22 pages 44 minutes read

V. S. Naipaul

B. Wordsworth

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1959

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Symbols & Motifs

Poetry

Poetry is an important part of “B. Wordsworth.” For the poet and the boy he teaches, poetry is a symbol of their connection to the world. Wordsworth uses poetry to express his connection to the people and the things he observes. His desire to write the greatest poem in the world stems from his wish to give something back to the society he inhabits while–at the same time–describing the beauty he observes where others do not. The bees, stars, and plants might seem like mundane facts of life, but they are fertile ground for poetry. The poems that Wordsworth writes are symbols of his reverence for the world and his desire to share his wonder with others.

For all his care and appreciation, however, Wordsworth is not a success. He has never sold a poem, and he makes money by singing covers of other people’s songs. Furthermore, his attempt to write the greatest poem in the world ends in failure. He realizes that life and existence are too profound and too complex to be distilled into a single poem. In this respect, the poetry portrayed in the story is imbued with tragic

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