London by William Wordsworth

London by William Wordsworth is a sonnet. There is a violation of traditional patterns for rhyming. The poet is talking to Milton. This is an invocation and what is Milton’s function of this invocation part? Milton is like a muse here. Muses stand for inspiration. So Milton is like the source of that inspiration and William chooses Milton because Milton is an important name in English literature. He is like the father of the poetry.

We have octaves and sestes in the poem. The octave parts are generally about problems in England and sestes is about Milton. This poem has a political function. The critic, Mason says; “Wordsworth did not regard the sonnet as passive or easily manipulated form, however, claiming for it a status as a literary and political facilitator.” It means the sonnet must have a political function according to William. He says “Wordsworth is invoking Milton as the protector of liberty and savior of England.”

“England hath need of thee: she is a fen, Of stagnant waters: altar, sword, and pen.” He directly says "Milton we need you". The altar means a holy table in a church. It is a symbol of religion. The sword is a weapon used by the soldiers, a symbol of the army. The pen is a device used by intellectuals, a symbol of education. “Fireside” is for the poor people. “heroic wealth of hall and bower” this phrase is a symbol of the rich people. We understand that each side of the English society is suffering from a lack of values, they have fallen into the cave and they need Milton but Milton is a symbol here. They need improvement. That is the problem. Again we understand this poetry is political. It has political comments and with these comments, we see the picture of England in that century.