BrianaB

= "Spring and All" =



By the road to the contagious hospital under the surge of the blue mottled clouds driven from the northeast—a cold wind. Beyond, the waste of broad, muddy fields brown with dried weeds, standing and fallen

patches of standing water the scattering of tall trees

All along the road the reddish purplish, forked, upstanding, twiggy stuff of bushes and small trees with dead, brown leaves under them leafless vines—

Lifeless in appearance, sluggish dazed spring approaches—

They enter the new world naked, cold, uncertain of all save that they enter. All about them the cold, familiar wind—

Now the grass, tomorrow the stiff curl of wildcarrot leaf

One by one objects are defined— It quickens: clarity, outline of leaf

But now the stark dignity of entrance—Still, the profound change has come upon them: rooted they grip down and begin to awaken

Title:** The title suggests a theme that focuses on the spring season. Not only does the title imply it will cover the actual spring season, it will also cover all the things that go along with and are associated with spring such as blossoming flowers, growing vegetationl, and cool weather.
 * TPCAST
 * Paraphrase:** The speaker in Williams' poem is driving down a road that is approaching a hospital. He stops to admire the landscapes but focuses on the dreary images associated with the end of winter. He then suddenly transitions halfway through the poem to portray the images of the arrival of spring and the awakening of the vegetation.
 * Connotation:** Imagery- Williams vividly describes the surroundings in contrasting ways "waste of broad, muddy fields... the stiff curl of wildcarrot leaf." These short and precise images create clear and lasting pictures for the reader. Personification- The speaker calls the hospital "contagious" to imply that the diseases and sadness associated with hospitals is contagious not actually the hospital. The speaker also uses personification to describe spring giving it human like characteristics of a "sluggish and dazed" person. Symbol- Williams mentions the hospital at the beginning of the poem to make the reader focus on the human world instead of the largely nature world he describes throughout the poem. He does this to connect the theme of the rebirth of man with the transformation of spring.
 * Attitude:** The speaker begins with a sense of sadness towards the surrounding landscape. The depressing sights seem to have and effect on his mood as the sights bring his mood down. However, as the poem progresses the speaker seems to awaken from this depressed mood, similair to spring around him. He shows the flowers blossoming from their winter sleep and it gives a sense of hope for a brighter future for the vegetation and himself.
 * Shifts:** There is only one shift within the poem that takes place after the fourth stanza. Before that the speaker has a depressed tone and focuses on the gray and dying wildlife that surrounds him. Within the fourth stanza the poem is in that same voice, but in the last word the speaker presents a beam of hope claiming "spring approaches." After this stanza the poem shifts to the upbeat promises of an approaching spring season.
 * Title:** The title still represenst spring and the images that are associated with spring. However, spring is know seen as mostly a metaphor to the rebirth of man. When we look at the title, we know focus on the transition of spring and the blossoming of things instead of the other aspects of spring.