Wind by Ted Hughes
Stanza 1 The speaker describes a storm that buffets the house all night. The wind
makes it seem as if the house is a ship far out at sea, being shaken by crashing
waves. The storm is intense and loud. The wind sounds like a stampede.
Stanza 2 The storm rages on. At dawn the light from the orange sky reveals what
seems to be a changed landscape. The black and green of the hills are cut through
with beams of light coming through the clouds. The light flashes sharply, like light
reflected off a wielded sword or shining through a flexing lens.
Stanza 3 At noon the speaker goes along the side of the house to the coal house. At
one point on this journey he looks up and feels the force of the wind on his eyeballs.
He describes the hills as a tent being pounded by a storm, in danger of being blown
away.
Stanza 4 The speaker continues to describe what he sees outdoors. He sees the
fields "quivering" and describes the horizon as being like a grimacing mouth. It
seems as if the whole world could be blown away and disappear. The birds cannot fly
in this wind—a magpie is "flung," and a gull is "bent like an iron bar."
Stanza 5 The speaker continues his descriptions as he arrives back at the house and
the wind continues to blow. He compares the house to a wine glass or goblet that is
ringing with a high, sustained tone and might shatter at any moment. The speaker
and his companion sit in chairs in front of the fire, overwhelmed by the wind.
Stanza 6 The two watch the fire as the house shudders with the force of the wind
and the window shakes. They can do nothing but sit and endure it. The wind
continues its onslaught.
STRUCTURE OF THE POEM
Ted Hughes' "Wind" is structured as a six-stanza poem, with each stanza containing
four lines (quatrains). While not strictly adhering to a regular rhyme scheme or
meter, the poem employs techniques like enjambment and instances of half-rhyme
and full rhyme. The poem moves through the progression of the storm, from night to
day, using a first-person narration.
Here's a more detailed breakdown:
Quatrains:
The poem consists of six quatrains, which are stanzas with four lines.
No Regular Rhyme Scheme or Meter:
Hughes doesn't follow a consistent rhyme scheme or metrical pattern, making it free
verse.
Enjambment:
The poem utilizes enjambment, where lines of poetry run into each other, creating a
sense of flow and rhythm.
Rhyme and Half-Rhyme:
Despite being free verse, there are instances of half-rhyme (like "note" and "though"
in stanza five) and full rhyme (like "sky" and "eye" in stanza two). Like the wind, the
poem refuses to conform to expectations or patterns humans can perceive.
Progression of the Storm:
The poem depicts the storm's progression, starting with the night, moving through
the morning and midday, and ending in the evening, as noted in the poem.
First-Person Narrative:
The poem is narrated in the first person, allowing the reader to share the poet's
feelings and experience the storm through his eyes.
Imagery and Figurative Language
The poem's imagery relies heavily on metaphor and personification to evoke
the sensory experience of high winds. The opening image of a house "far out at sea"
at night is a metaphor describing how it feels to the speaker to be inside the house
during an all-night storm. The noise of the wind is expressed by its "stampeding,"
which is personification likening the wind to a herd of animals. Personification is a
type of figurative language in which human (or sometimes another animal)
characteristics, such as feeling, acting, and thinking, are attributed to something
nonhuman. In addition, Ted Hughes's imagery often challenges expectations by
creating unexpected or contradictory images.
In Stanza 1's image of "the woods crashing through darkness, the booming hills,"
Hughes speaks as if the woods and hills are acting, instead of being acted upon by
the wind.
THEMES AND POET’S INTENTION
The Power of Nature
The poem's driving theme is Nature's unrestrained, unpredictable power, and the
extent to which natural forces determine human lives. The overarching conflict of
"Wind" manifests between the speaker and the unrelenting storm outside. The
poem's tone and emotional resonance is embedded in this struggle: the
overpowering strength of the wind serves as a metaphor for the stormy and
unpredictable relation between the speaker and the second figure.
Powerlessness
In addition to nature's power, "Wind" also explores the theme of man's
powerlessness when faced with overwhelming natural forces or virulent emotional
experiences. When the speaker ventures outside of his house, he feels the wind's
subordinating power; meanwhile, inside, the speaker and his company find
themselves unable to "entertain" anything but the great fire before them. The
passivity of the final stanza echoes this powerlessness: the characters only "watch,"
"feel," "sit," "see," and "hear" while the storm rages outside, threatening to enter
their home.
Interpersonal Conflict
"Wind" is also about interpersonal conflict, and the ways in which these conflicts can
escalate and provoke devastating consequences. We know that the wind also
represents the conflict between the speaker and his company because of the intense
emotions. When the speaker and the second figure choose to watch the fire, they
concentrate on their conflict, instead of looking for a solution or finding the courage
to raise some defense against the storm outside.
DICTION AND POETIC DEVICES
Diction
Hughes shows lively word choice, or diction, and uses words in unexpected ways to
create surprise. Strong, vivid verbs such as stampeding, floundering, flexing, flung,
and blazing reflect the strength of the wind. Unusual word choices, such as the
adjective "brunt" to describe the wind and the hyphenated "blade-light,"
economically use words to create interesting, memorable images. Using short,
power-packed words also keeps the language concise.
Hughes makes use of several literary devices in 'Wind. ‘
Personification:
Hughes gives human qualities to the wind, describing it as "wielding blade-light" and
"stampeding" the fields. This personification makes the wind feel more menacing
and alive, highlighting its destructive force.
Similes and Metaphors:
Similes, like comparing the window to a "green goblet" that could "shatter," create
vivid imagery by drawing parallels between the storm and other objects. Metaphors,
like describing the wind as a "mad eye," further enhance the storm's intensity and
frightening nature.
Onomatopoeia:
Hughes uses words that mimic the sounds of the storm, like "floundering" and
"booming," to bring the storm's auditory aspects to life. In Stanzas 4 and 5, the
words bang, flap, and shatter describe the effects of the wind on the world.
Alliteration:
Repetition of consonant sounds, such as "black" and "blinding" in the first stanza
and "green goblet" and "great" in the fifth, creates a rhythmic and memorable
sound.
Alliteration, or repeated sounds at the beginnings of words, also helps evoke the
quality of the wind as it pushes and pulls, gusts and pounds. Softer consonants such
as r's and w's move the poem forward with a Hughes shows lively word choice, or
diction, and uses words in unexpected ways to create surprise. Strong, vivid verbs
such as stampeding, floundering, flexing, flung, and blazing reflect the strength of
the wind. Unusual word choices, such as the adjective "brunt" to describe the wind
and the hyphenated "blade-light," economically use words to create interesting,
memorable images. Using short, power-packed words also keeps the language
concise.
Conclusion
Hughes employs vivid descriptions, particularly visual and auditory, to create a
powerful sense of the storm's impact on both the natural world and the human
inhabitants of the house.
