"She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways" by William Wordsworth

William  Wordsworth was born on April 7, 1770 in Cumberland. In 1843 Wordsworth was named poet laureate of England.

She dwelt among the untrodden ways

         Beside the springs of Dove,

A Maid whom there were none to praise

         And very few to love:

A violet by a mossy stone

         Half hidden from the eye!

—Fair as a star, when only one

         Is shining in the sky.

She lived unknown, and few could know

         When Lucy ceased to be;

But she is in her grave, and, oh,

         The difference to me!

In this poem, William Wordsworth is talking about a young woman named Lucy. In the first stanza he is talking about the place Lucy used to live. It was not very crowded and you get the idea that Lucy was lonely. In the second stanza he tells us that she was very beautiful. She was as "fair as a star, when only one is shining in the sky" (7-8). Finally, in the third stanza, it is made clear that Lucy is not popular and very few people know who she is. 

There is a regular rhyme scheme in "She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways". It is ABAB. The audience is able to realize that the speaker cares for the girl throughout the poem. In the way he states her beauty, but more clearly in the last couple lines. When it is obviously stated that Lucy is dead the speaker says that it made a "difference" to him (12). We are now able to see that he cared for her, even though she was cared for by no one else. 

People say that this poem describes the "growth, perfection, and death" of Lucy. The tone is sad and grieving. From the very beginning you can tell he is missing the girl because it is all in past tense. Also, the fact that he did not tell us her name in the beginning added strength to her not being known by others. Then, when he reveals her name we are able to see that she meaned something to him because he actually knew who she was.