With some memory support from Wikipedia, I am able to refer to the poem “The World Is Too Much With Us” by William Wordsworth to comment on the latest clash between the liberals and conservatives in Washington. Wordsworth wrote this poem in the early 1800s:
“The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything. we are out of tune;
It moves us not — Great God!
I’d rather be a pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on the pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make us less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn.”
You may well wonder why this old man goes to the trouble of using an ancient poem to emphasize that people going through the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s experienced as much turmoil and misunderstanding back then as we are in 2013 via our revolution with the Internet.
My point, if I have one, is to say that back in the 1800s the world was often too much with them just as it is with us today. Back then, they were looking for answers to figure out the Industrial Revolution. Today we are trying to figure out whatever it is that we are going through.
Our problems in Washington today require that we understand each other so that we can discuss our problems and disagreements with some intelligence.
My point is that conservatives and liberals have got to work together so the world will not be too much with us.
If you are really serious about being a good American, find a good English teacher to help you understand what this poem is all about. If you can’t do that then study this poem via the Internet.
Surely you have heard that poets are our true legislators.
The truth may be that all of us need to take a deep breath, then settle down to find a rational approach. We all know that our country is going to hell in a hand-basket because we are spending too much money. And we should all know that the Middle Class is our strong point.
The Middle Class helps us keep our balance. We need moderate leaders with this perspective.
And wealthy people should realize that the Middle Class won this last election.
Gillis Morgan is an associate professor emeritus of journalism at Auburn University and an award-winning columnist. He can be reached at morgarg7@aol.com