William Wordsworth: The Reverie of Poor Susan

Song Meaning

The poem opens with a stark urban scene: "At the corner of Wood Street, when daylight appears." A thrush's song, a sound of nature, pierces the "silence of morning." This natural intrusion immediately disrupts the mundane reality for Poor Susan, who has passed this spot for years. The contrast between the city's grit and the bird's pure melody sets up an immediate emotional tension. Susan's reaction to the song is a profound, almost hallucinatory escape. The lyrics describe her seeing "A mountain ascending, a vision of trees;" and a river flowing through the city. These are not mere memories but vivid, enchanting visions that transport her far from her current surroundings. The natural world she experiences in her reverie is idyllic, featuring "Green pastures" and a "single small cottage," a place of deep affection and belonging. The poem's power lies in its depiction of this fleeting, internal escape. The narrator notes, "She looks, and her heart is in heaven." However, this blissful state is fragile. The final stanza brutally strips away the illusion: "but they fade / The mist and the river, the hill and the shade." The natural elements that offered solace are revealed as ephemeral, leaving Susan once again in her stark reality. This sharp juxtaposition between the imagined natural paradise and the unyielding urban environment is what makes the poem so poignant. The lyrics suggest that for Susan, the song of the thrush is a temporary balm, a brief moment of grace that highlights the harshness of her everyday existence. The final lines, "And the colours have all passed away from her eyes!" underscore the profound loss of that momentary transcendence.