Student Question
In "Frost at Midnight," does Coleridge's wish for his son connect with his past experiences?
Quick answer:
Coleridge's wish for his son in "Frost at Midnight" connects to his past experiences by hoping for a life enriched with nature, unlike his own urban upbringing. Coleridge recalls his limited childhood exposure to nature, seeing only the sky and stars from between buildings. He desires his son to have a deeper connection with nature, learning from God's creation. This reflects Coleridge's Romantic ideals, emphasizing nature's importance in personal and spiritual growth.
In Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, "Frost at Midnight," the author believes that his son will have experiences very much different than his own: he will hear different stories (lore) and travel to places where the author has not been.
...it thrills my heart
With tender gladness, thus to look at thee,
And think that thou shalt learn far other lore,
And in far other scenes!
This father recalls that the only glimpse of beauty he saw growing up in a town was what he spied between buildings: sky and stars.
For I was reared
In the great city, pent 'mid cloisters dim,
And saw nought lovely but the sky and stars.
(It is important to remember that Coleridge was a "first-generation" Romantic poet. Something that the Romantics wrote of often was their delight with nature: this can be seen not only in Coleridge's work—in particular (for example)
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
was their delight with nature: this can be seen not only in Coleridge's work—in particular (for example) The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, but also in Wordsworth's work, and then in the works of the second-generation Romantic poets: Byron, Shelley and Keats.)
Coleridge imagines the "glimpses" of nature his son will have (and we can infer that Coleridge will be at hand to guarantee these these "interactions" that he did not have as a child). His son will know the uncontrollable breezes that go where they wish—"By lakes and sandy shores," and around the crags of mountains, and "beneath the clouds." In essence, Coleridge believes his child will learn early to speak the...
...eternal language, which thy God
Utters, who from eternity doth teach
Himself in all, and all things in himself.
God will instruct the boy and help to shape the man he will become. In this experience, the seasons will be a delight to the boy: the grass, the birds, the snow, and the "sun-thaw" of dawn. This is what the author dreams for his son.
It is easy to appreciate Coleridge's concern that his son's experience be different; if you recall, he notes that he only ever saw what little of nature came to him while he looked to the sky between tall buildings. His observations of nature came to him much later, and Coleridge wishes that an appreciation of these things will grow within his son, as the child himself grows.