Poetry Essay: Spellbound by Emily Bronte

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Spellbound by Emily Bronte
In Spellbound, Bronte gives detailed descriptions of nature and the ensuing storm during winter including the clouds and strong winds. It is clear that the poet is observant as the description of the natural forces reflects a bleak situation of the surrounding. The poet is spell bound under the extreme weather, but the spell appears to have a gripping impact on her to the extent that she accepts that she can no longer oppose the spell as evidenced by the last line of the third stanza, “I will not, cannot go.” Words like cold, bare, dark and wild reflect the challenges that confront the narrator. This paper explores instances where forces of nature ought to have been taken symbolically.
It appears as though the forces of nature have conspired to make the narrator’s life miserable beginning with darkness as the night approaches which also brings uncertainty. The description of the forces and the aftermath presents a depressing and miserable situation that surrounds the narrator. All the forces of nature are threatening her existence and at this point that the narrator anticipates that death will occur. The winds are extremely strong to the extent that trees begin to bend, while snow begins to fall on branches. The extreme weather conditions symbolize the dangers awaiting the narrator and that death is inevitable as man has not conquered nature.
The poem is open and we do not understand whether the character is male or female, but it is probable that she is female like. In the first line of the first stanza it is clear that it is late in the evening and the night is approaching. In addition, the weather appears to change gradually where the wind blows, the situation appears discomforting to the narrator, but there is a tyrant spell that prevents her from making any progress. The narrator is spell bound which limits her actions, this stanza illustrates that the poem is not necessarily talking about the forces of nature, but there is also spirituality.
As the night approaches darkness sets in around the poet, darkness symbolizes impending danger which occurs at this time surrounded by uncertainty. The narrator appears to be afraid of the dark whereby as she would be unable to deal with the surrounding events on her own. There are hints that life would probably be lost as the night progressed because the weather conditions became harsher. In addition, the blowing of the “cold” winds is symbolic of the inability to accept that death is nearing and is inevitable. She is spell bound and the religious connotation of these is that it is probably the reason that she is unable to move.
Nature further takes its toll on the narrator as the surroundings begin to be unbearable, where the narrator alludes to the extreme forces of nature in the form of the bleeding of giant trees. The personification of the trees as being “giant” symbolizes that man is still far away from being able to conquer nature. In addition, it appears that wi...