Death becomes life
Is it possible? Was Percy B Shelley depicting an act of resurrection in Ode to the West Wind?Not exactly , though the author was trying to imply that from the action of the cold west wind , spreading not only dead leaves but also seeds, spring will come and with it, the commencement of life.
The persona in this poem is a great admirer of the West Wind because it acts as an annihilator as well as a protector of living things.He praises the wind´s power coming in some kind of chariot which ironically lets seeds low as in a graveyard.."Each like a corpse within its grave.." but with the purpose of putting them in the right place for their germinating and budding.He mentions the wind is a .."Destroyer and preserver..".
Additionaly ,this appreciation of the West Wind is perceived by the use of exalting expressions referring to its strong and .."uncontrollable" action.The West Wind has wings, speed and it is a deliverer .For the time being, Autumn , leaves are falling and the poet seems to recognize he is falling too as he is aging.He wishes he could be as "..fierce..tameless ..impetuous"... as the Wind.Nevertheless, he is a human being and will perish one day.
The veneration of the West Wind is due to the fact that in every cycle of life the Wind will come and go and come again. What Shelley exhibits with his words in "Ode to the West Wind" is the glorification of something that will live for ever, that brings death in order to bring life, whereas he as a man will one day be gone for good.
