Description of Spring
In the poem, Howard effectively presents the Renaissance theme of unrequited love through
the illustration of the passing of the seasons, contrasting nature’s everchanging movement
and rebirth to his stagnant and one-sided feelings towards his lover.
To begin with, the poem is written in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet and includes vivid
natural imagery enhanced through alliteration and rhyme, which add musicality to the
poem. ‘the hart hath hung his old head’ contains aspirate aural imagery which convey a
sense of breathlessness and mirror the poet’s simultaneous admiration and yearning for
change. Moreover, alliterative adjectives such as ‘swift swallow’ and ‘busy bee’ could contain
a hint of jealousy from the poet, who may resent nature’s effortless and mechanical
transitioning between seasons, whereas his love remains unchanging and unreciprocated.
This can be also seen in in the buck shedding his ‘winter coat’, the animal’s ease in
welcoming summer contrasts the resistance faced by the poet from his lover. The sibilance in
‘soot season’ may also contain irony in that the poet is upset with the clichéd and overly
saccharine feelings that accompany the coming of spring, and is equally frustrated and hurt
as he finds himself alone.
Additionally, the almost excessive listing of animals (‘nightingale’, ‘turtle’, hart’, ‘buck’,
‘fishes’, ‘adder’, ‘swallow’, ‘bee’) is enclosed between ‘summer’ and ‘winter’, adding a
cyclical element to the poem, and demonstrate themes of continuous reawakening and
rebirth that will always follow the colder months. This is enhanced in the sibilance in the line
‘every spray now springs’ which is very positive in comparison to the willowing sounds in
‘winter is worn’, further creating contrast between the positivity the poet observes around
him and his hopeless emotional state. Howard could therefore be attempting to mask his
true feelings by caging them within a rigid rhyme scheme and implicitly conveying them
through the theme of nature, using caesuras to perhaps cut himself off before he reveals his
true desperation for love. Punctuation on every line before the final rhyming couplet
distances readers from the poet’s true feelings, something which could be interpreted as
Howard’s attempt to guard his emotions to prevent further heartbreak. This is also
reiterated in that the intent of the poem is not revealed until the final line, possibly adding a
contemplative element to the poem as Howard ponders how to best express his emotions to
his lover, choosing nature as his vessel.
The sonnet is also written in iambic pentameter, and the repetition of rhyming couplets
could both reflect his joyous and musical infatuation with his lover, but could also contain a
more negative idea of oppression and relentlessness, as if the poet is trying to force love into
existence. The speaker is thus painted as lovesick and almost obsessive, something which
largely contradicts the overall pleasant and hopeful atmosphere within the poem and sheds
light on the negative aspects of love and intense feeling, making the poet appear intrinsically
crazed and desperate. His love is also shown in his association of his lover with Spring itself,
through which he glorifies her and demonstrates the strength of his emotions.
Overall, Howard implicitly, yet effectively illustrates his love through the use of nature and
the coming of Spring, conveying his desperation for his love to be returned and his
frustration at how unmoving her feelings are in comparison to the seasons around him.
In the poem, Howard effectively presents the Renaissance theme of unrequited love through
the illustration of the passing of the seasons, contrasting nature’s everchanging movement
and rebirth to his stagnant and one-sided feelings towards his lover.
To begin with, the poem is written in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet and includes vivid
natural imagery enhanced through alliteration and rhyme, which add musicality to the
poem. ‘the hart hath hung his old head’ contains aspirate aural imagery which convey a
sense of breathlessness and mirror the poet’s simultaneous admiration and yearning for
change. Moreover, alliterative adjectives such as ‘swift swallow’ and ‘busy bee’ could contain
a hint of jealousy from the poet, who may resent nature’s effortless and mechanical
transitioning between seasons, whereas his love remains unchanging and unreciprocated.
This can be also seen in in the buck shedding his ‘winter coat’, the animal’s ease in
welcoming summer contrasts the resistance faced by the poet from his lover. The sibilance in
‘soot season’ may also contain irony in that the poet is upset with the clichéd and overly
saccharine feelings that accompany the coming of spring, and is equally frustrated and hurt
as he finds himself alone.
Additionally, the almost excessive listing of animals (‘nightingale’, ‘turtle’, hart’, ‘buck’,
‘fishes’, ‘adder’, ‘swallow’, ‘bee’) is enclosed between ‘summer’ and ‘winter’, adding a
cyclical element to the poem, and demonstrate themes of continuous reawakening and
rebirth that will always follow the colder months. This is enhanced in the sibilance in the line
‘every spray now springs’ which is very positive in comparison to the willowing sounds in
‘winter is worn’, further creating contrast between the positivity the poet observes around
him and his hopeless emotional state. Howard could therefore be attempting to mask his
true feelings by caging them within a rigid rhyme scheme and implicitly conveying them
through the theme of nature, using caesuras to perhaps cut himself off before he reveals his
true desperation for love. Punctuation on every line before the final rhyming couplet
distances readers from the poet’s true feelings, something which could be interpreted as
Howard’s attempt to guard his emotions to prevent further heartbreak. This is also
reiterated in that the intent of the poem is not revealed until the final line, possibly adding a
contemplative element to the poem as Howard ponders how to best express his emotions to
his lover, choosing nature as his vessel.
The sonnet is also written in iambic pentameter, and the repetition of rhyming couplets
could both reflect his joyous and musical infatuation with his lover, but could also contain a
more negative idea of oppression and relentlessness, as if the poet is trying to force love into
existence. The speaker is thus painted as lovesick and almost obsessive, something which
largely contradicts the overall pleasant and hopeful atmosphere within the poem and sheds
light on the negative aspects of love and intense feeling, making the poet appear intrinsically
crazed and desperate. His love is also shown in his association of his lover with Spring itself,
through which he glorifies her and demonstrates the strength of his emotions.
Overall, Howard implicitly, yet effectively illustrates his love through the use of nature and
the coming of Spring, conveying his desperation for his love to be returned and his
frustration at how unmoving her feelings are in comparison to the seasons around him.
