...James Smith Prof. K. Allens ENL 102- 63 10 October 2013 “I wondered Lonely as A Cloud” By William Wordsworth (1770-1850) The second of five children born to John Wordsworth and Ann Cookson, William Wordsworth was born on 7 April 1770 in Cocker mouth, Cumberland (Heritage). Wordsworth's father, even though rarely present, taught him poetry, comprising of Milton, Shakespeare and Spenser. Though Hawkshead School was Wordsworth's first involvement with education, he was taught to read by his mother, while attending a tiny school of poor standard in Cockermouth (Everett). "I wandered lonely as a cloud" proceeds in the Lake District of Northern England. This area is famous for its hundreds of lakes, stunning breadths of season daffodils In Wordsworth's poem of topic, he begins in the first stanza the memory of a time when he meandered over the valleys and hills, "lonely as a cloud." Finally, he came across a crowd of daffodils stretching out over almost everything he could see, "fluttering and dancing in the breeze” (Cambridge). In the second stanza, the author delves into more elements about the daffodils. They reminded him of the Milky Way, maybe because there were so many flowers swarming together that they seemed to be never-ending. The author speculates that there were ten thousand daffodils, which were "Tossing their heads in sprightly dance" (Gill). The third stanza, the speaker compares the surfs of the large lake to the waves of daffodils swaying in the wind. While...
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...philosophical movement that redefined the fundamental ways in which people in Western cultures thought about themselves and about their world.(Brooklyn College) The early Romantic period begins with the first edition of Lyrical Ballads by William Wordsworth - co-written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. I'm going to specifically refer to three poetic works by Wordsworth when referring to the imagination, nature, and emotion used as components of Romantic Literature: "The Tables Turned", "My Heart Leaps Up", and "I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud." Imagination was considered to be one of the highest faculties of the mind during the Romantic era. The Romantics used their imaginations as the ultimate shaping tool for their literature. It was their creative power in that it was dynamic, active, and provided many functions for creating all art. Wordsworth suggested that it is also the faculty that helps humans to constitute reality for we not only perceive the world around us, but also in part create it. The Romantics are also extremely concerned with the healing nature of the imagination in that it can reconcile differences and opposites in the world of appearance. It inextricably enables us to "read" nature as a system of symbols. (Brooklyn College) Wordsworth uses all aspects of the Romantic view of imagination in "The Tables Turned." I am specifically drawn to the healing aspect of the imagination that he is trying to push on the person whom this poem is written for in the first two stanzas...
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...This essay intends to compare the perspectives of two romantic poets, William Wordsworth and George Gordon Byron, toward nature. In1921, David Nichol Smith commented on William Wordsworth as ‘our greatest nature poet’ and it is an opinion many would still believe in. As a poet of Nature, Wordsworth is at the highest ranking. He is a worshipper of Nature, Nature’s enthusiast or high-priest. The poem ‘I wandered lonely as a cloud’ or commonly known as ‘Daffodils’ is one of the last remaining truly well-liked poems. From it, one obtains an image of Wordsworth as someone comforted and enlivened by the flowers he finds while walking among the dales and hills. His worship of Nature was likely more genuine, and more sympathetic, than that of any other English poet. Nature comes to take up a different or independent position in his poem and is not treated in an indifferent or hasty manner as by poets before him. Wordsworth had a mature philosophy, a new and innovative perspective of Nature. Three points in his doctrine of Nature may be indicated: I. Wordsworth understood Nature as a living character. He believed that there is a holy spirit permeating all the articles of Nature. This belief in a pervasive holy spirit may be named as spiritual Pantheism and is completely indicated in Tintern Abbey and in some passages in Book II of The Prelude. II. Wordsworth believed that the system of Nature gives pleasure to the human heart and he regarded Nature as practicing a healing effect...
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...back to England 1798 with the works of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who wrote a book of poems called “Lyrical Ballads.” The era reached its peak around 1800 to 1840. The Romanticism era focused on human emotions, nature, natural settings, and local environments. The Romanticism era also focused on matters of the heart opposed to matters of reason and rationalism. This was a time of expression that documented personal experiences and ones way of life. This was a time when artist were recognized for their exceptional talents and individualism, a time that bought about change and artistic freedom. The Romanticism era presented unique works of art like dances, paintings and poetry. The pieces of art work contained intellectual and literary skills that portrayed the rich artistic culture of the time. Since its beginning, artists have been able to produce artistic pieces that have stood the test of time. For example, “I wondered lonely as a cloud” is a poem by William Wordsworth. The poem exposes the ideals and values of the Romanticism era in a specific way. The era came as a rebellion to the social and political values of that time. Many romantics saw the dangers of technology, they feared that man would lose his ability to bound with nature due to the technological advances of the times. In Wordsworth poem there is no mention of technology only the importance of man’s ability to connect with nature. In this poem Wordsworth compares...
