Reading response to:  LINES WRITTEN IN EARLY SPRING

        My reading of this poem is that Wordsworth was comparing mankind's lifestyle to nature's.  He was contemplating the simple joys of nature and wishing the same for humanity.

        In the first stanza he implied that a comparison was in progress, by introducing the relationship between pleasant and sad thoughts. In the second stanza he spoke of nature's 'fair works' and how his soul was linked to them; however, he also mentioned his heart was grieving because of 'What man has made of man.' This reminds me of words from the Tintern Abbey poem: 'In which the heavy and the weary weight Of all this unintelligible world Is lignten'd.' Perhaps Wordsworth had a complaint against something in particular within his society, or about everything in general. Whichever the case may have been, it seems fairly obvious that he utilized his visits with nature as a means of relieving his stress. So whether his complaint was a particular one or not, the text, for me, still implies that Wordsworth was actually yearning for mankind to accept a more simplistic way of life. He mentioned his faith in the third stanza, saying he believed that 'every flower Enjoys the air it breathes.' In the fourth he spoke of the birds and how 'the least motion which they made, It seem'd a thrill of pleasure.' 

       The delight that Wordsworth received from being interconnected with nature leads me to believe that what he was saying in the last stanza is the following (paraphrasing): If I can't help but have these thoughts, and if I, too, believe this to be the plan for happiness, should I not cry for how far mankind has strayed?