Spring by Gerard Manley Hopkins

Hopkins's "Spring" is a Petrarchan sonnet that overflows with the vibrant sights and sounds of the season — birds singing, leaves rustling, lambs frolicking, and streams rushing — presenting them as a glimpse of the world before the Fall. The octave builds a rich tapestry of nature imagery, while the sestet transforms those images into a prayer: may children's innocence be offered to Christ before the world can touch them. Essentially, Hopkins is saying, "Spring is so beautiful it has to be sacred — and so are children, so we need to shield that purity."

The tone is ecstatic in the octave — Hopkins is truly moved by what he observes — and shifts to a more urgent, almost desperate plea in the sestet. There’s no sadness present, but an underlying sense of anxiety exists: such pure beauty cannot endure, and Hopkins understands this. The overall impression is one of joy tinged with the recognition that joy is fleeting.

Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote "Spring" in 1877, a year that also saw the creation of "The Windhover" and "Pied Beauty." Having converted to Catholicism in 1866 and becoming a Jesuit priest in 1877, his theological thoughts were particularly intense just as his poetic voice was reaching its peak. The poem is part of what some refer to as his "nature sonnets," where he interprets the natural world as a direct reflection of God's creative energy — a concept he termed "inscape," which refers to the unique inner pattern that defines each thing. During this time, Victorian England was embroiled in heated discussions about evolution and original sin, adding a subtle argumentative layer to Hopkins's use of Eden imagery. The poem wasn't published during his lifetime; it was his friend Robert Bridges who shared it with the world in 1918, almost thirty years after Hopkins had passed away.