It Is a Beauteous Evening
It Is a Beauteous Evening - context Summary
Composed in 1802 for Caroline
Written in 1802 and published in 1807, Wordsworth’s sonnet situates a tranquil seaside evening as a sacred moment. Addressing his young daughter Caroline, the speaker contrasts adult solemnity with the child’s unaffected innocence, arguing that her nature is inherently divine and constantly embraced by God. The poem frames childhood as a spiritual state rather than a stage to be instructed, while the natural scene underscores a quiet, pervasive divine presence.
Read Complete AnalysesIt is a beauteous evening, calm and free, The holy time is quiet as a nun Breathless with adoration; the broad sun Is sinking down in its tranquility; The gentleness of heaven broods o'er the sea: Listen! the mighty Being is awake, And doth with his eternal motion make A sound like thunder - everlastingly. Dear Child! dear Girl! that walkest with me here, If thou appear untouched by solemn thought, Thy nature is not therefore less divine: Thou liest in Abraham's bosom all the year, And worship'st at the Temple's inner shrine, God being with thee when we know it not.
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