Romantic era poets like Coleridge and Wordsworth both relied heavily on nature imagery to convey core themes, and often nature became a theme unto itself. In "To William Wordsworth," Coleridge writes accolades for his friend using many of the tropes of Romanticism, including the liberal use of nature metaphors to commend Wordsworth's creativity. The metaphors are mainly encapsulated by the spirit of springtime and the ebbing of energy that seasonal rebirth entails. Elements of nature in "To William Wordsworth" include the tumultuous transition from winter into spring, with its attendant storms, as well as the swelling and ebbing of energy that comes from the act of gestation, procreation, and birth.
In "To William Wordsworth," Coleridge shows that poetry and the act of creating poetic verse is akin to the mystery of creation itself. Coleridge uses analogies of pregnancy and birth to underscore the parallel between creative writing in poetic format and the act of procreation by human beings. For example, he writes of "momentary stars of my own birth / fair constellated foam…now a tranquil sea, / Outspread and bright, yet swelling to the moon." The word "swelling" refers not only to the swells of tides in the ocean but also to a mother's belly as she swells with child. Swelling also refers to the swelling of the creative spirit in the moments prior to the act of generation and creativity in artistic pursuits like poetry.
Moreover, Coleridge compares his relationship to Wordsworth to the natural relationship between a child and its mother in any animal species. Coleridge assumes the role of child, as he looks up to and idolizes his friend's creativity much as a child admires the mother and depends on the mother for wisdom, teaching, and sustenance. "In silence listening, like a devout child, my soul lay passive, by thy various strain." Most creatures are born weak and dependent, requiring both silence and passivity to absorb the wisdom passed down from the mother. Coleridge is thus using natural imagery related to procreation for two distinct purposes. The first purpose of birth imagery is to liken creative writing to the creation of all life on Earth. The second purpose of the birth imagery is to connect Wordsworth with the concept of motherhood and portray the poet...
William Wordsworth: A Wordsmith for All Time Harold Bloom in his book Genius: A Mosaic of One Hundred Exemplary Creative Minds says "Wordsworth remains, in the twenty-first century, what he has been these last two hundred years: the inventor of a poetry that has been called, at intervals, Romantic, post Romantic, Modern, and Postmodern, yet essentially is one phenomenon: the replacement of subject matter by the poet's subjectivity" (377). It is
William Wordsworth as the quintessential Romantic poet - a man in love with the idea of a simple life lived close to nature - that we are apt to overlook the fact that his relationship with nature is in fact a somewhat ambivalent one, or at least a complex one. While Wordsworth will always be known for the clarity and undiluted Romanticism of "Tintern Abbey," to assume that his
The same is true of politics, where there are few women political leaders, and the United States has never seen a woman president or vice-president. It is interesting to note that Wollstonecraft hopes women will "grow more and more masculine" in order to compete with men, and yet, Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has been criticized for that very attribute, pointing to how little real difference there is between today
"Buonaparte" elucidates clearly how Nature and social interaction bring about human freedom and social progress. The analysis of "Tables Turned" and "Buonaparte" brings into focus the important points that make up Wordsworth's political views. His consistent criticism of the Enlightenment, rationalization, modernization, and the French Revolution demonstrates his belief that the path towards rationalization of society has brought greater adverse rather than beneficial effects. In the texts that follow, the
Wordsworth and Coleridge's Response To Nature Nature has played an important role in inspiring poets throughout time and William Wordsworth's involvement in discussing this topic is especially intriguing, considering the strong connection that the poet seems to have with the natural world. By taking into account Samuel Taylor Coleridge's perspective on Wordsworth's writings, one can gain a more complex understanding concerning the latter's feelings with regard to the environment. Wordsworth practically
His belief that literature is a magical blend of thought and emotion is at the very heart of his greatest works, in which the unreal is often made to seem real. Samuel Taylor Coleridge effectively freed British (and other) poetry from its 18th century Neo-classical constraints, allowing the poetic (and receptive) imagination to roam free. Works Cited Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. Kublai Khan. In The Portable Coleridge, I.A. Richards Ed.). New York: Penguin, 1987.
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