
William Wordsworth’s poem “Nuns Fret not at Their Convents Narrow Room” is one which, depending on the reader, can be interpreted in a totally different way than what Wordsworth intended. The poem attempts to prove the point that not everyone needs lavish or free spirited lives to be happy. Wordsworth says the people such as nuns and students can be totally content with that type of life and find solace in situations that others may find not so appealing. His form of repetition in this poem is the descriptions of different types of people and their professions along with how they are not typically ideal professions. He mentions these types of lifestyles that all have one major theme in common which is that they are not particularly appealing to many of the people reading. Nevertheless, the point he makes is that, regardless of how dire their situations may be they still lead happy lives. This poem portrays the idea that people do not need much to be happy and can be content with simple lives, however for many reading this is not true. People cannot truly lead lives to their fullest potential without freedom and none of these professions described by Wordsworth have that, they are all bound in some way to someone or something else.

For some happiness may not require much but inversely for some it may require a lot. One thing that all of these people have in common besides that they all have generally unappealing lifestyles is that none of them can truly live freely because each one is under some form of rule by someone or something else. For example, the nuns have to maintain their dedication to God and are persuaded to not think totally freely but to stay within the confines of their religion. The narrow convents that they live in should be the last of the things that they have to worry about. Total freedom of the mind is key to finding happiness because if not, the happiness one experiences is only as much as the controller will allow. Or, to add to that, the maid is employed by a person who is higher up in the ranks of society than her and she most likely never crosses that person’s mind other than when it is time to pay. The maid cleans this house that she has no way of ever obtaining and does it because she has told herself that that is her worth and what she is good for. With that mindset one can never truly be happy because they have not given themselves the chance to even branch out and see what else there is to make them happy. Wordsworth says to close the poem, “Who have felt the weight of too much liberty, should find brief solace there, as I have found” (Wordsworth 13-14) which shows that for him it was too much to handle. However, for him to speak on behalf of others and say they will find brief solace there is not fair since most people who enjoy liberty are the happiest it seems.

It is not so much that what these people do or how they live is so bad but instead the fact that they and every other human settle for less than what they deserve: freedom. There is no worse thing in this world than being obligated to someone or something else and many would agree that once one achieves individuality they will then be granted solitude. The feeling of being yourself is something that cannot be replicated because only you know what it is like. Some want to fit in with others and some just do not know better but deep down everyone wants to be able to think and do their own way. Wordsworth makes the argument that solitude can be achieved with simplicity and even torture-like lifestyles but that is no way to live. Wordsworth goes on to say, “In truth the prison, into which we doom ourselves, no prison is” (Wordsworth 8-9) basically admitting that a bad situation really is not that bad, but that is exactly wrong from what many believe. For that reason, there are those who rise up and refuse to succumb to these situations and find happiness even more so than those who do succumb. 

Living within bounds is not truly living. If the nun believes in God and lives by what he says that is fine and that is her prerogative, however if God did put us here he did not do so for us to worship him around the clock. He would have done so because he had faith in us to step and think outside the box. To some this type of thinking may be considered sacrilege but to those who truly want to live it is the only way to think. Freedom is key to happiness however freedom can only be achieved if you believe that you deserve it. The nuns and the students are not really free, they are under a strict code of conduct and therefore they cannot be as happy as they might otherwise be if they were not. People have used psychology to get others to obey them since the beginning of human civilization and it still occurs today. The ones who were able to realize that they had the capability to think for themselves and change the predicament that they were in were the ones that went on to be free. They then in some cases used the same manipulation on others. Every person has the right to free thought and every person should believe that there is no limit to what they can do.

The beauty of reading is that the interpretation of the message is ultimately up to the reader in the end. For this specific poem, the message that Wordsworth implied was not received in the way he intended but another one was; a message to dare to be happy. Of course some people may live happy lives if they choose to play it safe and not think to their full capability. However, these people could potentially be even happier if they told themselves that there was more to them and more to what they are capable of. No human should be under the control of another human or way of thinking. Everyone should try to take advantage of the incredible tool called the mind and never settle for mediocre but always strive to be and do more.
