and spread it around the world. This is the underlying theme to the poem with Shelley alluding to the breaking of Christ's body on the cross and how that was essential for humanity to reach salvation. The onslaught of Autumn is the 'Destroyer' in one sense but also the 'Preserver' as it forms an intricate part of the cycle of life and death. Without the death of Jesus Christ the world would not have been saved and so for life to exist so too must death. Referred to as an "unseen presence"(l.2) the wind is naked to the human eye. However the physical manifestation of the wind can be felt and it's effect on nature cannot be ignored. The personification of the wind - "thou breath of Autumn's being"(l.1) - supports its spirituality. This is further illustrated when Shelley explicitly calls the West Wind "Spirit" and a "wild Spirit". Coupled with the elusiveness of the wind to the human eye the effect is that the wind is an "uncontrollable" power that cannot be contained. In the fifth stanza Shelley refers to "the incantation of this verse"(l.65) - this is of pagan origins and he is invoking the wind to work through him. As a magician the wind works it's magic throughout nature and it knows no bounds as the earth, water and air all feel it's power. The imagery associated with this suggests that Shelley expected his work to also spread over the universe, like the wind, and inspire others just as the wind was an inspiration to him. The "dead thoughts" he refers to could be the words he has written down that die as soon as they are recorded. Although not the source of his inspiration others could read them and experience what he felt in that wood that skirts the Arno. In the tradition of the sublime this description acts as a denial of sense perception and it is associated with an object of pure thought - an unknown power that animates all life. The wind is, therefore, seen as a spirit because of its lack of being. This spirit can only be know...
