With how sad steps, O Moon thou climb'st the sky

William Wordsworth's With how sad steps, O Moon thou climb'st the sky

William Wordsworth’s sonnet "With how sad steps, O Moon thou climb’st the sky" is a meditation on melancholy, human solitude, and the silent majesty of nature. Though Wordsworth is best known for his lyrical ballads and his celebration of nature’s restorative power, this poem reveals a more contemplative, even sorrowful engagement with the natural world. The poem reimagines the moon not as a distant celestial body but as a companion in human sorrow, a motif that resonates with Romanticism’s fascination with the sublime and the emotional resonance of the cosmos.

This essay will explore the poem’s thematic preoccupations, its literary and historical context, and the ways in which Wordsworth employs personification, allusion, and tonal shifts to evoke a sense of longing and existential reflection. Additionally, we will consider how the poem engages with earlier poetic traditions, particularly the Petrarchan sonnet form and the influence of Renaissance poets like Sir Philip Sidney, whose own sonnet "With how sad steps, O Moon, thou climb’st the skies" (from Astrophil and Stella) Wordsworth directly echoes.

Historical and Literary Context

Wordsworth’s poem was written in the early 19th century, a period marked by the Romantic movement’s rejection of Enlightenment rationalism in favor of emotion, individualism, and a deep reverence for nature. The Romantics often turned to the natural world as a mirror for human feeling, and Wordsworth himself famously described poetry as "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" recollected in tranquility.

The poem’s opening line—"With how sad steps, O Moon thou climb’st the sky"—is an explicit allusion to Sidney’s 16th-century sonnet, in which the speaker laments unrequited love while observing the moon’s mournful ascent. Wordsworth’s borrowing of this line signals his participation in a long poetic tradition that associates the moon with melancholy and human solitude. However, while Sidney’s poem is firmly rooted in the conventions of courtly love, Wordsworth’s meditation is more expansive, blending classical mythology with Romantic introspection.

Themes and Emotional Resonance

At its core, the poem grapples with the theme of loneliness—both human and celestial. The moon, personified as a sorrowful figure, moves silently with a "wan… face," evoking the image of a weary traveler or a grieving spirit. The speaker’s direct address to the moon ("O Moon") establishes an intimate, almost conversational tone, reinforcing the Romantic idea that nature is not merely an object of observation but a sentient presence capable of shared emotion.

Wordsworth deepens this connection by invoking mythological figures—first comparing the moon to a "Wood-nymph" racing among clouds, then referencing "Unhappy Nuns" whose sighs mirror the moon’s silent sorrow. These allusions serve a dual purpose: they elevate the moon’s ascent to a mythic scale while also grounding its sadness in human-like suffering. The image of nuns stifling their sighs suggests repressed grief, a theme Wordsworth revisits in other works (such as "The Solitary Reaper"), where solitary figures embody quiet, unspoken sorrow.

The poem’s emotional weight intensifies in the sestet, where the speaker imagines a celestial gathering. He laments his lack of "the power of Merlin"—a reference to Arthurian legend—to summon the stars as companions for the moon. This moment of yearning for supernatural intervention underscores human limitation; the speaker cannot alleviate the moon’s loneliness, just as he may be unable to soothe his own. The final lines shift to a more celebratory tone, praising the moon ("Cynthia," another classical name for the lunar goddess) as the "Queen both for beauty and for majesty." This resolution suggests a reconciliation between sorrow and admiration, acknowledging that melancholy and splendor often coexist in nature.

Literary Devices and Structure

Wordsworth’s use of the sonnet form is significant. While the poem does not rigidly adhere to the Petrarchan or Shakespearean structure, it employs the volta (turn) typical of sonnets, transitioning from lamentation to a more exalted vision of the moon’s grandeur. The enjambment in lines like "Had I / The power of Merlin, Goddess! this should be" creates a flowing, almost incantatory rhythm, reinforcing the speaker’s wistful longing.

Personification is the poem’s most striking device. The moon is not merely an object but a being with emotions—"sad steps," a "wan… face," and later, a regal presence worthy of veneration. This technique aligns with Romanticism’s tendency to animate nature, treating it as a living, responsive entity.

The allusion to Merlin and Cynthia also serves a symbolic function. Merlin, the archetypal magician, represents unattainable power—the human desire to command nature. Cynthia, as a lunar deity, embodies both celestial beauty and the passage of time, themes Wordsworth explores in other works like "Tintern Abbey."

Comparative Readings and Philosophical Underpinnings

Wordsworth’s poem invites comparison not only to Sidney’s sonnet but also to other Romantic meditations on the moon. Coleridge’s "Dejection: An Ode" similarly personifies nature as a mirror of human emotion, while Keats’ "Bright Star" fixates on the moon’s constancy as a contrast to human mortality. Wordsworth’s treatment is distinct in its blend of mythic grandeur and quiet intimacy.

Philosophically, the poem resonates with the Romantic sublime—the awe and terror inspired by nature’s vastness. The moon’s "majesty" evokes this duality: it is both beautiful and remote, a reminder of human smallness. Yet, unlike the icy indifference of the sublime in, say, Shelley’s "Mont Blanc," Wordsworth’s moon is a compassionate presence, a silent witness to human sorrow.

Conclusion

"With how sad steps, O Moon thou climb’st the sky" is a masterful synthesis of classical allusion, Romantic sensibility, and lyrical melancholy. By reworking Sidney’s line into a broader meditation on solitude and celestial beauty, Wordsworth bridges Renaissance and Romantic poetic traditions. The poem’s emotional depth lies in its ability to transform an ordinary nocturnal observation into a profound encounter with the sublime—one that acknowledges sorrow while ultimately affirming the moon’s enduring majesty.

In this way, Wordsworth’s sonnet exemplifies poetry’s unique power to connect the personal and the universal, the earthly and the celestial. It reminds us that even in solitude, we are not entirely alone; the moon, with its "sad steps," climbs beside us.