Dramatic Situation

Speaker: Wordsworth, the author
Speaking to: himself, average people, and/or those who believe blindly in the church
What are the Circumstances: he is realizing that his life in the city and his blind belief in the church may not be what he wants in life. He'd rather give it all up for a 'real' existence, closer to nature, living as he wants, believing what he believes. The author is going through a 'change' phase in his life, where he questions the authority of the church, and the meaning of life.
How does that affect your understanding: It helps us to understand the authors attitude towards life in general, and how he feels about 'following the masses'. He feels like people sometimes get sucked into believing something because either everyone else does, or because they are scared not to.

Tone

-Rhyme scheme
     ABBA
     CDDC
     DE
     DE
     DE
-Allusion to Greek Mythology�(Proteus annd Triton�sea gods)
-almost hypnotic rhythm to it
-reference to paganism, showing that he is not in agreement with the Christian/catholic faith of the time
-sonnet, written in the forementioned rhhyme scheme
-features poetic device of diction�the use of carefully chosen words to suit the tone/feel of the poem.

Theme

      The theme of this poem (as taken from the text) is OUR LIVING EARTH. However, I think there is another underlying theme, that being SELF DISCOVERY. The poet is obviously trying to find a religion that he really believes in, and a place in the world that makes sense to him. The poem feels like his life was in a bit of an uproar at the time, a feeling of "Everything I know is WRONG!" He is searching for answers. Are cities and factories the way humans were supposed to live? Is religion something you should blindly believe in? Is it OK to question things? Wordsworth eventually makes peace with himself, and decides that although he may believe different things and have his own ideas, it is important to stay true to nature, and most importantly, himself.