She Dwelt Among The Untrodden Ways

She dwelt among the untrodden ways 

Beside the springs of Dove, 

A Maid whom there were none to praise 

And very few to love: 

A violet by a mossy stone 

Half hidden from the eye! 

—Fair as a star, when only one 

Is shining in the sky. 

She lived unknown, and few could know 

When Lucy ceased to be; 

But she is in her grave, and, oh, 

The difference to me! 

The aim of this argumentative assay is to underline the fact that people take things for granted and realise the value of what they have only when they lose it.

In order to develop this topic, I will consider the poem: “She Dwelt Amongst the Untrodden” and analyse both its title and content.

From the beginning, the intelligent reader can easily note that the title coincides with the first line and therefore the poem belongs to a collection. From the layout, it can be said that it is a traditional poem.

The title “She Dwelt Amongst the Untrodden” raises a lot of curiosity in the mind of the reader. For example, one of the first questions might be: “Who is she?”, followed by “Why is she living in secluded ways?”. Moreover, the intelligent reader might wonder how come the author knows about the main character. There might be different alternatives, he or she has seen or heard the woman.

After analysing the title, the analysis will consider the poem itself. Firstly, the text is organized into three quatrains. The first line introduces the main character, underlining  her qualities; she is a humble person and not easy to spot amongst others.

Reading the poem, the reader can experience several feelings, amongst them it is worth mentioning nostalgia and sadness because there is a slow rhythm.

In the first quatrain, the reader can identify the alternative rhyme between ways-praise and Dove-love. In the second quatrain there is an interesting metaphor to consider: the lady is compared to a violet, because this type of flower is unique and rare. Moreover, she is described as a fair star, when only one is shining in the sky: this underlines her uniqueness. Finally, in the third quatrain the author reports the name of the lady: Lucy. This name has an important meaning, it derives from the Latin “Lux”, light.

In conclusion, the reader can understand that the intent of the author is to report the importance of the people around us and that sometimes we do not appreciate.