Ode to the West Wind " is an ode , written by Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1819 near Florence , Italy . It was originally published in 1820 by Charles in London as part of the collection '' Prometheus Unbound , A Lyrical Drama in Four Acts , With Other Poems '' . Perhaps more than anything else , Shelley wanted his message of reform and revolution spread , and the wind becomes the trope for spreading the word of change through the poet-prophet figure . Some also believe that the poem was written in response to the loss of his son , William ( born to Mary Shelley ) in 1819 . The ensuing pain influenced Shelley . The poem allegorises the role of the poet as the voice of change and revolution . At the time of composing this poem , Shelley without doubt had the Peterloo Massacre of August 1819 in mind . His other poems written at the same time — " The Masque of Anarchy " , '' Prometheus Unbound '' , and " England in 1819 " — take up these same themes of political change , revolution , and role of the poet
Peterloo Massacre
Peterloo Massacre
Ode to the West Wind