The world is too much with us

William Wordsworth

The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not.--Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn.

1. What two relevant denotations has "wreathed" (14)?

According to the internet, "wreathed" can mean that something is something shaped like a wreath, or adorned with a wreath.

2. Explain why the poet's words are more effective than these possible alternatives: earth for "world" (1); selling and buying for "getting and spending" (2); dozing for "sleeping" (5); posies for "flowers" (7); nourished for "suckled" (10); visions for "glimpses" (12); sound for "blow" (14).

Wordsworth word choices are more natural, which helps with the over all theme and feel of the poem. I think these words are more "relaxed," and some of them (like earth, flowers, and getting and spending) are broader than their alternatives--the images they bring to mind can vary greatly.

4. Is "Great God!" (9) a vocative of an expletive? Or something of both?

I'd say it's a little bit of both. The poet is almost telling God that he'd rather be a nature-appreciating pagan than the some-sort-of Christian he apparently is, but he's also frustrated and expaserated.

5. State the theme of the poem in a sentence.

Humanity, in its effort to evolve, expand, and become greater, has failed to stop and smell the roses.