Springy Symbols

The aspect that I found most interesting was the use of symbolism in Gerard Manley Hopkins' poem entitled "Spring". The poem itself centered around admiration of the beauty of the season and I liked reading the lines of imagery which helped me imagine the setting. For instance, "the glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush the descending blue" (lines 6-7) was a picturesque way to describe blooming trees against the sky. The symbolism I found most significant was when Gerard compared spring to "Eden garden" (line 11) in the second stanza. Considering the garden of Eden is the epitome of beauty and was God's gift to the first humans on earth, I found that to be a powerful statement. It is also linked to the symbolism of youth and innocence which is carried over into the final stanza. The speaker tells the reader to "Have, get, [their innocence] before it cloy", which almost serves as a warning to hold on to our youth before it spoils. He speaks of sin and how it ruins the "innocent mind and Mayday in girl and boy" (line 13). Basically, the poem sort of ends on a negative note after its beautiful beginning. "Spring" demonstrates how new life cannot be protected forever and how through enduring the hardships that must come with living we in turn sacrifice our youth.