Wordsworth's "I have traveled among strange men" appears at first to be a tribute to a woman he loved and a poem of patriotism. It is initially unclear how Lucy and England are similar beyond the fact that they are things that are ultimately important to him. Through further interpretations, it becomes apparent that Wordsworth used specific tools such as personification and nature imagery to connect the two beyond the reader's initial reaction. Once the reader realizes how connected Lucy and England are, the feelings of loss related to the "melancholy" experience of Wordsworth's journey are linked to his feelings about Lucy's death as a experience of travel and not just expulsion from his life. This poem is not a statement about life and love, but a statement about death as a lifelong journey. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In the first two stanzas, Wordsworth chooses not to mention Lucy in an attempt to emphasize the importance of her love and devotion to England. He decides that he did not understand “what love [he] had for [England]” (4) until he left England to travel to other countries. He describes his travel adventures as a “melancholy dream” (5) and promises not to “leave [England's] shores/A second time” (6-7). In making this promise, he not only recognizes the importance that his journey has played in his love for England, but also he realizes that in his path of travel he is being given a second chance; Lucy's journey away from England is permanent. Wordsworth also uses personification tactics throughout the poem. He chooses to personify England and describe human feelings of love and devotion towards it. Personifying England makes it easier for the reader to connect the country to Lucy because it already seems so human. Wordsworth also decides to describe his foreign travels by the people he met rather than the landscapes themselves. In doing so, he conveys to the reader the importance of a personal connection with the people in one's life. Traveling in a foreign territory "among strange men" would undoubtedly create a feeling of the unknown and a sense of loss until one returned to England. In these observations, the reader must also realize that Lucy herself has traveled in some direction. Once the reader realizes that Wordsworth and Lucy have left England on their own terms, this poem becomes not a poem declaring timeless love, but a description of what death must be like. This can be interpreted in two ways, depending on the reader's experience with other of Wordsworth's poetry. A reader who is unfamiliar with other works may interpret that Lucy's death would be a horrible experience and departure from her home. Wordsworth left England only temporarily and feels that his journey was a miserable experience that left him in an altered state of consciousness, much like a "melancholy dream" (5). He is able to return to England and renew his faith and love for her; feelings of happiness return to his life upon his return. Lucy has left England for good. She will never be able to come back and regain feelings of happiness and hope. The reader is then left to wonder if this altered melancholy state that Wordsworth temporarily found himself in during his journey is Lucy's fate permanently, for her travels will never bring her back. However, ».