A Character William Wordsworth

Unit - 1 

A Character 

William Wordsworth

‘A Character’ by William Wordsworth speaks about the moral character of a segment of mankind in relation to the feelings he has for the intended listener. Humanity has a vast spectrum of emotion and thought. Our strength can provide peace and calm when bad things inevitably overwhelm us. Yet the poet pays too much attention to them. Man has freedom but sometimes acts as though unaware of this fact. Many call themselves virtuous when no one is truly worthy of a title suggesting perfection. We can still fall in love with each other, despite how flawed and contradictory we are. The poet is happy to be a Human.

Summary of the poem "A character" by William Wordsworth

‘A Character’ by William Wordsworth speaks about the moral character of mankind.Humanity has a vast spectrum of emotion and thought The poet is marvelling at how the nature whom the poet is comparing to a painter is able to put so many emotions (emotions are compared to contrasts in a painting) in such a small human face which is compared to a canvas. It is talking about how amazing it is that humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions on one face.  It then goes on to give examples, such as happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.It again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength, however it says these are both "redundant (needless)  and vain"useless. This refers to the fact that as humans we tend to repeat our strengths and weaknesses. the next line   refers to our temper, or composure which is "soft to disease", which means that it is easily punctured  by suffering and pain . Our strength can provide peace and calmness It is our strengths or our weaknesses that can either stop or let in pain. They last line is about understanding why this happens. Philosophers are at ease when they are able to rationalize or make sense of the reason something is happening. The human character's mind is at peace from the  understanding, that it is our own weaknesses that have caused the pain to get to us. The next line says we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. Then  we begin to see positive qualities of the human character, like pride, joy, even calmness and spirit. Though in the last line there is still is a contradiction. The human character is spirited, which means enthusiastic, and energetic,  and still it is is blunt and shy. This  makes something that should be good, seem like it's not.The next lines of the poem is talking about freedom and how the human character is diffident (meaning is not confident or not aware) that it is there. Then the poem talks about how many like to call themselves virtuous  but in the next line it says "yet heaven know what to be worthy the name" referring to the fact that no one can really call themselves virtuous because nobody is perfect as everyone has their flaws.In the next line it says that the picture from nature may seem to get worse or go downhill but still "the man would at once run away with your heart" which means  even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and contradictory we are,  we still have the ability to fall in love. In the last two lines the speaker says that despite all this,he is happy to be a human. 

The unknown citizen-W.H.Auden

Telephone conversation-Wole Soyinka

Stanza wise analysis  of the poem A character by William Wordsworth

The poem is called "A Character", and the poem is about humans moral character.

"I marvel at how Nature could ever find space

For so many strange contrasts in one human face:

There's thought and no thought, and there's paleness and bloom

And bustle and sluggishness, pleasure and gloom."

This first stanza explains the vast spectrum of emotion and thought humanity as. The poet is marvelling how amazing it is that humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions on one face.  In the next lines the contradictory emotions are explained, such as , happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.

"There's weakness, and strength both redundant and vain;

Such strength as, if ever affliction and pain

Could pierce through a temper that is soft to disease,"

Would be rational peace--a philosopher's ease."

The second stanza  again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength, however it says these are both "redundant(needless)  and vain"(useless). This refers to the fact that as humans we tend to repeat our strengths and weaknesses, but our temper, or composure is such that it is "soft to disease", which means that it is easily punctured by suffering and pain . Our strength can provide peace and calmness. It is our strengths or our weaknesses that can either stop or let in pain. The last line is about understanding why this happens. Philosophers are at ease when they are able to rationalize or make sense of the reason of something happening. In the same way the human character's mind is at peace from understanding that it is our own weaknesses that have caused the pain to get to us.

"There's indifference, alike when he fails or succeeds,

And attention full ten times as much as there needs;

Pride where there's no envy, there's so much of joy;

And mildness, and spirit both forward and coy."

In this stanza the poem again gets back into contradictions of the human character. It says we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. Then  we begin to see positive qualities of the human character, like pride, joy, even calmness and spirit. Though in the last line there is still is a contradiction. The human character is spirited, which means enthusiastic, and energetic, is blunt and shy. This is makes something that should be good seem like it's not.

There's freedom, and sometimes a diffident stare

Of shame scarcely seeming to know that she's there,

There's virtue, the title it surely may claim,

Yet wants heaven knows what to be worthy the name.