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...Preface to Lyrical Ballads: summary In the preface to Lyrical Ballads, William Wordsworth provides us a wide vision of his style of poetry. Wordsworth pursues to break out from the previous poetry and he consequently bases his poetry on simplicity. As such, his themes deal with humble and rustic life. He uses these themes since: feelings can be freely expressed, the manners of rural life are simple thus encouraging the understanding of human nature, and human passions are linked to nature being subsequently more durable. Moreover, regarding his language and characters, both are connected to rustic life: characters are close to nature and to a state of simplicity and therefore, they are able to have elementary feelings and passions. Furthermore, Wordsworth stated that there are no personifications of abstract ideas in his volumes and that he pretends to adopt the language of man. For that, he includes what is usually called poetic diction. By doing this, he is able to bring this language near to the language of man. His writing attracts the common man and can be understood by every man. In addition, in relation to the metre, Wordsworth defends its use and he supports the idea that it is a source of pleasure. On the other hand, Wordsworth provides us his conceptions of what a poet is and what is poetry. For him, a real poet is: “a man speaking to men: a man, it is true, endued with more lively sensibility, more enthusiasm and tenderness, who has a greater knowledge of human...
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...literature and the revolutionary idealism in European politics are both generated by the same human craving for freedom from traditions and tyranny. The Romantic Movement revives the poetic ideals of love, beauty, emotion, imagination, romance and beauty of Nature. Keats celebrates beauty, Shelley adores love, Wordsworth glorifies nature Byron idealizes humanism, Scott revives the medieval lore and Coleridge amalgamates supernatural. As a result, the Romantic Movement revolts against the ideals, principles, intellectualism, aristocracy and technicality of Augustan period and smoothed the run of broad emotional gallery of substance relinquishing the rigidity of ‘form’. From sociological and political perspective it is not unfair to say that Romanticism and French Revolution are synonymous. In fact, Rousseau’s social theory roughly embodies in the familiar phrase of ‘the return to nature’ while the battle cry of French Revolution – liberty, equality and Fraternity – are influential on the youthful imagination of Romantic poets. Rousseau establishes the cult of the individual and championed the freedom of the human spirit. Rousseau’s sentimental influence touches Blake, Wordsworth and Coleridge; his intellectual influence Godwin, and through Godwin Shelly. Byron and Shelley also share the champion of liberty and revolutionary idealism. A wonderful humanitarian...
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...it deals with many concepts and such as symbolism, individualism, myths and emotion. The literature of this period was not just concentrated on the theory of romantics with the thought of love being the center of romanticism even though some of the works may be about love and affection, plenty of works like those assigned deal with different types of romanticism. Williams Wordsworth shows romanticism with his different uses of symbols in his writings and the same can be seen with works done by Leo Tolstoy. The lines that are taken out of the Tintern Abbey, he speaks about the light and darkness and describes them in certain ways. The “joyless daylight” (Wordsworth, 436) represents the truth and the light helps an individual see the truth. Sometimes the truth may not be what the individual wants to see and the darkness that he mentions represents hiding the truth from people and whoever the individual may be making them feel better. The symbolism he uses shows a grim type of romanticism that the period brings into sight. The next piece of literature would be the works from Leo Tolstoy. Like William Wordsworth, it shows a grim type of symbolism in the piece of The Death of Ivan Ilyich. The story gives symbolism that can be analyzed with the five stages of death developed by Elisabeth Kubler Ross. The different stages can be seen throughout the story showing symbols of him going through the stages denial, anger, depression, bargaining and acceptance. One of the key points that...
