Introduction: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
“Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde, first published in his 1881 debut collection Poems, offers a poignant exploration of a love affair’s dissolution. Employing rich natural imagery, the poem examines themes of transience, the disillusionment following passion, and the lingering ache of lost love. The speaker’s voice carries a subtle melancholy, accepting the inevitable nature of change while preserving a sense of their past’s fleeting beauty. Wilde’s masterful use of alliteration and metaphor lends the poem a musicality and profoundness, elevating it to a haunting elegy for a relationship once believed to be timeless.
Text: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
The wild bee reels from bough to bough
With his furry coat and his gauzy wing.
Now in a lily-cup, and now
Setting a jacinth bell a-swing,
In his wandering;
Sit closer love: it was here I trow
I made that vow,
Swore that two lives should be like one
As long as the sea-gull loved the sea,
As long as the sunflower sought the sun,—
It shall be, I said, for eternity
‘Twixt you and me!
Dear friend, those times are over and done.
Love’s web is spun.
Look upward where the poplar trees
Sway in the summer air,
Here in the valley never a breeze
Scatters the thistledown, but there
Great winds blow fair
From the mighty murmuring mystical seas,
And the wave-lashed leas.
Look upward where the white gull screams,
What does it see that we do not see?
Is that a star? or the lamp that gleams
On some outward voyaging argosy,—
Ah! can it be
We have lived our lives in a land of dreams!
How sad it seems.
Sweet, there is nothing left to say
But this, that love is never lost,
Keen winter stabs the breasts of May
Whose crimson roses burst his frost,
Ships tempest-tossed
Will find a harbor in some bay,
And so we may.
And there is nothing left to do
But to kiss once again, and part,
Nay, there is nothing we should rue,
I have my beauty,—you your Art,
Nay, do not start,
One world was not enough for two
Like me and you.
Annotations: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
| Stanza | Analysis |
| Stanza 1 | * Imagery: Bee with “furry coat” and “gauzy wing” establishes playful, natural beauty. * Action: Bee wandering mirrors the poem’s theme of shifting affections. * Speaker’s Choice: Introducing “love” and a past vow creates nostalgic tension. |
| Stanza 2 | * Nature Parallel: Seagull loving the sea, sunflower to the sun = their promised love. These are powerful natural forces… but even those change. * Symbolism: “Eternity” is challenged, foreshadowing later themes of impermanence. |
| Stanza 3 | * Contrast: Still valley vs. windy heights and ocean power. It mirrors the quiet of their current situation vs. the turmoil love once held. * Symbolism: “Thistledown” is fragile, easily scattered, hinting at their love’s vulnerability. |
| Stanza 4 | * Symbolism: White gull a beacon of freedom, yet also distance. The unknown it observes reflects their own uncertainty about the future. * Philosophical Questioning: “Argosy” (treasure ship) outward-bound suggests potential, but also separation from the past. * Revelation: “Land of dreams” confirms fading illusion. There’s a somber tone to this realization. |
| Stanza 5 | * Acceptance: “Nothing left to say” underscores finality but with a degree of peace. * Nature Cycles: Harsh winter injuring tender May, but roses blooming again suggests resilience after loss. * Hope: Tempest-tossed ships finding harbor hints at individuals finding their own solace eventually. |
| Stanza 6 | * Repetition: “Nothing left to do” emphasizes the inevitability of parting. * Farewell: Kiss is not about rekindling passion, but about closure. * Self-Worth: Beauty and Art being separate domains is bittersweet. They acknowledge a fundamental difference that once united them. |
Literary and Poetic Devices: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
| Literary/Poetic Device | Definition | Example from “Her Voice” |
| Anaphora | Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines | “As long as…” |
| Antithesis | Placing contrasting ideas in close proximity. | “…winter stabs the breast of May / Whose crimson roses burst his frost…” |
| Apostrophe | Directly addressing a person absent, inanimate object, or abstract concept | “Dear friend, those times are over and done…” |
| Assonance | Repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words | “Look upward where the poplar trees / Sway…” (repetition of long ‘a’ sound) |
| Caesura | A pause or break within a line of poetry | “Love’s web is spun.” (Natural pause after “is”) |
| Enjambment | A line of poetry running on to the next without punctuation | “The wild bee reels from bough to bough / With his furry coat and his gauzy wing…” |
| Hyperbole | Intentional exaggeration for emphasis | “…two lives should be like one / As long as the sea-gull loved the sea…” |
| Imagery | Sensory language creating vivid mental pictures | “Great winds blow fair / From the mighty murmuring mystical seas…” |