Here it begins talking about freedom and how the human character is diffident (meaning is not confident or not aware) that it is there. Then it talks about how many like to call themselves virtuous meaning perfection, but in the next line it says "yet heaven know what to be worthy the name" referring to the fact that no one can really call themselves virtuous because nobody is perfect. As discussed throughout the poem, everyone has their flaws.

This picture from nature may seem to depart,

Yet the Man would at once run away with your heart;

And I for five centuries right gladly would be

Such an odd such a kind happy creature as he.

This picture from nature may seem to get worse or go downhill but still the man would at once run away with your heart  It talks about how even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and how much ever  contradictory we are, we still have the ability to fall in love. In the last two lines the speaker says that despite all this, he is still happy to be a human. 

I Answer the following in two or three sentences each: 

1. What are the strange contrasts in one human face?

The many strange contrasts in one human face are, there's thought and no thought, and there's paleness and bloom and bustle and sluggishness, and pleasure and gloom.There's weakness, and strength. There's indifference alike, when one fails or succeeds, and also there are good qualities such as  pride without any envy, and joy and mildness, and  a spirit both forward and coy.There's freedom, but humans sometimes  are not aware that it is there, and  many also calls themselves virtuous.

2. Due to the strength a person has he would always be as if ever affliction and pain could pierce through a temper that's soft to disease, and would be at rational peace--a philosopher's ease.

3. When is the indifference always seen? 

The indifference is always seen when there is success as well as failure for humans.The humans act as if they don't care about whether they fail or succeed.

II Answer the following in a paragraph each: 

1. How does the poem speak on the moral character of mankind? 

‘A Character’ by William Wordsworth speaks about the moral character of mankind. Humanity has a vast spectrum of emotion and thought .The poet is marvelling at how the nature whom the poet is comparing to a painter is able to put so many contrasts (emotions are compared to contrasts in a painting) in such a small human face which is compared to a canvas. Poet is talking about how amazing it is that humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions such as happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.It again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength, and the indifference one shows even when one fails or succeeds.It says we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. Then the poem is discussing the positive qualities of the human character, like pride, joy,  calmness and spirit. Then the poem is  talking about freedom and how the human character is diffident or not confident or not aware that it is there. The next lines speak  about how many like to call themselves virtuous  and the speaker wonders only heaven knows whether they are worthy of being called so.Even though this picture from nature may seem to get worse or go downhill but still the man would conquer your heart. The poem talks about how even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and how much ever  contradictory we are, we still have the ability to fall in love. In the last two lines the speaker says that despite all this, he is still happy to be a human. 

2. When does the human face express the depth of human expression and complications? 

The human face express the depth of human expression and complications . Poet is talking about how amazing it is that humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions such as happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.It again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength,  and a  temper, or composure that it is "soft to disease", which means that it is easily punctured by suffering and pain . Our strength can provide peace and calmness. It is our strengths or our weaknesses that can either stop or let in pain. and the indifference one shows even when one fails or succeeds.

 The human expressions are so complicated that we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. Yet the humans have so many  positive qualities like  pride without any envy , joy,  calmness and spirit. Then when it comes to  freedom , humans have freedom but the human character behaves as if it is not confident enough about freedom. Many call themselves virtuous but the actual fact is that only god knows how many are worthy of that name because as humans nobody is perfect and have their own flaws.

3. “Nothing could change the Philosopher’s ease’”. Explain this with reference to the second stanza of the poem. 

They last line is about understanding the reason for why our temper is "soft to disease" or  is punctured by suffering. Philosophers are at ease when they are able to rationalize or make sense of the reason, something is happening. The human character's mind is at peace from understanding that it is our own weaknesses that have caused the pain to get to us and has caused the suffering.

4. What does the poet mean when he says “at once run away with your heart.”? 

The poet, when he says “at once run away with your heart" ,means that even though we humans have so many contradictory emotions and flaws we still have the ability to  fall in love .speaker finally reveals the important details concerning the dynamic between the man, the listener and himself. The listener ends up being someone he is infatuated with. He uses this stanza to tell the person that this man would “at once run away with your heart.” 

By using the word "Man" the speaker is either referring to a general idea of other men. He sees them as being capable of “running away with” the speaker’s “heart.” The speaker does not want this to happen, for his own good and that of the listener. So he is warning the listener in an indirect way. Only because of this ability of the humans to fall in love, the poet loves to be a human even though there are many flaws for the human character.The poet talks about how even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and how much ever  contradictory we are, and even though our character may get even worse, we still have the ability to fall in love. And because of this incredible quality of falling in love , the poet says , he is still happy to be a human. 

