Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"An Echo from Willow-Wood" is a poem by Christina Rossetti, published in her 1862 collection "The Prince's Progress and Other Poems." The poem tells the story of a woman who hears her lover's voice echoing through the woods and longs to be reunited with him.

The poem is structured as a dialogue between the woman and her lover's echo. In the first stanza, the woman asks the echo to reveal the speaker's identity. In the second stanza, the echo responds that the speaker is her lover, who is now far away. The woman then laments her separation from her lover and wishes for him to return to her.

In the third stanza, the woman asks the echo if it remembers the love they shared, and the echo responds that it does. The fourth stanza describes the woman's feelings of longing and despair, as she imagines her lover with another woman.

In the final stanza, the woman asks the echo to convey a message to her lover, telling him that she still loves him and hopes for their reunion. The echo promises to deliver the message, but reminds the woman that her lover is far away and may never return.

Overall, "An Echo from Willow-Wood" is a poignant meditation on love, loss, and the enduring power of memory and longing. Through the dialogue between the woman and the echo, Rossetti explores the themes of separation, nostalgia, and the yearning for connection that are central to much of her poetry.

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