Question

What, according to the poet, are human beings out of tune with?

Answer 1

Wordsworth has always been close to nature. Whether in his Tintern Abbey or The Tables Turned, he has appreciated nature profoundly. His “The world is too much with us” lays scathing criticism on the humanity that is distanced from nature. The materialistic belief of "getting and spending" that the industrialisation dawned upon us, Wordsworth calls it a "sordid boon", a contradiction. The poet talks about the worlds of the past and the future, "late and soon". He is unhappy because mankind has given her heart away to this destructive blessing. We consider the Industrial Revolution a boon, while the poet has deeply condemned it. We do not see “the nature that is ours”. Wordsworth appreciates nature's beauty. He talks of how the fragile sea, in the night, bares her bosom to the moon. The beauty of the white light reflected on the mirthful waters appears magnificent. Then the poet talks of how the wild winds gather above us, hovering like a sleeping flower. However, he deplores the loss of it; he suffers due to the mechanical advancement of society. Lamenting the poet declares how humanity is “out of tune” with it all and wishes to become a Pagan so he might get glimpses of the beauty of nature.