Western Wind

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1500

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Symbols & Motifs

Christ/Religion

While the speaker of the poem longs for their loved one and the security of their own bed, there is another source of solace the speaker calls out to in the poem. Before expressing their desire to be with their beloved, the speaker exclaims, “Christ!” (Line 3). According to author R.T. Smith writing in Shenandoah, “The holy intermediary is invoked, and though it is possible to read the ‘Christ!’ as an expletive, as late as the sixteenth century this outburst was being set to music and employed in the mass, not seen as blasphemous at all.” Smith goes on to describe how before this invocation, the poem is “elemental” and “secular,” while after it is “sexual” and “domestic” (Smith, R.T. “O Western Wind (Anonymous).” Shenandoah). This invocation serves as a turning point in the poem. Unable to cope with the unpredictability of nature, the speaker turns to cry out to the Christian religious figure before desiring their blissful domestic setting. The speaker seeks some sort of aid or guidance. They require assistance to attain that domestic bliss that they so much desire, and the Christian faith may be able to provide them with that.

Home

Home means different things for different people, yet, some of the same attributes can be applied to these varying conceptualizations. Home often means safety, security, rest, and acceptance. It is a solid place to fall when the world seems too much to bear. This is the place the speaker wishes to turn when the uncertainty of the world and of nature becomes overwhelming, and when they do not receive an immediate answer of assurance from their Christian faith. Home is where the speaker’s “love” (Line 3) is and where their own “bed” (Line 4) waits for them. “Western Wind” relates the human desire and tendency to return to what is familiar and safe, especially when surroundings feel unpredictable.

Wind

In “Western Wind,” the wind is as much a character in the poem as the speaker. As previously mentioned, the god of the West wind in Greek mythology is Zephyrus. In addition to being the god of the west wind, he is also the god of spring. His wife, Khloris, is the goddess of greenery and flowers. Zephyrus is often portrayed as handsome and youthful (“Zephyrus.” Theoi Greek Mythology). All of these various connotations associated with the West wind and Zephyrus play into the overall meaning of the poem and open it up to a variety of interpretations. The speaker’s desire for the West wind to blow in or to blow out the rain may suggest a desire for happier times, for spring, for youthfulness, or for the memories of happier times already past.