The final couplet in the sestet features a moving indirect metaphor that compares God’s spirit in the world to a bird sitting on a nest to protect her eggs or her young. The bird’s “warm breast” and “bright wings” have positive connotations suggesting life and beauty. The metaphor reaffirms the poem’s theme of God’s being an abiding presence in the world. The interjection “ah!” echoes the expression of awe and gratitude in the previous line, while “bright” recalls the image of light suggested in the simile in the poem’s second line.

“Holy Ghost” is an allusion to the Holy Spirit, which in the Christian faith is God’s spirit present among those on Earth. The phrase “the bent / World” suggests a world out of alignment with nature and with God. The two lines are united through enjambment and the alliteration of the “B” sound in “Because,” “bent,” “broods,” “breast” and “bright.” The alliteration drives the rhythm of the lines, which strays from iambic pentameter, and creates a melodious sound.

The two lines are united through alliteration: “last lights,” “West went,” and “brown brink.” They are also united through contrasting images. The “last lights” of sunset in the west contrast with the gathering light of dawn as the sun rises in the east; the “black” of night contrasts with the “brown brink” of light in the east as the sun begin to rise and night fades. Following the description of dying light in the “black West,” the interjection “Oh” in “Oh, morning” suggests feelings of awe and gratitude. The sun’s setting and then rising each day is one of the “dearest … deep down things” in nature as the world becomes fresh and new each morning.

Hopkins’s innovative, creative poetic language in expressing ideas is illustrated in this line through its diction and syntax. The alliteration of the “D” sound in “dearest,” “deep,” and “down” unites the words as adjectives describing “things” that live in nature, despite humankind’s defilement of the natural world. “Dearest” and “deep down” suggest things of infinite value that are inherent in nature and beyond the destruction of humans. The “things” referenced in the line are then identified in the following lines. The word “freshness,” a noun that interrupts the sequence of adjectives describing “things,” commands attention as it introduces a second idea—that freshness is ever present in nature, which implies continual renewal and regeneration.

The poem is an example of a Petrarchan sonnet with an octave of 8 lines followed by a 6-line sestet. This line marks the beginning of the sestet. The abbaabba rhyme scheme of the octave now changes to the sestet’s cdcdcd rhyme scheme. The first line of the sestet also changes the focus and tone of the poem once again as Hopkins moves from a meditation of the world defiled by modern humanity to a contemplation of the natural world, created by God and infused with his presence, that always endures.

The alliteration of the “S” sound in “smudge,” “shares,” “smell,” and “soil” is continued in the following line with “shod.” Through the alliteration, Hopkins continues to stress the destructive effects of industrialization upon the natural world. The enjambment in the first of the two lines emphasizes the destruction, while the following phrase, “nor can foot feel, being shod,” implies that humans have become disconnected from nature. The alliteration of the “F” sound in “foot feel” draws attention to physically experiencing the natural world, and in the context of the phrase, it reinforces the idea of disconnection from it.

Parallelism is employed here, as “seared with trade” is parallel in construction with “bleared, smeared with toil.” The internal rhymes—“seared,” “bleared,” and “smeared” emphasize the negative connotations of the words in describing the natural world as having been defiled by humans. Also, the “T” sound in “trade” and “toil” alliterates with “trod” in the previous line, creating a relationship between the ideas in the two lines.

Through repetition, Hopkins emphasizes the idea that generations of people have relentlessly trampled the world underfoot, a metaphor suggesting a relentless assault on God’s creation.

The phrase “reck his rod” incorporates both archaic diction and figurative language. “Reck” is an archaic word meaning to heed or to show concern for. “Rod” suggests a scepter and has connotations of majesty and supreme power. The first three lines in the poem lead directly to this question in the fourth line that marks a change of tone in the text; after glorifying God, Hopkins turns to humankind’s lack of reverence for God’s majestic presence in the world. The inclusion of the word “now” creates a sense of immediacy in the poem, placing it in the context of Hopkins’s own era when the Industrial Revolution was upending life in Britain and destroying the country’s rural landscape.

In the context of Hopkins writing as a priest, the simile, “like the ooze of oil / Crushed,” may be interpreted as an allusion to holy oil used in the Catholic church in anointing the bodies of the sick and in administering the sacraments of confirmation, baptism, and holy orders. Olive oil, which has been blessed, is placed by a priest on the forehead and hands of the anointed. The enjambment in the first of the two lines emphasizes the word “Crushed,” drawing attention to the act of anointment, a most holy practice in the church.

The alliteration of the “G” sound in “gathers” and “greatness” echoes the previous alliteration in “God’s grandeur,” again stressing the power and glory of God. An active verb, “gathers” sets the grandeur of God into motion, supporting the dynamic nature of the metaphor and the simile in the previous lines.

In the context of the previous line, “flame out” refers to throwing off bursts of bright light. The light of God’s grandeur is then described with a simile, comparing it to the shining light reflected from a piece of foil. The foil’s being “shook” suggests that it catches the light when it is moved and thus creates a dynamic image.

“The world is charged” introduces an indirect metaphor that compares God’s grandeur to an electric current infusing the world, implying that God is a powerful, continuing presence in the world.

Two ideas central to the poem’s themes are found in the first line. God is described as a being of “grandeur,” meaning magnificence, glory, splendor, and majesty. The alliteration of the “G” sound in “the grandeur of God” emphasizes the idea.