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 1467
  • Page: 6
  • Views: 875

Romantic Poems- Why is this the perfect Romantic Poem? (Basic attributes of romanticism + language. Short paragraph on each stanza) The Chambered Nautilus Outline – by Holmes This poem is the perfect Romantic Poem because it takes subject from nature, and talks about many of the fine points of romanticism such as Individulatiy, lesson learned, and Man+Nature= Spiritual Enlightenment. It takes us through “The Romantic Journey” of one man. Oliver Wendell Holmes shows us all the ideals of Romantic Poems by his usage of language such as alliteration and the different connotations of the words he uses. The first quatrain, or stanza, Holmes talks about a metaphorical “ship of pearl” that is sailing through a sea, in talking about the ship, he is most likely referring to himself going through a journey in nature. To start off, he calls the bark “venturous”, which makes us think that this ship is bold, and wants to explore. He then places nature in a positive light when he says “ Sweet summer wind its purpled wings.” He goes on to call the gulfs “enchanted” then makes an allussion to the Sirens from the Odyssey. In the Odyssey the Sirens attempted to lure sailors to their deaths by singing enchanting songs, and the Sirens here stand for temptations that might take him away from his original journey. Whereas the poem started out happy, it starts to show a hint of melancholy when he uses words such as “bare” and “cold” to describe his surroundings. These words carry a negative connotation and helps get us ready for the second stanza. The second stanza shows the ships disaster when it says “Wrecked is the ship of pearl!” This stands for a man who was overcome by temptations and became destroyed in himself. Through this stanza, he shows us what could have been, but is no longer there when he says “where its dim dreaming life was wont to dwell.” At the same time he hints at individuality when he suggests that the “tenant shaped his growing shell.” He uses negative...