To a Skylark (Poem) Summary
Percy Bysshe Shelley

To a Skylark (Poem) Overview

Percy Bysshe Shelley’s poem “To a Skylark” is an iconic work of nineteenth-century romantic poetry. As an ode, it occupies a canonical position in English verse. Shelley contemplates the ecstatic and the esoteric aspects of nature and questions the peculiar, seemingly tragic, position of human beings within this natural order. The poem presents a number of compelling themes, including the concord and discord between human beings and nature, the transcendental moments of life, and human suffering.