2026 Undergraduate Research Showcase

The Magic of the Wind in “The Eolian Harp” and “Ode to the West Wind”

Document Type

Student Presentation

Presentation Date

4-24-2026

Faculty Sponsor

Dr. Kim Carter-Cram

Abstract

In my paper titled, “The magic of the wind in “The Eolian Harp” and “Ode to the West Wind,” I describe how each poet—Percy Shelley and Samuel Taylor Coleridge—views nature and the supernatural and how those two things go hand-in-hand with each other in each of their respective poems. More specifically, I talk about the wind and how each poet views the wind as a vehicle for the supernatural to collide with the natural world. To help the reader understand why the poets view the wind this way, I go into detail about the nature of Romanticism and that era of literature. I describe what role nature played in the Romantic period while also making sure to mention the relevant historical contexts that influenced the poets and their ideas about nature. For example, the Industrial Revolution. I used outside scholarly research and sources to help inform my ideas and findings. Also through my analysis, I compare and contrast the two poems and poets and what their writing says about how they view nature and the supernatural and how those two things go hand-in-hand with each other.

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