Pain of Love in "A Complaint" by William Wordsworth Asia Tanganelli 11th Grade

The poem, “A Complaint” by William Wordsworth presents the solitude and sorrow of the speaker after experiencing the loss of a loved one. The feelings of love and affection that the poet once felt for his friend is now leading him into reminiscing his past relationship, leaving him feeling sad and nostalgic. This contrast between the water imagery of a fountain and a well is clearly presented through the whole poem as the poet expresses the pain of love.

Wordsworth introduces his brutal and distressing transition in the first line of the poem: “There is a change-and I am poor”. Through the adjective “poor” the speaker suggests that he is going through a negative transition, implying that he is lacking love in his life. Also, this adjective has connotations of finance and business which contrasts the idea of the poem being a love poetry. This juxtaposition between these opposite ideas of business (which represents logic) and love (which represents instincts, feelings) could imply that sometimes emotions can overrule his thoughts, especially in matters as love, therefore establishing a sense of regret and failure of the relationship. Furthermore, this contrast could represent the lovers [the poet being the romantic one whereas...