| Metaphor | Implicit comparison between two unlike things | “Love’s web is spun” (love compared to a trap) |
| Meter | Rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables | Largely iambic pentameter, but with variations |
| Motif | Recurring image, symbol, or idea contributing to the theme | Nature imagery throughout (bee, flowers, sea, etc.) |
| Oxymoron | Two contradictory terms combined | “Sweet, there is nothing left to say” |
| Personification | Giving human qualities to non-human things | “Keen winter stabs the breast of May” |
| Refrain | Repetition of lines or phrases throughout the poem | “And so we may” |
| Repetition | Repeating words or phrases for emphasis | “Nothing left to say,” “Nothing left to do” |
| Rhyme | Repetition of ending sounds in words | “done” / “spun” |
| Simile | Explicit comparison using “like” or “as” | “…two lives should be like one / As long as…” |
| Symbolism | Objects/images representing deeper ideas | Seagull = freedom, argosy = potential & separation |
| Tone | Attitude of the speaker conveyed through word choice | Melancholic, reflective, shifts to slightly hopeful by the end |
Themes: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
- Theme 1: The Transience of Love: Wilde explores how even the most ardent love can fade. The speaker reflects on past vows with melancholy, acknowledging “those times are over and done.” Natural imagery reinforces this: beautiful flowers are vulnerable to winter’s harshness. Symbolically, the couple once thrived in a “land of dreams,” now shattered.
- Past vows contrasted with the present: ” I made that vow… It shall be…for eternity” vs. “Dear friend, those times are over and done.”
- Nature’s power vs. human fragility: “Keen winter stabs the breast of May / Whose crimson roses burst his frost”
- Theme 2: Loss and Acceptance: The poem conveys a sense of grief over fading love, yet also an undercurrent of acceptance. Despite sadness, the speaker recognizes the inevitability of change. The repeated phrase “nothing left to say” underscores a bittersweet closure. The final stanza acknowledges the pain of separation, but ends with an almost stoic assertion of their individual worth.
- Finality: “Sweet, there is nothing left to say”
- Reframing loss as a part of life: “Ships tempest-tossed / Will find a harbor in some bay”
- Theme 3: The Illusion of Permanence: The poem challenges the notion of “forever” in love. The speaker believed their love would be eternal, mirroring nature’s cycles. However, introspection reveals this as a naive idealism. The questioning tone towards the end emphasizes their shift in perspective – they wonder if their life was built on mere dreams, not reality.
- Idealism vs. reality: “As long as the sunflower sought the sun…It shall be, I said, for eternity”
- Questioning the past:“Is that a star? …Ah! can it be / We have lived our lives in a land of dreams!”
- Theme 4: Finding Solace in Individuality: Though heartbroken, the poem ends with a note of resilience. Beauty and Art, while not replacing love, are presented as sources of individual strength. The final lines hint at a future where both parties find their own fulfillment, even if it means walking separate paths.
- Farewell with dignity: “Nay, do not start, / One world was not enough for two / Like me and you.”
- Individual passions as sources of strength: “I have my beauty,—you your Art”
Literary Theories and “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
| Literary Theory | How it Can Analyze “Her Voice” |
| Formalism / New Criticism | Focus on the poem as self-contained. Analysis would include: * Close reading of poetic devices, word choice, imagery. * Structure of the poem (stanzas, shifts in tone). * How the poem creates meaning through its form. |
| Reader-Response | Emphasizes the reader’s role in creating meaning. Analysis could cover: * Differing emotional responses to the poem’s themes. * How personal experiences/background influence interpretation. * Ambiguities – is there hope at the end, or only resignation? |
| **Feminist ** | Examines power dynamics and gender portrayal. Points to consider: * Female voice silenced? Or empowered in acceptance? * “Beauty” vs. “Art” – does this assign stereotypical roles? * Poem as critique of romantic ideals, which can be oppressive. |
| Psychoanalytic | Seeks unconscious desires or meanings behind the text. Analysis might look for: * Symbolic interpretation of nature imagery (is it repressed desire?).* Speaker as divided – rational acceptance vs. lingering emotional pain. * Dreams vs. reality: Is this about facing repressed truths? |
| Marxist | Concerned with social class and power structures. Considerations: * Leisurely setting – poem as product of a privileged class? * Is love a luxury? Hints at a world of labor beyond the poem. * Focus on what the poem leaves out (the ‘unsaid’ about societal forces) |
Topics, Questions, and Thesis Statements: “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
Topic 1: Nature Imagery and its Function
- Question: How does Wilde use contrasting nature imagery throughout the poem, and what does this reveal about the speaker’s emotional state?
