The Solitary Reaper Man and the Natural World Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Line)

Quote #1

Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain; (5-6)

The woman's song is very close to nature. The rhyme on "strain" and "grain" tells us that for sure. "Grain" (a plant) goes with "strain" (a song). Lots of poets have said that art and nature are opposed to one another, but here they are totally vibing.

Quote #2

O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound. (7-8)

The "Vale" can't get enough of the woman's song. It is literally overflowing with the sound of it, as if the natural world were also an ecstatic spectator.

Quote #3

No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands: (9-12)

The natural world is full of singers, like the nightingale described here. While the reaper is very close to nature (she lives and works in the fields), she's not quite a part of it. Her song is way different from the bird's song.