Spring by Gerard Manley Hopkins

It’s a Petrarchan (Italian) sonnet, consisting of 14 lines split into an octave (8 lines) that sets the scene and a sestet (6 lines) that shifts focus and offers interpretation. Hopkins employs his unique 'sprung rhythm' instead of the usual iambic pentameter, giving the lines a more dynamic and unpredictable quality compared to a traditional sonnet.

In sprung rhythm, you count only the stressed syllables in a line, ignoring the total count of syllables. Each foot begins with a stressed syllable and can have any number of unstressed syllables afterward. This approach allows Hopkins to cluster many consonants and stresses together, which makes lines like 'weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush' feel incredibly dense and tangible.

The volta is the shift in the argument that divides the octave from the sestet. In 'Spring,' it occurs at line 9: 'What is all this juice and all this joy?' The octave builds up sensory images, while the sestet takes a step back to consider what they mean, ultimately responding with references to Eden and concluding with a prayer.

The eggs are blue and speckled, reminiscent of the sky. By referring to them as 'little low heavens,' Hopkins brings the divine closer to us—heaven isn't just up there; it's right here in a nest. This aligns with his broader belief that God's presence is intertwined with the physical world, rather than existing apart from it.

He speaks to Christ directly, referring to him as 'lord' and then as 'maid's child' (the son of the Virgin Mary). Essentially, he is praying: protect the innocence of children before the world taints them. This reflects a theological insight about grace and a heartfelt plea from someone who views beauty as delicate.

Hopkins coined the term 'inscape' to refer to the distinctive, irreplaceable pattern that defines something as itself and not anything else — the thrush-ness of a thrush, the spring-ness of spring. In this poem, every image is selected to embody inscape: the wheels of weeds, the shiny peartree, the sprinting lambs. Hopkins thought that recognizing inscape was a way of experiencing God.

'Cloy' refers to the process of becoming overly sweet — transitioning from delicious to overwhelming and finally to repulsive. Hopkins uses it to illustrate the initial stage of corruption: innocence doesn't simply disappear; it first becomes cloying, then becomes clouded, and finally turns sour. These three verbs depict a gradual and unavoidable decline.

Not exactly. Hopkins sees the Fall for what it is — sin will arrive, and innocence will be lost — but the poem concludes with a determination, not hopelessness. He urges Christ to win those innocent souls, suggesting that it's still within reach. The urgency is palpable, but there's also a genuine hope beneath it.