The Last of the Flock

In "The Last of the Flock" by William Wordsworth, the narrator comes upon a grown man weeping in the middle of the road because he had to sell all his sheep but one, and that one ended up dying. The crying man says "For me it was a woeful day" 3 times, which emphasizes the sadness that he feels. It is obvious that he is sad because his flock is gone, but I think he also feels sad and guilty about loving his children less. He had to sell his sheep so he could feed his ten children, and for this he was upset with them. He even says, "And now I care not if we die, And perish all of poverty." He goes on to say that he loved his flock just as much as his children, and as the flock decreased so did the love for his children. For this, he thinks he is cursed, and acknowledges that it was an evil time. The narrator says that it is uncommon for a grown, healthy man to cry. Crying in the Romantic age was usually associated with children. But after being cursed, losing his flock, and losing the love for his children, how could the man not cry? If the man had not sold his flock and therefore not provided food for his children, then his children would have been crying instead. In a way, he takes their role, because children were the ones that usually cried. Even though he is extremely sad, he was a good father and saved his children the pain. And even though he thinks he loves his children less, by being unselfish and providing for them he is in reality showing his love for them. In the end, he chose his children over his flock, and although he is sad now, he spared the feelings of many others.