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...Wordsworth’s Poetry William Wordsworth ← Analysis → Wordsworth’s monumental poetic legacy rests on a large number of important poems, varying in length and weight from the short, simple lyrics of the 1790s to the vast expanses of The Prelude, thirteen books long in its 1808 edition. But the themes that run through Wordsworth’s poetry, and the language and imagery he uses to embody those themes, remain remarkably consistent throughout the Wordsworth canon, adhering largely to the tenets Wordsworth set out for himself in the 1802 preface to Lyrical Ballads. Here, Wordsworth argues that poetry should be written in the natural language of common speech, rather than in the lofty and elaborate dictions that were then considered “poetic.” He argues that poetry should offer access to the emotions contained in memory. And he argues that the first principle of poetry should be pleasure, that the chief duty of poetry is to provide pleasure through a rhythmic and beautiful expression of feeling—for all human sympathy, he claims, is based on a subtle pleasure principle that is “the naked and native dignity of man.” Recovering “the naked and native dignity of man” makes up a significant part of Wordsworth’s poetic project, and he follows his own advice from the 1802 preface. Wordsworth’s style remains plain-spoken and easy to understand even today, though the rhythms and idioms of common English have changed from those of the early nineteenth century. Many of Wordsworth’s poems (including...
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...William Wordsworth's piece, "The Rainbow," offers an intriguing look into the human soul. Standing at only ten lines, the poem details a journey through Wordsworth's philosophical beliefs. Although it appears simplistic, this poem details many complex ideas. Wordsworth's opening lines explain how: "My heart leaps up when I behold / A rainbow in the sky" (1-2). Wordsworth is overjoyed at nature, a common theme in all of his work, but what's more is that he states: "So was it when my life began; / So it is now I am a man; / So be it when I shall grow old, / Or let me die!" (3-6). As a child, ("when my life began") Wordsworth felt the same way about rainbows and nature as he does now, completely awestruck and in reverence. Moreover, Wordsworth hopes his adoration of nature will continue as he matures, even to his death bed. If not, Wordsworth would rather die prematurely. The last three lines contain one of Wordsworth's most famous phrases: "The Child is father of the Man; / And I could wish my days to be / Bound each to each by natural piety" (7-10). Wordsworth is happy enough to have kept his appreciation of nature and only wishes it will last him forever, in "natural piety." With the line: "The Child is father of the Man", Wordsworth evokes a number of ideas. To start, Wordsworth details how the child is father simply through greatness. The child falls in love with nature as soon as it is born. This admiration is both an inherent trait as well as something to be gained when...
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...like all literary periods, is a reaction to what came before it. Unlike most literary periods, it was an almost complete rejection of the immediate preceding period. They rejected nearly every idea from the enlightenment/neoclassical writers and artists. Hence, the writers of this period were often social critics. Three authors whom fall into this category are William Wordsworth, William Blake, and Matthew Arnold. This period is believed to be the most drastic reaction in literary history. Wordsworth's preface of 1800 has been recognized as the first text of English Romantic criticism. In his "Preface to Lyrical Ballads" of 1800, William Wordsworth had similarly proposed a transformation of poetry that would correspond to the "revolutions not of literature alone, but likewise of society itself" (245). Such thinking presupposed that separation between the classifications of politics and literature by the end of the eighteenth century had already formed. He said that in his poetry he wanted to represent "incidents and situations from common life." He said he wanted to use a "selection of language really used by men." Wordsworth may seem to focus on nature, but he is actually using nature to comment on society. By pointing out certain aspects of nature he is able to study the issues that are created as society drifts farther and farther away from a more natural way of life. His work goes beyond simply pointing out the beauty and tranquility of nature to his readers and incites them...
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...The Solitary Reaper – William Wordsworth “The Solitary Reaper” is a poem written by a well-known English poet, and a founder of the romantic movement of English literature, William Wordsworth. The poem is from 1807, the romanticism period. The poem is composed of four stanzas, with eight lines. The first and fourth stanzas have a rhyme scheme of ABABCCDD, while the second stanza have a rhyme scheme of ABAB, and the third one have a rhyme scheme of AABB. The poem has a simple structure. The first stanza describes the scene where the young girl is standing alone in a field, singing while she is reaping, and cutting grain. In the two next stanzas the speaker compares the girl’s beautiful sound with the cries of the nightingale and Cuckoo-bird. His comparison can be interpreted in two ways. The first interpretation is that the girl’s sound is so beautiful that nothing can equal its beauty and sweetness. The song the girl is singing is so sad and touching that anyone who passes by should either stop and listen, or pass gently by without disturbing her, Stop here, or gently pass!, (p.93 l.19). The second way is that the words the girl is singing is in a language unknown to the speaker, and he cannot understand what the girl is singing about, he just assumes what she might be singing about, Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow /For old, unhappy, far-off things/ And battles long ago:/ Or is it some more humble lay / Familiar matter of to-day?/ Some natural sorrow, loss, or...
