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Why did William Wordsworth stop to listen the song of solitary reaper?

Although it is written in a first person point of view, the speaker of the poem is not necessarily William Wordsworth. The speaker seems to be a traveller who is about to walk up a hill when they hear the reaper's song. The woman reaping in the fields is singing "a melancholy strain" in another language, but the speaker says it makes them feel welcome. The speaker stops to listen more closely to the reaper's song, as he cannot determine what she is singing about. The speaker wonders if it is about the past, issues in modern times, or a more timeless feeling, like sorrow, pain, or loss. Regardless of what the reaper's seemingly never-ending song is about, it makes the speaker feel connected to the reaper and they are moved by her song. The speaker is acknowledging how much music can unite people, even if they are from very different backgrounds and do not speak the same language. The speaker holds the music in his or her heart "long after it was heard no more."

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