London 1802 Tone

The poem “London, 1802” written by William Wordsworth has a mournful tone. The poem in constructed with an octave and a sestet throughout which Wordsworth expresses the death of John Milton, and how England still needs him. In the first few lines he says, “Milton! Thou shouldst be living at this hour: / England hath need of thee” (Wordsworth 1-2). The way in which Wordsworth calls out Milton’s name with emphasis shows how strongly Wordsworth grieves for John Milton. He claims England has lost many things in addition to Milton’s life. Wordsworth spent a lot of time in France due to the war that erupted from the French Revolution. It was only until 1802 when the fighting ceased enough so that he could travel back to London. Obviously, William Wordsworth was not pleased

This mood sprouts from the mournful tone in the sestet of the poem when Wordsworth recollects his memories of Milton. In these lines, Wordsworth seems to speak to Milton. For instance, Wordsworth says, “Thy soul was like a Star, and dwelt apart; / Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea” (Wordsworth 9-10). Wordsworth continues to describe the admirable qualities of Milton and his writing until the last line of the poem. Because of the mournful tone Wordsworth delivers in the octave which the poem began with, it changes the mood of the sestet. The way in which Wordsworth describes Milton in the past tense seems to be emphasized. This, in turn, constructs the yearning of Milton’s presence and life. Moreover, William Wordsworth had taken a part of the French Revolution, and in doing so, he must have witnessed the deaths of many men, and grieved over many other losses of the people of France. John Milton was someone he admired before the French Revolution occurred. Due to this, William Wordsworth expresses his yearning in his poem “London, 1802” for the life that he had before he witnessed so many losses, along with the life of John