A sonnet is a short poem composed of exactly fourteen lines, never more and never less.  Readers interpret it differently based off of their previous knowledge or personal opinions.  Having a different perspective on a piece does not mean the reader is wrong, but gives the reader an opportunity to defend their opinion with evidence.  “Nuns Fret Not at Their Convent’s Narrow Room”, written by William Wordsworth, is an illustration of the necessary structure of society, the restrictions that go hand in hand with one’s designated career, and the final gratification of content.

The line, “Maids at the wheel, the weaver at his loom,” (line 4) symbolizes the concept that each individual has a specific job.  Whether a person is a writer or a maid, they possess one responsibility and that is to fulfill their career.  Each assignment needs to be completed by the specific worker in order to keep the world turning.  Without a weaver, we would not have fabric and without fabric we would not have clothes, and what would we wear if we did not have clothes?  The line “And students with their pensive citadels;” (3) is important because children are the future and it is important to provide the necessary materials for them to succeed.  That includes a place of meditation.  The fifth line mentions one of the essential parts of life which is pollination, “Sit blithe and happy; bees that soar for bloom,” (5).  The duty of the bees is to pollinate the plants that provide humans with oxygen in order to survive.  Everyone completes a task with himself or herself in mind, but in the end whether the task is small or large, the job is essential for the well being of the whole society.  

These assignments that each one possesses come with several restrictions that can limit the freedoms of a person.  In Wordsworth’s sonnet he analyzes the several restrictions that are set on occupations.  One of the careers the speaker mentions is a writer who specifically writes sonnets, “Within the sonnet’s scanty plot of ground;” (11).  Writing sonnets puts a major restriction on a writer because a sonnet is limited to exactly fourteen lines. The positive idea of the sonnet is that with too much freedom, writers’ minds could wander which could lead to challenges for their writing.  Restrictions on jobs can be beneficial because it allows one to stay on the right track, allowing the worker to provide the most efficient product possible to benefit his or her surroundings.

The first line of the sonnet states, “Nuns fret not at their convent’s narrow room;” (1).  From previous knowledge, nuns are limited to a certain lifestyle of solitude, which they consciously accept.  If they were to go astray from this restrictive lifestyle, it would radically change the structure of the convent.  An interpretation of line one could be that each person has a job and without the limitations set on that job the career would not be the same.  These restraints allow workers to do a better job because they have a specific task to complete.  These limitations can be connected to Communism in the purist sense.  The idea of Communism focuses on the concept that every individual has a specific job that they are assigned by the government with the knowledge of their skills.  The thought behind this image of Communism is to be more effective as a society, but overtime this structure can be overly demanding.  It can also have several limitations on the workers.  Oftentimes, Communism in practice does not work as well as Communism in theory.  In theory, each individual would be doing their jobs and working for the greater good of society.  In practice, there have been countless times where certain individuals want to expand their power and take advantage of their leadership responsibilities in order to promote themselves in contrast to the society as a whole.  This is the most important piece from this bit of literature, which is that whether it is effective or not, it is how the people feel afterwards.    

With all of this said the purpose of this sonnet is to make known that although there are several restrictions that come with different work, people are content with what they do.  The speaker states, “Pleased if some Souls (for such there needs must be) / Who felt the weight of too much liberty, / Should find brief solace there, as I have found” (12-14).  An interpretation of these lines could be that although the restrictions put several limitations on writers, such as the speaker, they allow poets to find peace because they can avoid challenges such as writer’s block.  These lines should be emphasized, “And hermits are contented with their cell;” (2) and “Sit blithe and happy; bees that soar for bloom,” 5) because in spite of the fact that they possess a limited amount of freedom, they are happy with their lifestyle.   As stated in the sonnet, “In truth the prison, unto which we doom, Ourselves, no prison is: and hence for me,” (8-9).  All and all, as some complain, people realize that work is something that provides a benefit to themselves the world around them.

“Nuns Fret Not at Their Convent’s Narrow Room”, written by William Wordsworth, is a model of the structure of our civilization, the number of limits set on each line of work, and the final fulfillment that you gain from your efforts.  One is given a path to follow and it is their responsibility to stay on the given path.  The construction of a sonnet is fourteen lines and that does not change.  That lack of freedom is a force not to be reckoned with.  Rather than fight the limitation, embrace it.  The limitations that are set on a profession can be tiresome, but in the end one is content because it is more agreeable to provide a service to others than to find life meaningless.
