“Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill;
Ne’er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! The very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is

“Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill;
Ne’er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! The very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!”
(William Wordsworth’s sonnet: “Composed upon Westminster Bridge” September 3, 1802)
Questions:
A.What does the word “glideth” in the fourth line mean?
B.What kind of figure of speech is used by wordsworth to describe the “river”?
C.What idea does the fourth line express?

A.To move smoothly and quietly, as if no effort was being made.
B.Personification. Here the river is personified so that it has its own will.
C.Wordsworth emphasizes that the river runs freely (in the early morning because there is no barges or steamers or other kind of man-made burdens imposed on it to hinder its running).