Thinking activity on Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads.

Thinking activity on Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads.

About William Wordsworth :

     William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet and he was born : 7th April, 1770 and Died: 23ed April, 1850.  Wordsworth called his poem "Experimental". Wordsworth gives his famous definition of Poetry as..

" Spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings, 

emotions recollected in tranquility. "

A fourth and final edition of Lyrical  Ballads was published in 1805. Wordsworth is a prominent one in English literature. In Preface to Lyrical Ballads Wordsworth expresses his opinion about the function of a poet and the subject matter of poetry. He rejects the classical concept in his attitude towards poet and poetry. He holds a romantic view in both the cases.

Q.1-What is the basic difference between the poetic creed of 'Classicism' and 'Romanticism'?

What is Classicism and Romanticism Definition Definition 

 Classicism believed that reason is the dominating characteristic of both nature and human nature and both are governed by fixed unchanging laws. 

 A Correctness of language, and style for a unique, elite, civilized class of people. 

 Emphasized the emotions, an individual intuition. 

 Romantic-from “romance” 

 A medieval tale of poem treating heroic personages or events written in one of the Romance   Languages.

. Classicism intellect is the guiding force. 

Romanticism imagination is the guiding Source. 

classicism believed in restrained 

Romanticism not believed in restrained they believed in liberty,freedom. 

.Classical poets believed in objectivity. 

Romantic poets believed in subjective. .

Classical poets are Alexander pope & Dryden

Romantic poets are Wordsworth shelly ,Keats ,Coleridge

Q.2-Why does Wordsworth say 'What' is poet? rather than Who is poet?

Wordsworth asked a question “ what is poet? ” he not asked us “ Who is a poet? “. Then answered his question he said : “ He is a man speaking to men ; it is true , endowed with more lively sensibility , more enthusiasm and tenderness.“ Wordsworth told that poet has knowledge of nature and more comprehensive soul , and to be common among mankind. Of Wordsworths point of view this qualities must required in poet. Like his own passions and volitions spirit of life. William Wordsworth makes quotes upon poet he went to say that

                           “ Fill your paper with the

                           Breathing of your heart.“

        Wordsworth says that poet have delighting to contemplate similar volitions and passions as manifested in the goings on of the universe and habitually compelled to create them where he does not find them. To these qualities he has added a disposition to be affected more than other man by absent things as if they were present. Then from practice , he has acquired a greater readiness and power in expressing what he thinks and feels and especially those thoughts and feelings which by his own choice or from the structure of his own mind arise in him without immediate external excitement

Q.3-What is poetic diction? Which sort of poetic diction is suggested by Wordsworth in his Preface?

              Wordsworth gives new theory of poetic diction. When we read it he gives principle of poetic diction. As we examine Wordsworth statement regarding poetic diction , the following three points come to our attention.

1.   The language of poetry should be the language ‘Really used by men’ but it also be a ‘ Selection of such language. All the words used by the people cannot be employed in poetry. It should be filtered and refined. The refined vernacular words shoud be the Diction of poetry.

“ The best portion of a good men’s life : his title , nameless , unremembered acts of kindness and love.”

2.   It should be the language of men in a state of vivid sensation. It should have a certain coloring of imagination. The poet should give the color or his imagination of the language employed by him in poetic composition.

3.   There is no essential difference the words used in prose and in metrical composition. Words of prose can find poetry are not clearly discriminated , so that words which he used in prose can find Place in  poetry and vice-verse what Wordsworth means is that the words in conversation , if they are properly selected , would provide the rough framework of the language of poetry. The language of poetry is highlighted by feeling and emotion. Through the power of imagination the poet can select words fit for poetic composition. When the poet is truly inspired , his imagination will enable him to select from the language really used by men

Q.4-What is poetry?

Please analyse Wordsworth's definition of poetry from his Preface to the "Lyrical Ballads."

"Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility

In the preface to the Lyrical Ballads, Wordsworth defines poetry thus: 

"Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings; it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility." 

 In this definition of poetry there are two apparent contradictions.  The "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" on one side and "emotion recollected in tranquility" on the other side are apparently two contradictory statements.  "Spontaneous overflow" must be immediate and unrestricted without any interval of time between feeling and its expression.  The expression "recollected in tranquility" would suggest intervention of time between feeling and its expression.  "Recollection" means remembering some impression after some lapse of time.  Wordsworth himself has tried to reconcile this apparent  contradiction in his further elucidation of his definition.  Immediate impression has a blending of both important and unimportant impressions.  When they are allowed to rest for sometime, only the important impressions remain in the memory, and the unimportant ones wash away.  The poet would then express those powerful impressions spontaneously with ease and felicity without any imposition of restriction in point of language or poetic diction.  The poet's expression of those powerful feelings must be easy, smooth and natural.

Q.5-Discuss 'Daffodils - I wandered lonely as a cloud' with reference to Wordsworth's poetic creed.

"Daffodils" by Wordsworth is the best example of his definition of poetry and a poet, there is a beautiful imagination by recollecting the memories of the scenery which he had witnessed. 

William Wordsworth's "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud " also known as “ The daffodils” is a lyric poem focusing on the poet's response to the beauty of nature. which has four stanzas; first three  in past and last in present.in first three stanza there is spontaneous overflow of feeling and and in last stanza poet recollects the memory during lining on couch,where we remembered his last line of definition "recollect it tranquility."