Poetry · Chapter
When the Storm Was Proudest explained
The narrator describes a night of storm and wind, yet hears the gentle growth of grass and the music of the cosmos.
What happens
The narrator describes a night of storm and wind, yet hears the gentle growth of grass and the music of the cosmos. After the storm, the beauty of clouds and moonlight is revealed, and the narrator falls into a deep, dreamlike sleep, only to wake with a vanished glory, still waiting for its return.
Themes in this chapter
Nature as Divine Revelation
The storm, wind, caverns, stars, and moon all speak and reveal beauty, suggesting nature as a medium for divine or transcendent truth.
Longing for Immortality
The narrator's lost glory and continued waiting reflect a longing for a permanent, transcendent state beyond the fleeting moment.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The narrator who experiences the storm, hears the natural world, and waits for the return of a lost glory.
- The Wind
The wind is loudest during the storm, contributing to the tumultuous setting.
- Cloud
The clouds become beautiful and silvery in the rising moon after the storm.
- Moon
The rising moon silvers the clouds, marking the transition from storm to calm.
Key passages
“When the storm was proudest, And the wind was loudest, I heard the hollow caverns drinking down below;”
At the height of the storm, with the wind at its most fierce, I could hear the empty caves drinking in the water below.
The narrator perceives hidden natural processes even amid chaos.
“I heard the grasses springing underneath the snow.”
I could hear the grass growing beneath the snow cover.
A quiet, life-affirming sound contrasts with the storm's noise.
“And every starry spark Made music with the dark, And said how bright and beautiful everything must be.”
Each star made a kind of music with the darkness, declaring that all things are bright and beautiful.
The cosmos itself seems to sing of beauty and harmony.
“My glory had been banished, For when I woke it vanished; But I waited on its coming, and I am waiting now.”
My glory was gone; when I awoke it had disappeared. Yet I have waited for its return, and I am still waiting.
The narrator experiences a loss of transcendence and remains in hopeful expectation.