18 pages • 36 minutes read
William WordsworthShe Was a Phantom of Delight
Fiction | Poem | AdultA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Figurative Language
Poets use figurative language to convey meaning beyond the literal definition of words. Wordsworth’s use of figurative language in “Phantom” reflects his poetic intent to see beyond the physical to the deeper, spiritual truth of things. First, he employs two similes in Stanza 1. A simile compares two unlike things to highlight the similarities between them. The woman’s eyes are like “stars” appearing in twilight, and her “dusky hair” is likened to the dark hues of twilight.
Next, in Line 22, Wordsworth uses metaphorical language. “The very pulse of the machine” might seem to (unflatteringly) compare Mary’s body to a machine, but Wordsworth uses the term not in its modern, technological sense. Rather, he references a structure made up of many parts (like a human being). He uses the metaphor of a “machine” in much the same way in Line 217 of Canto IV of “The Waggoner” (Wordsworth, William. “The Waggoner.” 1819. Sheffield Hallam University.)
The phrase “cheerful Dawn” (Line 8) is an example of another type of figurative language, personification, which ascribes human characteristics to an object, animal, or abstraction. In literal speech, the coming of dawn may make humans feel cheerful, but it cannot experience the emotion itself. The same can be said for “thoughtful breath” (Line 23), which ascribes a human characteristic (the ability to think) to the breath, whereas in literal terms it is the breather (Mary) who is thoughtful, not the breath itself.
Form and meter
“She Was a Phantom of Delight” is written in iambic tetrameter. An iambic foot consists of a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable. A tetrameter consists of four feet, which means that each line of the poem comprises eight syllables. (In Line 24, “Traveller” is read as two syllables rather than three to ensure the line scans as iambic tetrameter.)
The iambic meter is very regular, although Wordsworth varies it occasionally. Line 12 begins with a stressed rather than unstressed syllable (“Sweet”). Since this is followed by the word “records,” in which the first syllable is stressed, the first foot is a spondee, consisting of two strong stresses. The most notable metrical variation is in the Line 20: “Praise, blame, love, kisses, tears, and smiles,” which begins with two successive spondees. This line also has extensive internal punctuation—five commas—which slows the line down, ensuring that the reader’s attention is drawn to this assembly of qualities and emotional reactions that Mary exhibited.
The rhyme scheme is simple and consistent: in each stanza, Line 1 rhymes with Line 2, Line 3 rhymes with Line 4, and so on. Almost all the rhymes are perfect rhymes, in which the vowel sounds are identical. There are only two partial or imperfect rhymes: “good” and “food” (Lines 17-18) and “planned” and “command” (Lines 27-28).
Parallel Structure
Wordsworth parallels the grammatical structure of several lines in one stanza to another to emphasize contrast. For example, in Stanza 1, the lines “A dancing Shape, an Image gay, / To haunt, to startle, and way-lay” (Lines 9-10) are exactly paralleled in Stanza 3’s “A perfect Woman, nobly planned, / To warn, to comfort, and command” (Lines 27-28). Here, Wordsworth emphasizes Mary’s development by repeating the structure of the earlier line, inviting the reader to note that almost every word is a dramatic contrast to the words in the earlier passage.
Another example of this parallelism occurs in Stanzas 2 and 3, although it is not quite as exact. Line 26, “Endurance, foresight, strength, and skill,” parallels Line 20, “Praise, blame, love, kisses, tears, and smiles,” while offering a contrast in meaning. The first passage suggests a more emotional mode of being, with quick reactions based on what is happening in the moment. The second passage, on the other hand, shows a more thoughtful approach to life rooted in a more long-term view. In both cases, the heavy punctuation within the lines ensures that emphasis is placed on the key emotions, attitudes, and characteristics the woman possesses.
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