The Cloud Essay Questions

How does the cloud symbolize revolution and change?

Although the cloud begins as a humble rain cloud, it develops into a dangerous hurricane by the end of the poem before shrinking away into an almost bodiless spirit prepared to be reborn. The transformations that the cloud undergoes affirm a belief in non-hierarchical power. The cloud is paradoxically most powerful when inhabiting a kind of democratic sphere, in which every element of nature can take turns wielding control and can enjoy rest without fearing tyranny. Thus, the cloud enjoys overpowering the sun, but only temporarily, knowing that it will later assist the sun in its rise, or observe it serenely. Shelley, therefore, asserts that change should be enjoyed rather than feared—and asserts, simultaneously, that revolutions are most successful when led by a movement of equals rather than by a power-hungry individual.

What does Shelley mean when he writes "I change, but I cannot die" in the poem's last stanza?

No matter what changes the cloud undergoes, it remains in some form—whether as a powerful stormcloud, a nurturing deliverer of afternoon showers, or a noncorporeal consciousness waiting to reassemble itself. In fact, change is the basis of the cloud's survival, actually preventing it from dying away. By changing constantly, the cloud can avoid exhaustion, delightedly anticipating the next phase of its cycle. Moreover, its constant changes allow it to maintain a complicated set of relationships to other parts of nature, whether helping the sun rise, cavorting with lightning, or lending the moon a spotlight. Only through constant change is it able to offer help or companionship to so many other beings, achieving a satisfying peace and allowing natural cycles to carry on smoothly.