III. Answer the following in a page or two: 

1. The poem “A Character” brings out the dynamics of contrasting personality between man, listener and himself. Explain. 

The poem “A Character” brings out the dynamics of contrasting personality between man, listener and himself.the speaker is wondering how humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions on one face.  He then goes on to give examples, such as happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.It again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength, however it says these are both "redundant (needless)  and vain"useless. This refers to the fact that as humans we tend to repeat our strengths and weaknesses. 

The next line  refers to our temper, or composure which is "soft to disease", which means that it is easily punctured  by suffering and pain . Our strength can provide peace and calmness It is our strengths or our weaknesses that can either stop or let in pain. They last line is about understanding why this happens. Philosophers are at ease when they are able to rationalize or make sense of the reason something is happening. The human character's mind is at peace from the  understanding, that it is our own weaknesses that have caused the pain to get to us. 

The next line says we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. Then  we begin to see positive qualities of the human character, like pride, joy, even calmness and spirit. Though in the last line there is still is a contradiction. The human character is spirited, which means enthusiastic, and energetic,  and still it is is blunt and shy. This  makes something that should be good, seem like it's not.

The next lines of the poem is talking about freedom and how the human character is diffident (meaning is not confident or not aware) that it is there. Then the poem talks about how many like to call themselves virtuous  but in the next line it says "yet heaven know what to be worthy the name" referring to the fact that no one can really call themselves virtuous because nobody is perfect as everyone has their flaws.

Speaker finally reveals relevant details concerning the dynamic between the man, the listener and himself. The listener ends up being someone he is infatuated with. He uses this stanza to tell the person that this man would “at once run away with your heart.” 

By using the word "Man" the speaker is either referring to a general idea of other men. He sees them as being capable of “running away with” the speaker’s “heart.” The speaker does not want this to happen, for his own good and that of the listener. So he is warning the listener in an indirect way. The poet talks about how even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and how much ever  contradictory we are, and even though our character may get even worse, we still have the ability to fall in love. 

In an effort to set himself apart from the men he is referring to, the speaker states that he would be “a kind happy creature” if he was allowed to spend “five centuries” with the listener. He would not become bored after a period of time or give into another aspect of his contrasting personality. 

2. How does the poem suggest that “Humanity has a vast spectrum of emotions and thoughts.”?

‘A Character’ by William Wordsworth speaks about the moral character of mankind.Humanity has a vast spectrum of emotion and thought The poet is marvelling at how the nature whom the poet is comparing to a painter is able to put so many emotions (emotions are compared to contrasts in a painting) in such a small human face which is compared to a canvas. It is talking about how amazing it is that humans can show such a vast variety of contradicting emotions on one face.  It then goes on to give examples, such as happy and sad, an excited face and a relaxed one, or even one that is so deep in thought and one that is blank.It again continues with the contradictions like weakness and strength, however it says these are both "redundant (needless)  and vain"useless. This refers to the fact that as humans we tend to repeat our strengths and weaknesses. the next line   refers to our temper, or composure which is "soft to disease", which means that it is easily punctured  by suffering and pain . Our strength can provide peace and calmness It is our strengths or our weaknesses that can either stop or let in pain. They last line is about understanding why this happens. Philosophers are at ease when they are able to rationalize or make sense of the reason something is happening. The human  mind is at peace from the  understanding, that it is our own weaknesses that have caused the pain to get to us. The next line says we act like we don't care whether we fail or succeed, yet we pay so much attention to whether we do or not. 

Next the poet is referring to  positive qualities of the human character, like pride, joy, even calmness and spirit. Though in the last line there is still a contradiction. The human character is spirited, which means enthusiastic, and energetic,  and still it is is blunt and shy. This  makes something that should be good, seems like it's not.

The next lines of the poem is talking about freedom and how the human character is diffident (meaning is not confident or not aware) that it is there. Then the poem talks about how many like to call themselves virtuous  but in the next line it says "yet heaven know what to be worthy the name" referring to the fact that no one can really call themselves virtuous because nobody is perfect as everyone has their flaws.

In the next line it says that the picture from nature may seem to get worse or go downhill but still "the man would at once run away with your heart" which means  even though humankind is so incredibly flawed  and contradictory we are,  we still have the ability to fall in love. In an effort to set himself apart from the men he is referring to, the speaker states that he would be “a kind happy creature” if he was allowed to spend “five centuries” with the listener. 

The unknown citizen-W.H.Auden

Telephone conversation-Wole Soyinka

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