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...natural self. Samuel Taylor Coleridge, one of the pioneers of the Romantic Movement, believed that the creative imagination was the key to man achieving his connection to the sublime. This caused much difficulty though, as the source of creative imagination was impossible to trace and because creative inspiration was quite fickle. Coleridge struggled with this conundrum throughout his life, but felt that as a poet and as one who understood the importance of the creative imagination it was his right and responsibility to better mankind through his poetry. William Wordsworth was, along with Coleridge, another leader in the early Romantic Movement. Wordsworth believed that beauty and inspiration was to be found in the most rudimentary and common things, and was not something that could only be found in the high and lofty. It was the role of the poet to extract and explain that beauty. In his preface to “Lyrical Ballads” Wordsworth describes a poet as a man speaking to men, but ensures...
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... Abstract Wordsworth was of the view that ‘Poetry is spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings. When reading this statement, one might think that, for Wordsworth, poetic composition is solely based on the expression of emotions, excluding any reflection about them. But Wordsworth gave equal importance to the element of thought in poetry and says that poems to which any value is attached were never produced on any variety of subjects but by a man who being possessed of more than usual organic sensibility, has also thought long and deep. Wordsworth believes that artistic process is combination of thought and emotion. This research article will study Wordsworth’s concept of poetic creation Wordsworth believes that artistic process is combination of thought and emotion . During the poetic process, the poet is possessed by powerful passions but he undergoes a period of emotions reflected in tranquility. During this process the influxes of feelings are modified and directed by thoughts. The direction of thought adds a depth of meaning and truth to poetry. For Wordsworth poetry is a method of interpreting the reality or the meaning of life. Introduction Generally the critics criticize the Romantics for being too emotional. They quote Wordsworth’s famous statement, ‘Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings’ (Wordsworth,1989:57)1 as evidence but overlook Wordsworth’s entire concept of creative process of which emotions are a part. Wordsworth makes this statement ...
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...Life and Death in Wordsworth’s “We Are Seven” As a romantic poet and a lover of nature and humanity, William Wordsworth wrote often about life and death. His lyrical ballad “We Are Seven” looks at these issues from the perspective of both an adult and a child, posing the question of whether death truly separates the living from the departed. Wordsworth had a strong family tie with his sister, Dorothy, and an affinity for the world of nature, in which he spent much of his childhood. The happy memories of playing in and exploring the natural world inspired him throughout his life, and he maintained a close relationship with Dorothy. This feeling of family closeness, combined with his vision of children as creatures attuned to nature and untouched by the cares of adult life, is evident in “We Are Seven.” The poet begins by juxtaposing the attributes and promise of a child’s life with the specter of death: A simple Child, That lightly draws its breath, And feels its life in every limb, What should it know of death? (Wordsworth 1-4) Wordsworth presents the image of an innocent child, an eight-year-old girl that he, as the poem’s narrator, encounters on a walk through the countryside. By describing her as possessing “a rustic, woodland air” (9), he evokes a feeling of the unadulterated innocence of the natural world, unspoiled by the interference of civilized society. The narrator, who is evidently a practical-minded gentleman, questions the little girl about the size of her...
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...Analysis of William Wordsworth’s “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” “Edna St. Vincent Millay once wrote, "And all the loveliest things there be come simply, so it seems to me."”(A)The quote couples well with the simple pleasures found in William Wordsworth’s poem titled “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”. On “April 15, 1802, Wordsworth and his sister, Dorothy, were walking near a lake at Grasmere, Cumbria County, England”(B). While walking the coastline, Wordsworth stumbles upon a sea of daffodils swaying in the wind. In his poem Wordsworth sits on his couch thinking back to this experience, appreciating how lovely it was. Through careful choice of metaphors, similes, personification, and diction, William Wordsworth guides the reader through his experience walking with the daffodils. Wordsworth puts to use poetic devices to give the reader a clear image of what he was seeing that day by the water. Not only does he want the reader to feel his emotions, but to stand in his shoes and experience the moment with him. In the first stanza, we are given a wealth of imagery to set the scene. The author wanders through “vales and hills, When all at once [he] saw a crowd/A host, of golden daffodils.” Here the author uses alliteration to demonstrate to the reader that the daffodils come to view as a group as if he is summiting a hill and they wait on the other side, hiding from behind the hill. The daffodils are situated “Beside the lake, [and] beneath the trees.” Wordsworth again uses alliteration...
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