- Thesis: Wilde’s juxtaposition of vibrant natural imagery with scenes of stillness and decay mirrors the speaker’s internal conflict between nostalgic longing for a lost love and the painful acceptance of its end.
Topic 2: The Illusion of Eternal Love
- Question: How does the poem challenge the Romantic notion of everlasting love and what larger commentary does this offer?
- Thesis: “Her Voice” subverts idealized romantic expectations by portraying love as susceptible to change and decay, suggesting a critique of unrealistic societal narratives surrounding love.
Topic 3: Voices and Silence
- Question: Who truly has a “voice” in the poem, and how does the shift of voice contribute to the poem’s overall message about loss?
- Thesis: While initially framed as a dialogue, “Her Voice” progressively reveals the female voice as silenced, highlighting the power dynamics within the relationship and the speaker’s self-justification in the face of their changed affections.
Topic 4: Finding Solace After Loss
- Question: Does the poem end on a note of despair or a subtle sense of resilience?
- Thesis: Despite its melancholy tone, “Her Voice” suggests a path toward individual healing by emphasizing the inherent value of selfhood, with beauty and creative pursuits offering solace in the wake of lost love.
Short Questions/Answers about “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
| Question | Answer |
| What is the overall mood of the poem? | The poem is primarily melancholic and reflective. There’s nostalgia for the intensity of past love, but it’s replaced by an acceptance of the relationship’s end. A subtle note of resilience lingers in the final stanza. |
| What key symbol reinforces the poem’s themes? | The seagull is a potent symbol. It represents freedom, the vastness of the unknown, and perhaps even the unattainable ideal of eternal love the speaker once believed in. |
| How does the poem’s structure reflect its content? | The poem’s stanzas mirror the emotional journey. It starts with idyllic memories, shifts to contrasts between stability and unrest, and ends on a more fragmented note, reflecting the shattered illusion of their love. |
| Is the ending optimistic or pessimistic? | The ending leaves room for interpretation. There’s undeniable sadness, but also a sense of acceptance and a focus on individual worth. It’s neither pure despair nor unbridled optimism. |
Literary Works Similar to “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
- “The Ruined Maid” by Thomas Hardy: This poem shares a similar exploration of disillusionment with love and the juxtaposition of past idealism with a more somber present. Hardy’s work often focuses on the impact of social realities on romantic expectations.
- Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning: While charting the growth of love, Browning’s sonnets often express anxieties about the potential for change and the fear of love’s impermanence, anxieties reflected in Wilde’s “Her Voice.”
- “Dover Beach” by Matthew Arnold: Arnold’s poem, centered as it is on a broader loss of faith in societal structures, shares a melancholic sensibility with Wilde’s work. Both examine the dissolution of previously held ideals – religion for Arnold, everlasting love for Wilde’s speaker.
- “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot: Eliot’s poem offers a modernist exploration of themes also present in “Her Voice”: regret, indecision, and the relentless passage of time. The works differ in tone, but both explore the emotional aftermath of unrealized or extinguished passions.
- Selected Sonnets by Edna St. Vincent Millay: Millay’s sonnets often focus on love’s bittersweet impermanence and the strength required to accept its end. While Millay’s voice can be more assertive than Wilde’s, the poems share a preoccupation with romantic disillusionment.
Suggested Readings for Further Analysis of “Her Voice” by Oscar Wilde
Books
- Ellmann, Richard. Oscar Wilde. Vintage Books, 1988. (Offers biographical context and explores themes of love and loss recurring in Wilde’s works)
- Raby, Peter, editor. The Cambridge Companion to Oscar Wilde. Cambridge University Press, 1997. (Chapters on his poetry and essays on themes like唯美主義 and societal critique)
- Mason, Stuart. Bibliography of Oscar Wilde. Haskell House Publishers, 1972. (While focused on bibliography, offers insights into publication history and critical reception of his works)
Articles
- Sinfield, Alan. “Wilde, Plato, and the Ideal.” The Wilde Short Stories: A Reader’s Guide, edited by Ian Small, Palgrave Macmillan, 2008, pp. 58-73. (Examines Wilde’s engagement with philosophy, which underpins his notions of love and art)
Websites
- The Oscar Wilde Society: https://oscarwildesociety.co.uk/ (Articles, resources, and critical discussions)
- The Victorian Web: (Provides context within the broader Victorian literature movement)