O'er the Wide Earth, on Mountain and on Plain
O'er the Wide Earth, on Mountain and on Plain - meaning Summary
Divine Presence Amid Struggle
The poem asserts a pervasive, pan-like divinity present in human affections and souls across mountain and plain. Wordsworth asks whether this divine bounty can be wasted amid fear and social disorder, then rejects despair. He insists that the triumph of good requires high sacrifice and relentless labour, even unto death. Human longing and the eye’s converse with immortality justify struggle and promise moral hope despite present suffering.
Read Complete AnalysesO'ER the wide earth, on mountain and on plain, Dwells in the affections and the soul of man A Godhead, like the universal PAN; But more exalted, with a brighter train: And shall his bounty be dispensed in vain, Showered equally on city and on field, And neither hope nor steadfast promise yield In these usurping times of fear and pain? Such doom awaits us. Nay, forbid it Heaven! We know the arduous strife, the eternal laws To which the triumph of all good is given, High sacrifice, and labour without pause, Even to the death:--else wherefore should the eye Of man converse with immortality?
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